Cigarette lazily drooping from between her lips, Chloe wrapped her knuckles against the metallic door to the RV. Inside, the blaring music dampened as she could hear the jingle of a dog collar getting closer. There was a muffled 'stay' from a brusque voice, and then Frank opened the door. He had a tempered, excited smile as his hand extended out to the girl, already offering a beer.
There's that ugly mug.
"Happy holidays, brat," he said. Chloe gave a small snort and took a drag of her cigarette, before removing it from her lips and grasping the bottle.
"Same to you, dickhead," she replied. She examined the label of the beer for a moment, then smiled as she took a swig. He cocked an eyebrow in confusion and leaned out from the doorway, glancing down the side of the RV and across the snow covered beach. "They stayed in the truck for a sec," Chloe said, reading his mind. She touched the mouth of the bottle to her bottom lip. "Hey, thanks for...letting us bring our friend along. Big drama at home recently so she's been hanging with us the past few days."
"I trust you," he said, now leaning his shoulder against the door frame. "I'm sure she's cool. Plus, the more the merrier, right? I made sure to order some more pizza." He chuckled. "Shit, I wouldn't be surprised if I already knew her. If she goes to Blackwell, she's probably bought from me." That made Chloe instinctively tighten one eye shut in a pseudo wince.
Ooooh. Did...not take that into account. Fuck, this might be a little more than he bargained for.
"Actually Frank," she took another quick puff of her cigarette, "I kind of have to tell you something. Be cool, okay? Everything's fine, but..."
"Where is my Pom Pom!?" Max shouted, appearing from around the RV with her arm interlocked with Kate's. At this, Pompidou bolted between Frank's legs, down the step, and took off at the two girls. Kate let loose an excited squeal as Max opened her arms wide, dropping to her knees to wrap the dog in a hug. Losing focus on whatever Chloe was about to say, Frank stepped down out of the RV.
"Max, what did I say about calling him that!?" He held his hands up in offense. "He's a masculine dog and..." He sighed. "I cannot believe he answers to that." The brunette beamed at Frank.
"That's because he knows that Aunt Max brought him some treats! Right, Pom Pom?" She feverishly scratched Pompidou behind his ears with one hand while the other dipped into her jacket pocket and retrieved some dog treats. Frank raised a hand in objection, then placed it over his mouth when he realized there was no victory to be had. He exchanged a quick look with Chloe as Max stood back up and bolted into him, seizing him in a hug. "And hello to you, Frank."
"Alright, alright," he huffed, patting her on the back as if it didn't come naturally to him. "It's good to see you too." Sheepish as ever, Kate wandered between the other two girls and patiently awaited introductions.
"Frank, this is Kate," Max said, gesturing to the girl. "She goes to Blackwell with me." The small girl shyly held out a hand, which Frank took as he nodded to her.
"Frank," he said. "You look familiar...have we ever met?" Chloe allowed herself one quick 'fuck' of a nod when she noticed Max's posture straighten.
Oh, nice of you to join me on the We Made a Horrible Mistake Express, Maxy.
"I don't think so," Kate replied with a giggle, showing how absurd the idea seemed to her. "Do you know a lot of Blackwell students?"
"Not anymore," Frank scoffed. "Just these two dorks." He looked at Chloe. "I guess you don't even count." The blue haired girl took one moment to lapse out of her worry to hold a middle finger up, causing the man to chuckle. "Well, I've got some food and drinks inside. You guys are more than welcome to help yourself while I get the fire started."
"Yeah, I'll help you with that," Chloe offered as Max shuffled Kate up inside the RV. Bending over as he pulled some tinder together, Frank glanced up at her.
"Don't really need help," he laughed.
Too bad, bucko.
"Eh, I'll spot you," she reassured, taking another sip of her beer. When Max and Kate were completely out of sight, she took a step toward the fire pit and hunched down to be eye level with him. "Listen dude, I kind of...really do need to tell you something about Kate."
"Alright, I'm listening," he said, but then added more before she could talk. "She seems pretty straight laced, how the hell did she get roped in with you two?" He snickered, proud of yet another shallow but playful dig.
