MAX:

We left Chowchilla and headed for Sacramento again, making it there by dusk.

Chloe remained in a somber mood for the rest of that day, we went to bed without hardly uttering a word to each other. Yet she still held me close, her warm half-naked body against mine.

I awoke in the middle of the night to her sobs, shaking me with every tormented breath.

"Chloe?"

She muttered in between sobs, "What?"

"I'll always be here for you."

"I know."

Her sobbing slowed to sniffling, then ceased altogether.

She muttered, barely audible, "This has been a fucked up day, Max."

"Fucked up beyond all repair," I agreed

She shifted, letting go of me for a moment as she flicked on a bedside lamp. Both of us winced as warm light flooded the room. She lay back down and stared up at the ceiling.

"I'm glad you're here," she said, wiping her tears.

"I'm glad to be here, Chloe."

I heard her gulp, "Max, I have a confession to make...I've had a crush on you for as long as I can remember."

She turned her head to me and our eyes met as I grinned from ear to ear, "It's about time…"

"Huh?" She raised an eyebrow.

"It's about time you told me that, because it's safe to say that I feel the same way...sorry, I didn't mean to rhyme."

Chloe let out a chuckle, "Busta Rhymes over here…"

She continued, grinning, "So, you really feel that way?"

"Of course I do, you're my partner in crime and time..."

I took in a deep breath, "...I'm never leaving your side again. I need you."

She smiled, "I need you too. I couldn't have ever done this without you...you've brought me a sense of closure."

I gulped, "I love you, Chloe."

She went wide eyed, "I…...love you too, Max."

A pause ensued, tension building as we gazed into each other's blue eyes.

I leaned in, pressing my lips against hers, getting a little taste. She embraced it, wrapping her arms around my body, pulling me closer as our tongues entered each other's mouths. Warm euphoria flowed through my body the entire time, leaving me in heaven. Before I knew it, she was on top of me, removing her bra and revealing her perky breasts. Then she removed my bra, running her hands over mine.

Needless to say, we did a lot more than just kiss that night.

Chloe, my girlfriend...man, I loved saying that. I had a girlfriend now. Perhaps this was all a bit rushed, her having just concluded she was through with Rachel. I think she was in desperate need of affection, loneliness had overwhelmed her in the period after Rachel's disappearance. She needed somebody to love, and she gladly accepted me.

I lay beside her as she snoozed, the lamp she'd left on still poured warm light all-throughout the small motel room.

I didn't bother to cover myself, my nude body lay sprawled on the bed.

She'd really tired herself out, she was sleeping like a dead person...or formerly dead person. I didn't blame her, it was intense for both of us, and she wasn't covered in the sheets either. I spent a long time admiring her body, before I finally drifted off, spooning with her.

Chloe, being the dominant one, ended up as the big spoon.

"So, San Francisco is a little less than an hour and a half from here," said Chloe, as she glanced down at her phone.

We stood outside our motel room, the smell of fresh rain filled the air, with the overcast sky above us. I stared down at the cracked asphalt of the parking lot, looking at my reflection staring back at me in a puddle.

She continued, "You know what'd be badass?"

I glanced sideways at her, getting suspicious, "What?"

"Going to see Alcatraz."

"Uh...we were just at a prison..."

She chuckled, scrolling through her phone, "I know, but that place is supposedly haunted. I want to see that shit for myself."

I scratched my head, "I don't know, Chloe. Can't we do something else, something...I dunno, less scary?"

She tilted her head, "You? Scared? Dude, you travelled through fucking time."

I groaned, "Fine, we'll see about it then."

Chloe jumped up in excitement, "Hell yes! Trust me, it'll be cool!"

We spent the rest of that week touring San Francisco. For our Thanksgiving dinner, we ate seafood at the Pier Market.

But we never did go to Alcatraz, it wasn't exactly the best place for what turned into a romantic getaway.

CHLOE:

I drummed my fingers on the steering wheel of my truck, parked in front of Blackhell's front entrance. My heart was in my throat and I was truly nervous. I felt for the small box that sat in my shirt pocket, feeling that it was still there. Any minute now...any minute now and Max would come through those doors, stepping into another life.

A life with me.

