So here it is! I feel like this one took longer than the others but I'm not sure. I'm bad at time. Anyway we've got some more plot goodness here so... I hope you enjoy! Thanks for reading, and please feel free to comment.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Max ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
As the sun begins to set, I lay staring up at the partially complete ceiling above me. I bring the joint to my mouth, inhale deeply, and hold it for a few moments. The cloud of smoke slowly leaves my mouth, and I watch it as it dissipates above me. It's been a couple days since our little trip to the girls bathroom at Blackwell, and you'd think the thing I'd not be able to stop tripping out over would be that we teleported, but no. What I'm stuck on is how it felt like our hands were made to fit together when we held hands to transport. I just know I'm going to fuck this all up. I need to check myself before this little crush or whatever the fuck it is gets out of hand.
So I've been staying in my little hideaway in the junkyard, rather than at the Prices residence, rather than with Chloe. I'm going to need a shower real soon though, which means either gloming on to some hick here, or crawling back to Chloe, and asking her if I can stay there for a bit. Not that I believe she's upset with me or anything, maybe a little disappointed, but we still go to school everyday together so I can play body guard, and we still hang out in the afternoon. I just don't want to make her uncomfortable by accident. I can't let some stupid nostalgia crush or whatever get between us, not after we finally just became friends again.
I roll onto my side, and stare at the wall in front of me. Smoke curls lazily from mouth as I continue to blaze, and consider my options. For tonight, I'm staying put. The temperature is fine, and it's already getting late. No need to go and bother Chloe in the middle of the night again. I've definitely lived rougher than this before, and if worse comes to worst, I can always sleep in my jeep. A giggle escapes my lips, at the rhyme I just made. I might be a little baked right now, just a little.
My joint eventually betrays me, burning down until I can't pull anything else out of it, so I stub it out, and toss the roach away. I don't care where it lands, I'm already in a junk yard anyhow. The ceiling greets me as I roll onto my back again, and start thinking about Chloe. This is a dangerous thing to do, but I can't seem to help myself, especially not when I'm high. She's definitely not the girl I remember, but then again I'm not the girl I remember from back then either. We still fit together so well, or at least that's how I feel. I guess I don't know how Chloe feels about us. I haven't asked, but she hasn't tried to get rid of me yet, so that's probably a good sign. I drift off, and dream of being a kid again with Chloe. It's nice, simple, and sweet. I could use more good dreams in my life.
Suddenly I'm awake, and alert. I roll off of the bench I was sleeping on, and carefully take stock of my surroundings. I was in the shack, in the junkyard. It was still predawn, but the sun was going to be up soon judging by how much light there was in the sky. I could hear a young mans voice, he was speaking agitatedly to someone I couldn't hear, maybe he was on the phone. Moving quietly, I slip closer to where the voice is coming from. It's probably none of my business, but... It could be important, plus I'm just nosy. Besides, who else hangs out in junkyards besides homeless people, or sketchy ass punks? Both of which describe me perfectly.
"...told you, not yet! Okay? I don't control when I get the dreams, and I don't get to control how specific they are. I know there are going to be two potential assets in town some time this month, that's all I've got right now." His voice sounds deferential, but annoyed. I can hear rustling, as he moves around in a fairly regular pattern, he's probably pacing. "No... No... Yes. I'll know who they are if I meet them." His breathing becomes more erratic as the conversation continues, he sounds pretty high strung at the moment. "Kate marsh? Kate Fucking Marsh are you serious? That bitch is definitely not one of the assets. Because we've met, and I'd Know. No! No... look, I just don't want to fuck up again like with Rachel... ye.." His voice trails away to a murmur as I assume he walks away from my hiding spot. This is the second time I've heard the name Rachel recently, maybe it's not a coincidence. I begin to move, I need to get closer if I'm going to hear what's going on. I'm more focused on trying to find my mystery talker, than where I'm stepping, which turns out, is a really stupid thing to do. I step down on an empty bottle, which slides out from underneath me, causing me to fall backwards. I fall into the wire spool I'm using as a table which sends it, and everything on it into the wall with a loud crash. This predictably alerts my unknown visitor.
"Okay whoever the fuck you are get out here now!" I jump up as I hear him running towards my little shelter. I briefly consider just making a run for it, but he's getting close fast. "I mean it fucker! Get out here now! If I have to find your ass you're f-" Time winds backwards around me. It's really cool to watch, as the junk on the table all settles back into place before the spool itself does the same. I watch the bottle I slipped on bounce, and roll backwards to where it had been. I wind back until my head hurts. It feels like I got further back than I was able to last time I tried, so maybe it is like building up some kind of muscle, or maybe a tolerance?