"Dude," Chloe stressed, snapping his attention up. "Man, I am trying to tell you. Her name's Kate Marsh. Does that ring a bell?" His eyes flickered around in confusion as he searched for an answer. Suddenly, as if a bolt of lightning struck through him, he dropped the sticks he was holding. It was the first time Chloe had ever seen a real life example of the expression 'you look like you've seen a ghost.' And it burnt in her chest that she knew exactly which ghost he was seeing. "Frank..."
"That..." He pointed at the RV. "Are you fucking telling me you brought the girl that I helped drug here?" His words were already sloppily mixing over each other as he stuttered. "Chloe, you've got to be fucking kidding me."
Okay so yeah this is about as well as I thought this would go.
"Hey," she said, putting a hand on his shoulder, "dude, it's fine. She has no idea you were involved."
"I fucking do!" He growled in a whisper. "Do you understand how much guilt I've been dealing with? I've been trying to forget every fucking night and you bring the living reminder to a casual get together!?"
"Listen," Chloe responded, trying to maintain an assertive tone, "I fucked up, I get it. I should have given you a heads up, but it's been hella fucking hectic with her the past couple of days. She basically kicked herself out of her own home because of me and Max." He buried his face in the palms of his hands and let go of a frustrated grunt. "Frank," her voice was demanding. "It's New Year's Eve, okay? This is the last night of this fucking nightmare of a year. Time to start over." She squeezed his shoulder. "We're here with you, man." After a heavy pause of silence, Frank sighed.
"It is never simple with you, is it?" He asked, shaking his head in disbelief.
"Come on, dude," she shot back with a light snicker. "Where would the fun be in that?"
Chloe watched dreamily as Max and Kate ran back and forth on the beach, a sparkler in each of the girls' hands while Pompidou chased them. She could hear the excited, childlike giggling washing in like waves and something about it pulled her heart down further into the spiral of love.
Goddamn, Max. Your laugh is like some kind of fucking miracle.
"So..." Frank began, breaking her thought, "that's really her, huh? The one that lived to tell the tale?" She turned to him and watched his faraway gaze stuck to the blonde girl like glue. Then he shook his head, grinding his teeth. "Or, the only one who remembers enough to tell the tale. Fuck knows how many girls he..."
"Frank," Chloe said, blocking the rest of the sentence. She shifted herself in the lawn chair, but made sure to keep any of her exposed skin available to the heat of the fire. "I can't pretend to understand how you feel, but you fucking know that if Rach were here she would tell you to stop beating yourself up." There was a flash of pain over his face, and Chloe wondered when the last time he had heard her name out loud was. "Is it fucked? One hundred percent. But you're...not a bad guy. You do know that, right?"
You've never been a bad person. Just a good one surrounded in shit.
"I don't know how I'm supposed to believe that," he muttered, then crammed the bottle to his lips so it clinked against his teeth. Chloe tapped her fingers against her pant leg, trying to find something to say. She looked back out and smiled when she saw Kate dancing in front of Pompidou, putting on a show with the sparklers. "Pompidou isn't a bad dog right?" She asked, turning back to him. He furrowed his brow in annoyance.
"He's a great dog, he was just raised the wrong way." Chloe held her beer out like 'right?' Frank rolled his eyes. "Nice try, Mother Goose, but it's a little different."
I was going more for Mr. Rogers but okay fine we can play it by ear.
"Well yeah, you're a person," she shot back with an impish smile. He didn't crack.
"I ruined that poor girl's life," he stated calmly, matter of factly. Chloe shrunk a bit from his tone. "Chloe, I helped killed someone. You could never know how that fe-" His voice evaporated as Chloe's head filled with the image of her shooting Frank and Pompidou right in that same spot. She saw both realities at once, Frank falling to the ground in one direction while he sat across from her sipping a beer in the other. She clamped her eyes shut and willed the scene to end.
Yeah...that one still stings.
"No," she finally said after regaining her wits, "I don't know how it feels. But..." She pointed out at the little blonde running in circles. "I can guarantee you this second that Kate could know about all of it and she would forgive you. That's just how she is."
"Let's not test that," he offered back dryly. Chloe nodded like 'duh' and pulled her feet onto the chair, tugging one of the blankets Frank had provided around her.
"My point is, we'll work it out, okay?" She leaned forward, resting her chin on her knees. "I'm not much, but I'm what you got."
