"Max, stop fidgeting. You look hot."
Victoria smacked Max's hand away from adjusting the hem of the dress. It barely reached mid-thigh. The dress was a backless lace dress with lace cap sleeves. It was more snug than she was used to. Victoria insisted she needed it to be tight to accentuate the little bit of curves she had.
"Put your lips like this." Victoria pursed her lips as if to kiss someone. Max followed her direction. Victoria took a tube of lipstick and smeared it over Max's lips.
"Good. The trash queen won't be able to keep her hands off you."
"Do you always have to be so bitchy, Victoria?"
"I do," she said, applying a different type of lipstick to her own lips. "Leave your clutch in here. In two minutes, come out and grab a glass of champagne. Sip it slowly. I don't want you drunk at any point tonight. Walk around and mingle. I will introduce you about 30 minutes in."
Max nodded. She looked at herself in the mirror and was stunned. She could say with certainty that she never looked this good in her life. "Wow, I love it! Thank you so much!" This is exactly what Max had hoped. This was going to get Chloe's attention for sure.
"I told you, you look hot. Now, please, for the love of god, try not to embarrass me," she commanded.
Too late, it's me we're talking about, Max thought. "I won't Victoria."
"Okay. Take a breath, then come out smiling."
She started to walk out the door, but stopped abruptly. She turned back to Max.
"It's a beautiful show, Max. You should be proud." Before she turned, Max saw a sliver of a smile cross her lips.
Max did as instructed and left the back room of the gallery with a smile on her face, albeit an uneasy smile.
There were a lot of people in the gallery, far more than Max had anticipated. Max took a deep breath and let it out slowly as she walked toward one of her photos. She walked to the bar, grabbed a flute of champagne as she was told, and then made her way around the room. As she walked, Max did what she did best and eavesdropped on some conversations.
"I ADORE the lighting in this photo. How did she do that?"
"I heard that she took this with a Polaroid. I didn't know you could take a photo this good with one of those."
"The girl with the blue hair is gorgeous in this one."
Hell yes she is, Max thought. She smirked and took a sip of her champagne. Where is she anyways?
Max made her way around the room, but did not spot her blue-haired girlfriend.
"Hello, everyone. Thank you so much for coming. As I'm sure you're already aware, tonight we display 'In Memoriam' by Maxine Caulfield. Max, will you please come up."
Max held her breath as she walked forward toward Victoria.
"Max took these photos before the tragedy in Arcadia Bay a few years ago. She wanted to display them tonight in memory of the friends we lost and the lives we all left behind after the storm. Please join me in giving Max a round of applause."
The crowd erupted in applause. Max nodded her head and waved her hand, mouthing thank you to the crowd. The clapping died down, but someone was still clapping loudly and purposefully. Max looked in the direction of the noise and locked eyes with her blue-haired beauty.
Chloe smirked at Max. Max gave a small wave. Chloe mouthed at her, "You look amazing!" Her eyes were wide and she made a motion indicating that her mind was blown. Max looked at the floor, smiling and blushing.
"—please feel free to speak with Max. If you're interested in any prints, please come and see me. Enjoy the show!" Victoria finished speaking and placed the microphone back in its stand.
Victoria walked over to Max and grabbed her elbow. Max noticed her eyes were glistening. She whispered into Max's ear harshly, "You have to stay until there are only a few people left. No running off to hidden corners with Carrie. Got it?"
"Of course not," Max said, patting her gently on the arm. A tear rolled down Victoria's cheek and she walked into the back room.
I'm so sorry, Victoria. I know you lost people, too.
Max began circling the room once more. She heard laughter across the room and saw Chloe surrounded by a group of people. She didn't recognize any of them, but Chloe had no problem speaking with strangers. After the laughter died down, she looked up and saw Max looking at her. Max had never seen her look so beautiful. She had tied her blue hair back into a small pony tail, and some of it was falling forward into her face. She wore black skinny jeans, a white shirt, and a thin, black tie. She was wearing her usual suspenders correctly for once. She had her sleeves rolled up to show off her tattoo. She looked incredible.
Chloe noticed Max admiring, so she spun around so Max could see the full package. When she faced Max again, she raised her hands and shrugged as if to ask what Max thought. Max gave her two thumbs up and a smile. Chloe smirked and winked at Max. If Max hadn't been paying attention, she would have missed it. Right before a woman tapped Chloe on the shoulder, Max witnessed Chloe's eyes travel down her bare legs and the blush that followed. I got her attention, I guess.
Max continued admiring Chloe. Neither of them wanted to take their eyes off of one another. Even while Chloe was speaking with the stranger, she kept glancing over to Max. Max wondered if the people in the room knew about them, if they could tell from her photos that she was in love with Chloe. Max hadn't realized it at the time, but as she went through her photos for her show, she could tell. How naïve you were, she thought to herself. Every moment she chose to capture, the angle, the lighting, the framing conveyed love and desire. Max hoped Chloe could tell, too.