"...No! No... look, I just don't want to fuck up again like with Rachel... ye.." His voice trails away to a murmur as he walks away from my hiding spot. I carefully step around the bottle this time as I change my position to try and better hear what he's saying. "...out of stuff right no-" I rewind back a bit more to see if I can get the entire conversation. "...yes, he was fucking pissed. No, I don't think so, but he'll be really pissed if we catch police attention." I can hear him pacing around some more in silence. Finally he let's out an aggravated growl. "Fine... but I'm out of stuff right now, so you'll have to wait till next week. Because that's when Frank comes back with more product." he let's out a long suffering sigh. "I'll text him, maybe an offer of double the usual rate will get him here faster, but I can't make any promises." There's a long period of silence, before I finally hear him again. He sounds more like he's on the verge of tears this time, than he did before. "Fuck! Fuckfuckfuck..." he let's out a hysterical sounding laugh. "He thinks he can just tell me what to do because my father trusts his perverted ass? Fuck him! Nobody tells me what to do! I'll fucking show them soon... they need me, and I won't be helping them,. I'm holding the fucking cards now!" I can hear him stomping away from me laughing, and I consider moving again to try and stay close enough to hear him until I hear a car door slam. He peels out with a screech, and I listen as the sound of his engine gets fainter, till it disappears completely.
It's off to Chloe's early now. I really do need that shower, and I should probably tell her all about this little incident. Maybe she knows who Kate Marsh is, and I don't know... I mean do we keep an eye on her, or do we leave it be? This might not be any of our business honestly, it does sound pretty fucking ominous, but I was only getting one half of the conversation. I'll just see what Chloe things about it, and we can make a plan, or not, from there. I grab my pre-rolled morning joint, light it up, and head for my jeep. I unzip my window, and then pull out of the junkyard heading for Chloe's place.
Pulling up to the Prices, I zip up my window, and shut off the engine. Collecting all the things I'll need for a shower, I step out and close the door behind me. I survey the neighborhood for a few moments, letting nostalgia wash over me, before I head for the house. I should just go up and knock on the door, should, but I don't. Hoisting myself up onto the fence, and balance there precariously as I reach up to pull myself onto the roof. I crawl towards the window and peek inside. The sun is just about up now, and I can see Chloe's still sleeping form on the bed. With a grin, I check to see if the windows locked, it's not. Poor naive Chloe, leaving her window unlocked when Spider Max is loose on the city. Maybe I should pick a villain instead given the context... Maybe another time. I carefully jimmy the window open, and slip inside.
I stand over Chloe's bed quietly looking down at her. She looks so peaceful, so serene, and beautiful. I could be mature about this and let her sleep, or at least stop standing over her like some kind of creep. Who am I kidding? No I really can't just be mature for once. Bunching myself up to pounce, I spring forward to sprawl on top of my sleeping target. "Batten down the hatches, arm the cannons! We be under attack!" I thrash around lightly, while Chloe's, scared out of dream land, screams go from confused, to angry, to playful. Shes laughing as much as she's yelling as she tries to shove me off of her, and the bed. "Get off of me you stupid pirate dork!" I fall to the side, and roll off of her onto my back laughing merrily. I look over at her, and can see the glint of mischief in her eyes before she rolls herself on top of me. "Revenge!" she cries as she slips her hands into my Jacket, and begins to tickle my sides. Unfortunately I am very ticklish, and Chloe remembers this fact. Conscious control over my body slips, I become capable of nothing but squirming, and giggling like crazy. My vision narrows, and all I can see is Chloe looming over me, smiling and care free.
She continues tickling me for what seems like forever, until she finally stops to let me catch my breath. "You ready to surrender Lubber?" she grins down at me, and I can't help the laugh that escapes my lips. "Mercy Captain, I surrender." I gasp out at her still trying to find my breath. She narrows her eyes giving me a suspicious look, that quickly melts into a triumphant grin. "I'm glad you remember your station first mate Max." She laughs, but makes no move to get off of me. I stare up at her, our eyes meeting, my mouth suddenly dry. I can see the future in her eyes. I wonder if she's going to kiss me, I definitely want her to kiss me. I lick my lips nervously, watching her eyes move to my mouth as I do. She bites her lip looking conflicted, confused. Suddenly she's pulling away, the spell broken, the moment gone. "So.. uh, why the early morning attack?" she laughs, it's a little nervous. I tamp down my disappointment, and put on a playful grin. "Well... I really needed a shower, and I overheard something this morning I thought might be connected to you being threatened at school, but then I saw you laying there helpless..." she hits me with a pillow and I laugh.