"Lucky me," he said, then amended his tone. "Seriously, I'm lucky."
Me too, man. Me too.
"Our sparklers ran out!" Max shouted, trudging up the hill with Kate following. She approached Chloe and yanked her ankle toward her, pulling her legs out straight so she had a clear lap to sit in. Kate picked up one of the blankets and pulled it around her shoulders as she took a seat.
"Kid, I bought like thirty of them," Frank chuckled, hiding away the pain from the earlier conversation. Max gave an open mouthed smile and clapped her hands excitedly.
"I haven't played with sparklers since I was a kid," Kate said after releasing a 'brrrr.' "It's nice to feel young like that again." She drew the blanket tighter around her as her expression slipped into contemplation. Frank watched on, mentally berating himself, before working up a smile.
"Glad I could help you get that feeling back, Kate," he said.
As the night deepened, the antics progressed. Everyone, including Kate, was rocking a steady buzz from the consumption of alcohol and after quadruple checking to make sure the girl was fine with it, Frank and Chloe even passed a joint back and forth. As the company grew warmer, the winter cold lessened. Eventually, Chloe shambled out of the RV with a new bottle of wine in her hand and a slice of pizza hanging from her mouth. She was mumbling and nodding her head to the speaker set up by the window so music could be heard outside.
"Didn't Joyce teach you not to talk with your mouthful?" Max teased. The blue haired girl gave a quick shake of her ass in response, then handed the bottle of wine to Kate.
"I was talking about the music," she said, removing the pizza from between her teeth. She pointed it at Frank. "This song, dude. Ugh."
"You and Rachel used to love this song!" He replied, holding up his hands.
Her much more than me. This shit is traaaassssh.
"Remember the way she used to get right in your face and sing? Like..." Chloe quickly darted at him, leaning down so their eyes met and began to belt out the words in an exaggerated, out of key voice. He recoiled away from her, shaking his head and prompting a laugh from Max and Kate.
"I do not miss that," he laughed quietly once she had stopped and began to walk away. She turned back around and glared at him.
"Yes, you do..." She whispered. And it was then that for the first time since her first trip to the cemetery that she allowed herself to truly and deeply miss Rachel. Not as a romantic possibility. Not even as her idyllic angel. But as a friend.
Fuck Rach...you'd love this right now. You'd be with Frank, catcalling me and Max every time we kissed. You'd love Kate... Holy shit, you'd be so protective of her. Maybe more than me and Max put together. You always were like that and...
"Shit," she mumbled, bringing the back of her hand to her cheek to catch the forming tears. "I miss her." Max leaned forward in her seat and slid her fingers between Chloe's, squeezing gently to remind her she wasn't alone.
"Me too," Frank said, casting his eyes downward. It was silent for only a moment before Kate spoke up.
"You knew Rachel?" She asked him. He slowly looked at her and summoned a weak smile.
"Yeah," he took a swig of his beer, "we were close." Kate frowned and held her hands out for the fire as a slight chilling wind picked up.
"I'm sad I never got to know her," she said. "She seemed really special. I feel like I don't know anything about her."
She does that, Kate. Even to the people who were closest to her.
"She wanted to be a model," Frank said. "She would have been a damned good one, too." He smirked at Kate's genuine interest, her big eyes regarding him with sincerity. "I don't think she took a bad picture in her life."
I can fucking think of a few...Ugh, no. No.
"Ooh!" Max shot forward in her chair. "You should show Kate your favorite photo of her, the one you showed me!" He had a quick pained expression, showing hesitance at revealing something so sacred to him. The winter chill bit at him, causing him to shudder and rearrange the blanket draped around him as he reached inside his jacket pocket.
"I'm not a photographer but..." He stretched his arm out, handing the photo to Kate, "I think this is about as perfect as I can get." The blonde angled the photo against the flames so she could see it clearly, taking in the details of it slowly and carefully.
"She really was beautiful," Kate said. "It's...strange to think we have something so vile in common." Chloe glanced at Frank to check his reaction, but it remained unchanged. "I'm going to forever be connected to a girl I didn't even know." She looked up at the group, her eyes glassy. "No one else really understands..." Now the punk regarded Max, whose features darkened against the light of the fire. She quickly went to her.