Max's reverie was abruptly interrupted by a patron that told her how much he loved her work. It was hard for Max to pull her eyes from Chloe. She gave Chloe a subtle wave, and Chloe blew her a kiss.
Everyone might see that there is something between them, but they have no idea. They don't know that Max loves tracing Chloe's tattoo while she sleeps. How Chloe holds Max when she's upset and runs her hands up and down her back, comforting her in a way that no one else can. How Max knows that Chloe can do anything. How Chloe pushes Max to be the best version of herself. They have no idea what they sacrificed to be here.
As the night drew to a close, Max was socially exhausted. She didn't think she had ever talked so much in her life. She had thanked so many people and explained pieces to all that asked.
"Do you want to know how much you made tonight?" Victoria looked very pleased.
"Sure," Max sighed.
"Are you ready?
Max nodded.
Victoria grinned. "You made $10,000 tonight, Max."
Max's jaw dropped. "Wuh…h-how?"
Victoria rolled her eyes. "Really, Max? When are you going to admit that you're good at this?"
Max stared at Victoria incredulously. "You can come and pick up your check tomorrow. Have a good night." Victoria winked and shooed her off.
Just as Max turned around to walk away, Chloe appeared directly in front of her. Chloe was beaming.
"Hey, Maximus! Great show you got here. Whoa, hey, are you okay?"
Without hesitation, Max flung her arms around Chloe. Chloe's hands went to their usual spot on the small of her back. "Max, you're scaring me. What's going on?"
Max placed her hands on Chloe's shoulders and pushed back so she could look her into her blue eyes. "Thank you for being here, baby."
"Of course! I never would have missed this." Chloe rubbed Max's arms. "For real, are you alright?"
"I'm the best I've ever been. I missed you, though," Max smiled. Chloe still look slightly concerned. Max leaned in, running her hands up Chloe's chest to her neck, and pulled Chloe into a soft but passionate kiss. When Max pulled away, Chloe stared at her incredulously, her eyes glossy. Max could almost see Chloe's brain process what just happen and then suppress everything inappropriate she was thinking.
Chloe cleared her throat and scratched the side of her head, backing away from Max's embrace. "Not that I'm complaining," Chloe started, making hand gestures indicating she was experiencing some type of discomfort, "But you better start explaining why you're feeling me up in public."
Max loved it when Chloe got flustered. She smirked and said, "Hmmm. Let me put this in terms you'll understand." Max embraced Chloe, standing on her tip toes to get close to her ear. She whispered, "I made hella cash."
Chloe shivered and chuckled. "I knew you would."
Max pulled back to see Chloe's face, that was a wonderful shade of pink, and continued, "But most importantly, you're here. You're here experiencing this with me. Looking at what I've done here, explaining to people my inspiration, it all comes back to you. You're my everything. I love you, Chloe. More than anything. Do you want to know why I chose you?"
Chloe nodded. "Sure," she whispered.
"I couldn't bear the thought of you dying in that bathroom without knowing how much you matter. You're not less important because you're one person. You're more important because you're you. You deserve to be alive, Chloe, and now this whole room of people understands that."
Chloe had tears forming in her eyes. Chloe hurriedly captured Max's lips. The kiss was short but full of longing. "I love you so much, Max," she whispered breathlessly, and she held Max tighter.
"Ah-HEM."
Max and Chloe both jumped and looked toward the sound, the moment destroyed.
"You guys are gross. Get out of my gallery," Victoria huffed.
Max loved that Chloe could rebound flawlessly from moments like this. Chloe scowled and flipped off Victoria. Then she grabbed Max's hand and started dragging her toward the door. Max stumbled a bit because of the heels. Using her best sorority girl voice Chloe shouted back, "Bye, Bitchtoria. Love you, mean it!" With that, they were out the door and on their way to the bus stop.
Max laughed while Chloe cackled. When they calmed down, Chloe stopped in her tracks. "You know what, let's splurge tonight." Chloe stepped to the curb and used her fingers to whistle for a cab.
A cab came screeching to a halt in front of them moments later. Max gave Chloe a slow clap. "Gettin' pretty good at that, city girl."
Chloe stuck her thumbs under her suspenders and snapped them. "Impressed?" She flashed a grin at Max as she opened the cab door.
Max didn't know what came over her in that moment. She walked toward Chloe and the cab, stopping close to Chloe's face. She placed her hand on Chloe's waist and ran her hand over to Chloe's ass. "Extremely," Max said, squeezing.
Chloe's jaw dropped. Max slid into the cab. Chloe was frozen. Oh my god, did I really just do that?
After a few seconds the cab driver asked, "Are you getting in, miss?"
Chloe jumped and rushed over to the other side of the car, sliding in next to Max. She didn't make eye contact with her, but she accepted Max's offer to hold hands. Chloe spent the cab ride with her head against the window, her blush reaching her neck.