Pushing myself up, I pull of my jacket, and toss it on the desk. I retrieve the clothes I brought to change into, and motion Chloe along with me. She looks at me uncertainly, but follows along as I lead us into the bathroom. "So I woke up this morning on the ass end of night, to some fucker pacing around talking loudly into his phone." I unlace and step out of my boots, before pulling my shirt over my head. I glance over at Chloe who quickly turns away her cheeks turning red. "Sorry.." I can't help the laugh that slips out at her reaction. I step into the shower, and slide the glass divider closed. I begin tossing my clothes over the top as I continue to undress. There's a mortified squeak, when my panties fly over the divider. I can just make out the distorted image of Chloe pulling them off her head through the glass. I cough to keep myself from cracking up, and then push on with my narrative. "So, anyway... I at least assumed it was his phone, but fuck.. I don't know. He was talking, and it sounded like just one side of a conversation. I couldn't see from where I was, and I didn't want to expose myself just to see." I turn on the shower, and grit my teeth under the cold until it warms up. I raise my voice to be heard over the noise, as I begin to wash up. "He was talking about having dreams, and finding assets. It sounded like he meant people whenever he was talking about assets. He said there are going to be two potential assets in town this month, and he'd know if he met them... He also mentioned a Rachel, something to do with a fuck up, and something about a Kate Marsh. Oh! And a frank to get some stuff..."
"So wait." Chloe interrupts my rather aimless recitation of what happened. "You could hear all this through the wall of the room you were sleeping in?" I pause a moment, frowning a bit. "Well yeah... I mean the walls have big ass holes in them so... it's really easy to hear outside." There's a long silence before Chloe speaks up again, sounding a little miffed. "What?! Where are you staying that the walls have Holes in them?" Fuck, good one Caulfield, I was so intent on my story I forgot Chloe has no idea I'm staying in the junkyard. I could just rewind, and she'd never know... "Max? What's going on?" I sigh and decide on the truth, I can always rewind if she gets majorly offended or something. "Shit...I've been staying at the junkyard. I just didn't want to like be a burden on you or Joyce. I'm sure you want a little privacy and all that, and you know, I'd be an extra mouth to feed." There's another long pause, and I'm just about to rewind when she starts speaking again. "Max..." Her tone is fondly exasperated, that's a good sign. "None of that matters, okay? Mom would be worried out of mind if she knew you were staying in the fucking junkyard, and so am I. I mean it sort of worked out this time, but I want you to come stay here, and mom would too. So we'll figure out the other stuff later. For now, you're moving in here." I'm so touched, I feel like I might cry, so I take a deep breath to steady myself. "Damn Chloe, you're hot when you take charge." I can hear her laughing softly over the sound of the falling water. "You're such a dork... now, go ahead and start over, and tell me Everything you over heard." So I start over, and relate to her everything I can remember overhearing.
I feel so much better now that I've showered, a fresh clean Max is a mostly happy Max. Breakfast also helps make for a happy Max, and while this morning it's just cold cereal it's still good. I've had worse meals before, besides this cereal makes me nostalgic. I used to eat it all the time as a kid. Chloe snaps her fingers in front of my face, I've spaced out on her. "Sorry... Um... So do you think Chatty McAngerissues was Nathan Prescott? Or maybe they're both involved in whatever is going on here? Or is it really just a coincidence?" Chloe shakes her head, as she chews a mouthful of cereal thoughtfully. "I don't know. I'd need to hear his voice to maybe be able to tell you. A picture or a description and I could tell for sure." I shake my head. "Yeah I didn't really think that far ahead. I could have taken a picture and rewound, or at least set my phone to record." Chloe grins at me, and shrugs. "You need to start thinking with portals." I jab my spoon in her direction playfully. "Isn't that what you do? Make portals or something? All I've got is a cosmic undo button." Fuck, that's true, I can go back and undo just about anything. I could make a move on Chloe right now and then undo it so it doesn't ruin our friendship. I stare at Chloe long enough for her to get curious. She tilts her head, brows furrowed a bit. "Earth to Max... Why are you staring at me like that?" I shake my head. I shouldn't do it, it wouldn't be fair to her. "Nothing.. just wondering what to do about Kate Marsh." Her face falls, and I regret not saying something playful, or flirty instead. I could still go back, and say something else, but it just feels wrong when it's Chloe. "We have time to figure that out I guess. He didn't sound too interested in helping whoever he was talking too, so we probably have about a week." It doesn't sound as encouraging as I hoped it would, but she does look a little less worried. I'll take what I can get.