Oh god, my poor baby. Fucking lunatic I'll never forget what he did.
"Kate," Chloe said, settling herself on top of Max. She tried to remain as cheery as she could, sending all sense of empathy to the hand she began to stroke Max's cheek with. "I know if she had a chance, you and her would be great friends. We all would. Like some clan of crazy women." She snorted. "Basically what we are anyway, but we have Frank here to make sure the estrogen doesn't pull one side of the scale through the floor."
"Yeah," Frank answered, sarcastically bobbing his head. "Crazy is right."
"But you loooove us," Max teased from behind Chloe. The man regarded her for a moment, working his jaw in thought before letting go a sound of disgust.
"Sure, whatever floats your boat, dork." He picked up another bottle and jerked it down on the arm of the lawn chair, flinging the cap onto the ground. "I guess I don't hate you being around."
"What are yourrrrrrrrrr," Kate's tipsy tongue tied itself into a knot as she tried to speak, "revolutions this year?" She giggled and made it a point to dramatically set her wine glass on the ground. "Resolutions. Sorry, I kinda let myself go tonight. Rough few days."
Holy shit, this is great. I'm so glad she has a chance to unwind in a...safe environment. Well, Frank, never thought I'd say that about you.
"Yours should be to let go more often," Chloe chuckled. "It's fucking hilarious." She tilted her head back as she thought. "Um, shit man, I have no idea. I guess to just keep not being an asshole." She held out a hand. "Actually, I've been really into this not wasting water thing..."
"I want to be the best photographer ever," Max mumbled, her face pressed firmly against Chloe's back. "Or at least start my portfolio." Kate nodded with a condensed cheer and then looked at Frank. The man watched them for a moment and then let out a sigh.
"Well, stop getting drunk with under aged kids," he said. "That's probably a good start." The girls simultaneously boo'd him, causing him to laugh. "Alright, Jesus. Probably get a real job and try to get my shit together. You know, the usual."
Sounds like a plan. I'll help anyway I can, ya big oaf.
"What about you, Kate?" Max asked, finally tugging Chloe to the side so she could speak clearly. The blonde swayed from side to side as she 'hmm'd.'
"I just...want to figure myself out," she said. "It's kind of messy all in here." She waved one hand in front of her face. Frank pointed at her.
"That's a good idea." He pulled a cigarette to his lips and lit it. "That should be everyone's goal." He cleared his throat. "Uh, I heard you had some trouble with your parents? What happened?"
Oh no way, are you offering an empathetic ear? 2013 has a few surprises left in her, I see.
"I don't know..." She muttered. "I invited Max and Chloe over and my family's very religious. My mom found out about them and started screaming, so I blew up back."
"It was like a little, adorable mushroom cloud," Chloe interjected with a grin. "I mean, it sucked, but that part was kind of neat."
"I know a bit what that's like," Frank said. "My old man had a couple of strong ideas himself when it came to God..."
Oooh, bonding sesh. I should take advantage of this.
"Hey," Chloe flitted a hand behind her, rustling against Max's stomach. "Come inside with me and eat some more pizza."
"Yes please," Max responded, giving a small push to get Chloe off of her. The blue haired girl snickered as she found her girlfriend's hand and began to pull her inside.
"Wait," Frank called out, interrupting himself and stopping the girls. He pointed at them. "Don't...fuck...in my home, okay?"
"Dude!" Chloe huffed. "We're getting food! Will you chill?" He rolled his eyes in response and turned his attention back to Kate, continuing his conversation about his father.
"What are your feelings on the one with the sausage on it?" Max asked as she was coerced into the RV. "It's like, a little spicy, right?"
"Yeah, I dig it," Chloe said, pulling the door shut behind them. "So, this is going really well considering we spaced out on something pretty serious, eh?"
"Dude, I know!" Max replied, gripping Chloe by the wrists with wide eyes. "How did we fuck that up!?" She laughed in disbelief. "Did you tell him?"
"Yeah..." Chloe shuffled across the room and plopped into the driver's seat. "He took it like a cannonball to the abs, but I think he's okay now that he's gotten to know her and sees she's doing okay."
"Well, dodged a bullet there at least," Max said, picking up a slice of pizza and analyzing the underside of it. "Kate's having fun too, though I'm a little worried about how much she's had to drink. Not really her style, you know?"