I examined my own clothing, which weren't formal by any means. I was in the usual distressed jeans with white band shirt. It wasn't really important though, Max wouldn't be in any type of formal clothing either. Shit, only one more year until I could legally get my hands on alcohol, my 20th birthday had passed a few months prior. I really felt like I needed some liquid courage.

My leg bounced as I eyed her stepping through those doors, seeming to pause for a moment, as if to say goodbye to the school that had helped her secure a spot in college.

I know for damn sure that when I stepped out of those doors myself, having not graduated, I did not pause to say 'goodbye' to it.

She opened the truck door and got in, smiling at me.

Her hair had grown a bit, the blue streak was still in her bangs, and it now hung down slightly past her shoulders. She still wore her usual hipster clothes with those generic jeans.

"Hey, babe," I smiled as I leaned in to plant a kiss on her lips, which she gladly reciprocated.

I continued, "How's your tattoo healing?"

She rolled up a sleeve and showed it to me, uncovered by any sterile dressings, "Doing well, It's looking really good."

I lined up my previously untattooed arm near hers, eyeing the identical tattoos that sat below our wrists.

"I told you an ouroboros'd make a badass tattoo," our tattoos had a symmetrical bright blue butterfly in the very center.

She dropped her arm and sighed, "Wowser, I just graduated high school."

My voice rose with cheeriness, "Yeah, I know! How does it feel to be in the real world now?"

"It feels fantastic! Now I can do anything I want!"

She cleared her throat, "So, you said you wanted to show me something?"

I took in a deep breath, "Yeah, I think you're gonna like it."

She glanced at me sideways, "You're...acting differently."

My mind raced as I came up with an excuse, "Oh, it's nothing. I'm just thinking about uh, what we've been through, you know?"

She grinned, "We've been through a lot, Chloe."

A quote from her journal flashed through my mind, 'We've been through so much together and we might go through more, depending on how this all ends, either in Heaven or Hella. Sorry, I couldn't resist.'

No, none of this 'we might go through more' shit. We will go through more.

The truck began to roll; a destination stood in my mind: the lighthouse...perfect.

"Where are we going?"

With a smug grin I said, "It's a surprise, patience is a virtue."

"Yep, I called it. You are acting differently."

We rolled through the sleepy little fishing town that was Arcadia Bay. I eyed the lighthouse in the distance, standing tall above all else. The traffic had been really heavy the whole drive there, since school was out and everybody was flipping their shit over it.

Max couldn't notice it, but my hands were shaking. I white-knuckle gripped the steering wheel so she wouldn't see it.

The buildings on the main road came to an end as I turned onto a small dirt trail.

She recognized where we were going, "We're going to the lighthouse, aren't we?"

"You bet we are, Super Max."

She narrowed her eyes, "Why?"

"Like I said, patience is a virtue."

After the short drive up the wooded trail, I stopped about a football field away from the lighthouse.

I got out of the truck and opened the door for her, "After you, beautiful."

In a posh and poorly executed British accent she said, "Thank you, Madame."

I chuckled, "You silly ass."

We held hands as we walked towards the lighthouse, her hands felt very warm. A stark contrast to when she first grabbed me outside of that bathroom, the one she'd saved my life from.

We looked out over the Bay, the setting sun covered everything in a brilliant orange glow, reflecting off of the glass-like ocean. The clouds above us were painted in several hues of orange and red. A gentle brew blew leaves around us, crunching under our feet.

My heart fluttered in my chest, and I felt my hands begin to sweat. I gently pulled out of holding her hand before she noticed it.

She crossed her arms, but she was smiling, "So, what's the surprise?"

'Now or never, Chloe. Do it.'

"Max Caulfield," I dropped down on one knee, pulling out the small black box that sat in my shirt pocket.

I flicked the box open and held it to her, revealing a beautiful diamond ring. Light reflected off of the precious stone that sat upon it.

"Will you spend the rest of your life with me?"

Her eyes crinkled from the gigantic smile that shined on her freckled face. She put her hands over her mouth, as tears of joy ran down her rosy cheeks.

She jumped up and down, almost screaming "Yes! Yes, I will!"

I slid the ring onto her slender finger, fitting it perfectly.

She was still ecstatic, "How...how did you afford this?"

"I have connections," I leaned in and our lips met, sealing the deal.

It was done, the person I loved would always be with me.

Max Price-Caulfield, partner in time, crime…

...And my partner for all of time.