"Kate's a nice girl... We're not exactly friends, I'm not exactly friends with anyone, but she's always been nice to me. She's nice to everyone really, even though she gets picked on a lot. I'd just hate to see anything else happen to her." Chloe looks like she might cry, or break something. I understand how she feels, I've been there plenty of times myself. I reach out and lace my fingers with her across the table. "We won't let anything happen to her then. We can do this, together." That got me a smile, which I returned with interest. "We need to find more information..." Chloe slips her hand out of mine as she speaks, I miss it's presence. "Well... what about school records? I can pick locks... we can sneak in after dark or something." She gives me an incredulous look. "School records?" I shrug one shoulder. "I don't know it might have useful information, and I mean Police records for like Rachel Amber would be better..." I frown mildly as I consider that. "I mean we might be able to do that, but school records will be easier... maybe as a practice run?" Now she's looking at me like she thinks I might have just lost my mind. "Max... that's..." I raise my index finger, and shake my head. "No, it's not so crazy. We have Powers Chloe, we can find a way to do this. The school records first though. If there's something there we can use instead, it'll be a lot easier to do and then we could just skip the police station." Chloe frowns at me, and shakes her head. " I don't know Max... both of those sound dangerous, we could get in a lot of trouble if we mess up, or our powers fail or something." I frown back at her. "Come on Chloe we need to find some information, and I have no better ideas. I need you with me on this, I can't do this without my partner in crime. Please Chloe." I give her a pleading look, and watch as her resolve crumbles. "Fine..." she sighs dropping her head down to the table. "Hella fucking yes!" I pump my fist. "This is going to be awesome! We'll go in tonight, and get our ninja on. Max and Chloe back in action!" She laughs, while shaking her head at me and rolling her eyes. "I thought we were already back in action." Well that is true, my lips purse while I consider it. "Um... back in action-er? New and improved Max and Chloe now with extra action? " I can't help but grin. "I better stop, this is heading for double entendre territory." This earns a little blush from Chloe, and so I try to make it worse by waggling my eyebrows at her. Success!
"Come on Max, we need to go or I'll be late for class." Chloe gets up from the table, and grabs my hand dragging me towards the door. "I bet you could stand to be late once in a while. Cut loose, do something "bad" for once in your life." She frowns back at me still tugging me along with her. "I'm already planning on breaking and entering with you, I think that's bad enough." "Touche" I quip giving her a Cheshire grin. My keys in hand I open the passenger side door, and hold it open for her. She gives me a funny look, but slips inside with a mumbled "Thank you." I give her my best smile as I close the door behind her and walk around the front, where she can see me the whole time, to get to the driver's side door. It's incredibly satisfying to see that she does in fact watch me as I cross in front of the jeep. As I get in and start the ignition Chloe's giving me another funny look. She seems to just shake it off. "So I was thinking maybe I'll ask around, see if I can find anything out about Rachel. She knew a lot of people, so maybe someone will know something, and we can skip breaking into the school later..." I glance over at her briefly, and shrug my shoulders. "That's way less fun, but if you find out enough from her friends I guess we might be able to skip it. Still... we could get Nathan's files too by breaking in" Another look her way reveals her looking a bit worried. My hand leaves the wheel and finds hers. I give it a gentle squeeze, and send a smile her way. "It'll be fine Chloe we'll be together, and we have the power. We can do this, and no one will get into trouble... except maybe Nathan, or whoever it is who's being shady around here, or... something. Fuck I don't know, I got lost in there somewhere." She laughs and gives my hand a squeeze back. "I'd still prefer not to push our luck... but, you're right we will be together." There's a pause and then she speaks up softly to add, "You make me feel like I'm invincible." Awww.. she's so sweet. I can't help but smile at her, even though I'm afraid it's bordering on goofy looking. "Alright Price enough of the mushy stuff." I laugh, not letting go of her hand. "You should probably try and keep an eye on Kate whenever you can during school hours as well." She nods, also not moving to let go of my hand either. "I was planning on it."