Max Caulfield, helicopter parent.
"Eh, let her have it tonight. You know she's been twisting herself inside out about everything that happened." Chloe gripped the steering wheel. "You know, I still think we should get Frank to take us somewhere in this bad boy." She shrugged deviously. "Or at least, we could ask to borrow it!"
"It's...his house?" Max chuckled, plucking a piece of pepperoni off her slice of pizza and giving it to Pompidou, who had been kept inside to stay warm. "It would be fun though." She turned and eyed Chloe up and down, unleashing a cheesy smile.
Never stop doing that please.
"What?" She asked.
"Just reminds me of the day we first kissed, is all," Max shrugged happily.
Aww, you're so cute. Damn shame Frank read my mind.
"Five minutes, guys!" Kate shouted from outside, her voice punching through the cracked window. Chloe sprung up from the seat and pulled Max into a tender hug.
"So, what do you say, Mad Max? You ready to give this year the boot?" She made sure to add several pecks in the girl's hair.
"Yeah," she replied, bobbing up to meet Chloe's lips. "Let's get this trainwreck over with."
"Ten...nine...eight..." The four of them counted down, following Kate's lead as she watched the timer on her phone. Pompidou frantically trotted in circles around the fire, feeding off the exuberance from the others. "Three...two...one...Happy New Year!" As to be expected, Chloe's first act of business was to cash in on her New Year's kiss as she gripped Max's cheeks and thrust their lips together. Frank watched on with a smirk, but was caught off guard when Kate approached him with her arms out. The girls broke the kiss just in time to witness the hug between them, with Chloe excitedly jabbing Max in the ribs with her elbow.
See that!? Starting over already!
They then took turns hugging each other, smiling giddily each time they repeated the phrase.
"Alright, Pompidou, get inside. Daddy has to blow something up," Frank said, rubbing his hands together mischievously. He scooped up a fairly large, rocket shaped firework that had been setting against the RV all night. After making sure the door was shut and Pompidou was safe inside, he beckoned the girls to follow him down onto the beach.
Look at that thing! We're going to light up all of Oregon!
"Is this legal?" Kate asked, ambling down the hill as she gripped her jacket.
"It is not," Frank responded, still grinning wickedly. "But don't worry, it's not like we're the only ones going to be setting these suckers off." Once they had gotten far enough out, he plunged the stick into the sand. He pulled a Zippo lighter from his jacket pocket and flicked the lid open. Just as he had it set at the wick, he stopped and stood back up. "Hey," he held the lighter out for Kate, "why don't you do it?"
"Oh, um, I'm eighteen," she said, pulling her hands to her chest. "I can get arrested." Max placed a hand on her shoulder.
"We're with you, Kate. You won't get in trouble," she said. The meek girl thought it over and exhaled.
"Okay, but if we see flashing lights, I'm telling them it was Pompidou," she laughed, leaning down toward the firework.
"It's a solid strategy," Chloe quipped, winding an arm around Max's waist. Kate flicked the wheel of the lighter three times before it lit, then touched the flame to the wick. It caught, and she pranced backward, giggling nervously.
The fire traveled along the wick until it reached the rocket, summoning forth a loud shriek. In another moment, it was off the ground, brilliantly shooting into the night sky. As they watched, more and more whistles could be heard as the sky filled with fireworks. They began to explode in the distance, lighting up Arcadia Bay with dazzling colors. Then theirs went off, spreading out a large, vibrant purple. Chloe tugged Max even closer, bearing her teeth in a smile as 2013, simultaneously the worst and best year of her life, faded with the colors.
Alright, 2014...show me what you got.
A/N: A new year awaits.
Interestingly, "Max and Chloe spend New Years with Frank" was something I had come up with long ago, but only while writing the last chapter did I realize I could add Kate to the mix. Exploring the unfortunate connection between her and Frank was an opportunity I didn't want to miss, and I hope I did an alright job of it.
Side note: I know it's a fairly common opinion that "Katie" on Frank's dealer list is our Kate, which would mean they did in fact know each other. I personally don't hold this belief, so I didn't include that here.
Thanks for reading guys! I hope you enjoyed. Muah muah.