I pull into the parking lot at Blackwell, and begrudgingly let go of Chloe's hand. We say our goodbyes, and she steps out looking back once as she heads for the main building. She's so cute. There's not much else for me to do right now but wait, either until she needs me to save the day, or she needs me to drive her home. We never gave much thought to what might happen if she had to call me in there, but I know I don't really care what the repercussions are. I'm going to be here for her if she needs me, and fuck anyone who has a problem with that.
- Chloe -
As I away from the Blackwell parking lot, I can't help but look back at Max. Something is different about her since she's come back, something besides the obvious I mean. There's something almost luminous that surrounds her, warm, and glowing. I'm almost certain this is new, but there is also a nagging feeling of familiarity, like it's always been there and a part of me has always known. Shaking these thoughts off I turn my attention towards the school building, and continue making my way towards it. This could be getting serious, or we could have this all wrong. There's so much we just don't know right now. Either way keeping an eye on Kate would be a good idea, just in case. I'm not sure what I'm going to do about the Rachel question though. I haven't exactly been a social butterfly in my time here, and I'm not sure who I can talk to. It seems like just about everyone knew Rachel, she was friends with just about everyone. She drifted easily between cliques, and back again. Nobody seemed to take any issue with it either, not even groups who were openly antagonistic towards each other. High school politics are ridiculous, but usually pretty predictable. Rachel was an outlier, an anomaly.
The fascination everyone seems to have for Rachel Amber is understandable. I mean she is... was? We don't know anything yet... is beautiful, mysterious, and she seemed to be able to be everything to everyone. That always struck me as suspicious, but I didn't really know her, so I don't know what, if anything she was hiding. It went both ways, she didn't really pay much attention to me, and I don't really blame her. Who would be interested in quiet, aloof Chloe? Well besides Max... but that's probably just because of our shared history. If Max and I had only just met, she wouldn't look at me twice, I'm sure. That thought sends a lance of ice through my heart, and I pause confused by the strength of my negative reaction to what is probably the truth. It's probably our shared history, I never really had closure, never really managed to quite let go, and now she's back so I don't have to.
Rachel was part of the Vortex club I believe, so I could ask members about her. I'll have to be careful since Nathan is a member as well, and Victoria. I doubt she'd be forth coming if I asked her anything, and it'd most certainly get back to Nathan if I did ask her. They are really close, maybe dating? I'm honestly not sure, and I never really cared before. Still don't actually. There's a bunch of the football dudebros that are in the club as well, but I doubt I could approach them and learn anything of interest. Dana Ward is a member, and even though she's a cheerleader she's always been fairly friendly to everyone, I could try her. Maybe her friend Juliet Watson might know something too, she's in the club as well and she's a reporter for the school newspaper. I'm not sure she'd be as willing to talk as Dana though... I should probably at least try, and maybe Dana will help me out with Juliet if I ask nicely. The problem is we don't have any classes together, not that there'd be a lot of time to talk in class, but it makes it more likely I'll have to catch one or both of them at lunch. Spending time tracking them down at lunch means no time time with Max. I consider just leaving it alone, and spending my lunch with Max, but if we're going to figure this out, I should text her and let her know I'll be busy. I wouldn't want her to worry about me.
Me: hve 2 skip lnch wit U
Mad Max: Wut?! Lame! Y?
Me: need 2 chat up dana + juliet
Mad Max: IC how you roll
Mad Max: gimme deets of UR 3some ltr ;)
Me: Grss! NO EMOJI!
Mad Max: 3 sry nt sry :p :p :p
Me: NO EMOJI!
Mad Max: Fne! good lck wit UR quest XOMAXO
Max is completely insane! I couldn't help but laugh, even if she was sending me emojis. I'm going to miss her at lunch today. Hopefully this will all turn out to be nothing, and we can just go back to hanging out and having fun. Okay so maybe that isn't exactly practical either, there are concerns like my education, her education or whatever Max plans to do with herself... basically I have concerns about our futures. We'll probably be separated again once I get into college, which goes back to me wanting to slack off more to spend time with her while I still can. Thoughts like these leave me feeling really sad, I mean I just got her back, and we're most likely not going to get much more time together after high school ends. I should talk to her about this, maybe we can think of something, or at least maybe we can make the most of our summer together. Would it be weird to drag her along to where ever I end up? If they have a community college there, maybe she could get her GED, and go there. Maybe we could both work part time or something and share an apartment. Or maybe she'll just get a full time job... This is probably stupid, I doubt she'll want to come with me. I'm glad it's time for class, I won't have time to dwell on any of this for a while.
Between classes I spot Kate in the halls, and decide to head over to speak to her. I am so not used to this, usually I just keep my head down, and go about my day. She's got a bemused expression on her face when she realizes I'm approaching her specifically, but she doesn't look put off or annoyed so that's probably a good start. She looks up at me and smiles when I stop, and I smile back awkwardly. "Um Hey Kate." She still looks rather bemused, but her smile brightens a bit. "Hey Chloe, is everything okay? You look like you have something on your mind..." This is not only uncomfortable for me, I hadn't really thought out what I was going to say. I shift awkwardly form foot to foot for a moment before I can find the words I'm looking for. "This might sound crazy, but I was actually wondering if You were okay? I mean nothing weird has happened lately, or no one's been bothering you uh... differently than normal?" She frowns mildly as her smile fades away, and she shakes her head. "No... Why are you asking?" I reach up to rub the back of my neck self-consciously. "Okay so again this might sound weird, but... My friend overheard some guy talking about you. She was kinda light on details, but she said he sounded hella sketchy, and I just thought... I don't know maybe one of the vortex jerks were planning to prank you or.. something." I finish lamely, as my eyes find my feet, and examine them carefully. They're very interesting right now, plus they're not giving anyone vague warnings out of the blue. I peek back up at her to find her still looking fairly confused, but she smiles at me. "Thank you, I'll try to be careful." Smiling back I nod agreeably. "Thank you... I mean for listening. I know it sounds..." I twirl my finger up next to my ear indicating insanity, to which she laughs and shakes her head. "No, I feel blessed that you cared enough to bother, most people wouldn't have, especially since the warning was kinda vague."
I'm not sure why I was so set on being alone anymore. Kate seems really nice, sure the religious thing can be a little off putting but she's not aggressive with it. We could easily have been friends if I hadn't been sulking over Max all those years. I give her a smile, and I'm about to suggest maybe we try and spend a little more time together when I'm interrupted by the sound of Nathan Prescott yelling down the hall. "Price!" I probably went pale, and I definitely winced when I heard him. My phone is in my hands quickly so I can fire off an emergency text to Max. I turn then to see him bearing down on me quickly. There's no way Max can get here in time, not when he's so close. There's not much he can do though right? We're in a public space, that should afford me some protection, probably.
The sound of boots running on the tile flooring craws my attention away from Nathan. It's Max. I have no idea how she got here so fast, but her lip looks like it's been split, and she looks more than a little pissed. I forget sometimes lately just how small Max is, even with the extra muscle, but even so she wastes no time and simple punches Nathan in the kidney hard. He cries out surprised and in pain, and she hits him in the same spot again with amazing precision. He falls to the floor and she gives him a kick for good measure. I stand watching stunned, but before I can move to pull her off of him she's disengaged and taken my hand. She looks me over carefully, checking me for injury I suppose. She takes another moment to look Kate up and down, and gives her a roguish grin. Kate blushes softly, causing my stomach to drop. I'm not given the time to examine this, as Max is already pulling me away from the scene. "Chloe, where's your next class?" I blink a few times barely registering the question. I point to a doorway a little further down the hall with my free hand, still feeling overwhelmed by all of this. She pushes my through the doorway, not ungently, but with haste. "I gotta go before the authority figures show up. Catch you later." she gives me a wink, and runs off down the hall. I simply make my way to my seat, and settle down. I've never been in a fight before. Does this count as having been in a fight? Max was so intense back there, it was kind of scary. Everything has been so crazy these past couple of days, I really wish things would calm down so I can breathe. Even just for a moment. Maybe if I can just focus on my classwork, I can pretend everything is normal for a while. So that's just what I do.
It turns out I don't have to go looking for Dana and Juliet at lunch. Juliet finds me first, and motions me over to sit with them. I settle down at their table, and nod personably at both of them. "Hey Dana, Hey Juliet." I keep my head titled down, as I begin to unpack my lunch. "Um... I'm glad you wanted to talk to me, I kinda wanted to ask you guys about something too." They look at each other then back to me curiously. Dana speaks up first. "What did you want to ask us about?" Juliet lifts a brow at me, and I hunker down in my seat a little further. "Uh... well I just, um... You're both in the Vortex club, so I wanted to know if um... I know I don't really know anyone that well, or anything but I mean... Has Nathan been weird lately? Um twitchy, aggressive... has he threatened you, or any-anyone else?" Dana shakes her head. "No... nothing like that. I mean Nathan can be a real asshole, so I tend to avoid him, but he really brings the party you know?" Juliet nods along slowly. "Yeah he's really high strung, but It's because his dad rides him so hard. Something about the Prescott legacy or something stupid like that. He's not exactly forth coming, and I'm with Dana, I mostly avoid him." Juliet takes the opportunity to steer the conversation to her own ends. "Is that what happened today? Has Nathan been threatening you, and who was that girl? She kinda just came out of nowhere to defend you." I freeze for a moment, and then slowly nod. "Uh... yeah he has been. I really don't know why. We never hand any contact before really." Juliet nods understandingly and places her hand on mine. I think she's trying to seem sympathetic. "And that girl who went all Alpha on him for you? I've never seen her before, she obviously doesn't go here." I feel my cheeks heating up just thinking about Max rushing to my rescue earlier, and I fidget in my seat uncomfortably. It feels weird to be asked about Max like this. Still if I play along maybe they'll answer my questions about Rachel next. "That's Max... She was my best friend when we were kids." I offer her a small shrug. "She moved away to Seattle five years ago, and now she's back." A small smile spreads across my face, and I shrug again. "She's been bringing me to school ,and just hanging out in case... She's really very sweet, I mean she had a hard time in Seattle so she's gotten kinda... rough, but she's got a good heart. She means well, and I guess she's just very protective." I find myself shrugging yet again, if I keep this up my shoulders might just fall off. Dana and Juliet share a look, and then turn back to me. Dana's got her brow perked skeptically, and Juliet's got a knowing smirk. Dana speaks up. "Come on Chloe, protective doesn't cover it. That girl obviously has it for you Hard." My head is shaking before I'm even conscious of it. "No way! Max isn't..." My brows furrow a bit as I consider what I was about to say. " I well... I guess actually she is into girls." She is, and she maybe meant it when she was joking with me, maybe she was really flirting, and I Liked it. Fuck am I gay? "I don't... know. I mean she's playful, but I'm not sure. We were always super close before, but that doesn't necessarily mean she's interested in me at all now that we're older." They both give me pitying looks, but I'm not wrong about this am I? It'd be stupid to assume she actually interested, even if I was sure I was too. She Just came back, of Course I'm excited. Shit! I need to get my head back on the objective. "Um... moving on though, there was just one more thing..." They give me a flat look, but keep silent. I take this as permission to keep going. "Rachel Amber... um... Nathan kinda mentioned her when he was threatening me, did you guys know her? Do you have any idea what happened to her?" They look at each other confused, and then back to me. Dana speaks up first. "Rachel was... really cool. She got along with everyone, so yeah of course we knew her. She was in the club and everything. She could really let loose and party, but she was also a good student, had a lot of school spirit." she shrugs, and looks over at Juliet. Juliet looks at me and nods. "Yeah she got along well with everyone... I mean she was kind of hard to pin down as a person, and well, I have it from a very reliable source she was sleeping with the Photography teacher Mr. Jefferson. She was complicated I guess, or maybe just closed off. Nathan seemed to be pretty taken with her, but a lot of people were, so that never really seemed strange. We don't know where she went though. I mean it's not outside the realm of possibility that she just ran away. It's no secret she wanted out of here. We always just kind of hoped we'd see her pop up one day in an ad or on T.V. or something like that. What did Nathan say about her anyway?" Juliet looks like she's burning to know the story, and Dana just looks worried. I shake my head. "It's probably nothing.. he just said the same thing would happen to me as what happened to Rachel if I didn't get out of Arcadia Bay." Dana still looks worried, but Juliet looks interested, and she confirms it as she speaks up. "Well it is certainly compelling, but vague. Let me know if he says anything else potentially more incriminating?" I can't help but laugh, she such a reporter. "Sure, I'll try to keep you informed. I hope though that today will be the end of it." The bell rings signaling the end of lunch period, and so we all say our goodbyes, and head back to our scheduled classes.
As my calculus class drags on, my mind wanders idly to the events that have been going on the past few days, and to Max. A lot of it is Max actually. I mean it's been Max a lot lately, but it's different now that Dana and Juliet suggested she might have a thing for me. That couldn't be true, I mean it just couldn't right? Max is just so... fierce now, and I'm just plain old me. But what if she really was, would I even want that. Honestly I really kinda do now that I'm actually thinking about it, but on the other hand I don't want to risk our friendship either. I'm broken from my reverie, by the sound of my name being called over the loud-speaker. Great... I'm being called to the principal's office. I gather up my things, and slip out of the room to go as bidden.
I'm immediately let into principal Wells office, where I find him waiting, his back to the door as she looks out the window. Kate Marsh is there as well already seated in front of Wells' large desk. I settle into the second seat, and look over at Kate curiously, before Wells turns around to face us both. "Ah... Ms. Price, I'm so glad you could join us." he settles into his chair and looks across his desk at the both of us. "I was hoping you could shed some light on a potential altercation that took place in the halls today." he folds his hands in front of him, and waits. "I'm not sure what you mean..." I pipe up nervously. Her arches an eyebrow at me. "Is that so Ms. Price? Nothing about a Verbal confrontation between you and Nathan Prescott? Nothing about a strange girl who doesn't attend this school assaulting him in these very halls?" Fuck. I shake my head. "Uh... No sir, I mean Nathan did yell my name, but he tripped, and fell, and I didn't want to stick around to find out why he was looking for me." He eyes me skeptically, and turns his attention to Kate. "Is that what happened Ms. Marsh? Did Nathan Trip and fall all on his own?" she wilts under his glare. "I um... I'm not..." she looks over at me, and nods once. "I'm not sure I saw what happened exactly... but he did Yell Chloe's name, and then I did see him on the floor." Principal Wells frowns at the both of us. "Are you Sure that's what happened? That, that's all you know? You're both here on scholarship, and this kind of thing could threaten that..." Kate seems to get even smaller, but I just frown, crossing my arms. He finally sighs, and waves us off. "Fine, fine, Mr. Prescott wasn't very forthcoming either. It's just my job as principal to make sure everyone is safe. Just be careful girls." I give Kate a grateful smile as we head out of the office, and she gives me an uncertain one back. At least she's not too mad that she had to lie for me, or for Max anyway. I slip back into class and end up going back to my daydreams.
The last bell finally rings, I've been going stir crazy in there today, and I jump up and head out as quickly as I can manage. I rush towards the parking lot and search out Max's jeep, making a beeline as soon as I catch sight of it. I peek inside to find Max napping her feet up on the dashboard. Quietly, I open the passenger side door, slip inside, and slam the door loudly behind me. Max doesn't even react. I frown at this leaning in close, and reaching up to poke her cheek gently. I don't get that far as suddenly Max grabs my sides yelling at the top of her lungs, "Boo-yah!" and starts laughing. I frown at her, trying to look annoyed. "You're an asshole." She smirks at me, and shakes her head. "Aw... are you mad I did to you what you were trying to do to me?" My laughter slips out in my voice. "Yes, I am highly offended you turned my own prank around on me." this just makes her laugh even harder. She's got a beautiful laugh. I shake my head. "Um... though I got called down to the principal's office today." Her eyes go wide and she sets her feet on the floor, sitting up straight. "Holy shit! What'd you do? Please tell me you did something awesome like write "Fuck off!" in big letters on the bathroom wall or something." I roll my eyes at her and shake my head. "No, I got called down to principal Wells' office because You kicked Nathan's ass." She looks away from me, ashamed of herself. "Fuck... sorry, I didn't mean to get you into trouble, I just I got carried away I guess." I shake my head. "Yeah well nobody involved me, Kate or even Nathan were willing to corroborate the story, so we only kinda got a warning." She turns back to me and grins. "Good, I'm glad, because really Fuck That guy! If he tries to go at you again I'll probably do the same thing... just maybe try to be less visible or some shit." she shrugs, and leans back in her seat. "So anyhow... what about that threesome?" she waggles her eyebrows at me suggestively. My cheeks burn, and I look away. "Come on Max, be serious... and... nothing useful really. Nathan did know Rachel... a lot of people liked her, no one seems to know what happened to her." I shrug, letting out a defeated spy. "I guess we're stuck with your plan." She grins at me and holds out her fist to be bumped. I do so, but grudgingly. "Fuck yes, this is going to be hella fun. Max and Chloe kicking it Ninja style!" I laugh shaking my head. "You're such a dork sometimes." She shrugs at me, and puts her hands behind her head. "Yeah, but you love me for it." Yeah, I'm starting to think I kinda do. "Yeah sure Max, whatever you say..." She sticks her tongue out at me and laughs. "Fine, sure, live in denial Price. Maybe we should go back to yours so we can prepare, and maybe grab some dinner before we get our ninja on? Does that sound good?" I nod once, and put my seat belt on. "Sounds like a plan Max. Let's go."