The sharp snapping noise of the boat's impact was heard clearly above the storm's roar causing both girls to cringe in anticipation, but what they'd feared never came. The realization caused them both to look around in time to see where the boat had slammed into the side of the lighthouse, mortally wounding the giant guardian of the bay. It's momentum barely slowed, the unfortunate boat rebounded off the lighthouse and continued airborne toward it's final port across the battered trees and over the cliff behind them.
Chloe felt bits of stone and debris spray onto and around her from the enormous wound in the lighthouse and she looked down at Max crouched next to her. The small girl looked terrified and Chloe understood the feeling. A wave of relief began to wash over her as she realized how close they'd come to disaster.
She began to stand helping Max up with her when a piercing crack rang in her ears, stopping her in mid-crouch. Max had been looking over Chloe's shoulder and the horror in her wide eyes echoed in her voice "CHLOE!"
Chloe's head snapped around towards the top of the lighthouse just as she heard the crunch of crumbling stone and the screech of rending metal. It's giant light flickered and flashed briefly before going dark as wires snapped and tore free. Weakened from the impact and unbalanced from the giant hole in it's side, it came apart. Overweighted bricks exploded, metal twisted and stretched before ripping free and like a beheaded giant, the entire top of the lighthouse slid from it's neck and fell toward them!
Chloe cried out as she scrambled to her feet. Frantically digging her boots into the slippery sodden dirt she desperately tried to get traction as she dragged Max with her.
"Are you fucking kidding me? Max move! MOVE NOW!"
Though tired and bankrupt of mental strength instinctively Max tried to focus, reaching into the moment around them as the currents of reality began to slow and bend back on themselves.
The screeching metallic rage of the fallen guardian came first, piercing her mind like a searing hot needle. Too late she'd realized what had been different, too late she saw the things the shadow in her mind had tried to show her. Focus lost she cried out, stumbling as she struggled to stand with Chloe.
As they got to their feet the head of the lighthouse was already on it's way. Still clinging to each other and acting on impulse both girls thrust hard with their legs catapulting themselves several feet further back from the cliff face, landing hard on the ground side by side. Chloe's shoulder took most of the force as they landed while the breath from Max's lungs exploded onto her face.
Seconds later the ground shuddered underneath them as the metal head of the giant slammed into the earth where they'd been seconds before. Metal twisted and snapped, windows exploded sending jagged chunks of glass and bits of metal and stone in every direction.
They huddled into a ball holding each other as the wreckage rolled slowly towards the cliff's edge until finally, groaning a metallic death knell, it tipped over the edge seeking a watery grave below.
Chloe looked into Max's harried face "Are you ok? Can you stand?"
Max rolled onto her back, gasping in fresh air to replace what had been knocked out of her. After a moment she nodded, "I think so, yeah."
Leaning on each other for support they stood and looked around, Chloe wincing as her shoulder took some of Max's weight. A narrow bit of the path that led to the bench still remained but a large section of earth had been carved out and dragged over the cliff with the wreckage of the lighthouse.
Chloe felt her heart pounding in her chest as she swallowed hard and looked down at Max. She seemed as ok as anyone who'd just escaped death moments ago could be.
Max felt a shiver crawl down her back as she looked at the decapitated lighthouse and then to the huge scar in the earth where it's rolling head had impacted, where they'd stood moments ago. The wind howled, it's force driving the rain sideways. Briefly she saw what looked like a newspaper blow across the ground and snag on a small wooden post that stood near the cliff. It flapped there for a few moments before losing it's futile battle with the storm's force and then disappeared onto the wind. Like an odd sense of deja vu she began to see what she'd missed, subtle changes.
What the hell?
My visions before, they weren't like this. I remember a lot of this but everything isn't the same.
I don't get it. Like it's the right time but, out of place?
We're out of place?
or time…
She gasped suddenly as a brief sharp pain slid through her skull interrupting her thoughts. She crushed her eyelids closed in response but the pain was gone the next moment. Max sighed as she opened her eyes to find Chloe looking down at her with concern.
"I..I'm ok." she looked back at her but her words seemed to do little to reassure the bedraggled punk.
Chloe sighed trying to bleed off some of her worry and looked back out across the bay, the storm's fury held steady. Visibility was becoming difficult between the wind-driven debris and driving rain while very little light came from the angry cloud-covered sky. From what Chloe could see the vortex had fully made landfall now, it's winds sounding like a voice hissing gusty taunts.
Chloe lowered her mouth next to Max's ear talking loud enough to be heard above the howling wind.
"We need to get out of here, get some cover somewhere until this shit passes. I didn't make it this far with you to have us run over by a lighthouse or splatted by a flying boat!"
Max's head felt like it weighed a ton as she nodded "Ok!"
She was exhausted, more than she'd realized before. It felt good to hold on to Chloe as she helped guide them through the rain. It was nice to be led and have someone else make the decisions, even in this small way. She knew she should be concerned about the chaos around them but she was so tired and thinking only seemed to make her head hurt. All she wanted to do was close her eyes and drift off. Despite their recent brush with death, being close to Chloe made her feel safe, her terrors from earlier had retreated far into the corners of her mind. Chloe had saved her, saved them both.
As Max walked she was now very aware that the cold wind had found new places to get to her wet skin and the sensation made her shiver as chilled goosebumps spread on her limbs. They climbed over fallen trees and brush as she and Chloe made their way back towards the small building near the lighthouse. It wasn't far but between fallen trees, storm-tossed debris and the driving wind it had become a formidable obstacle course.
They made their way to the side of the building where a smaller solid-looking metal door stood closed. Though still gusty the fierce winds weren't quite as strong right next to the building.
Chloe tried the sturdy handle and found it wouldn't budge.
"Shitballs! Of course it's locked."
Max frowned and looked at her, "Now what?"
Chloe guided Max around behind the building with her. Now with the building fully between them and the storm's force the wind and noise were more bearable. Behind the building where they stood the opposite edge of the cliff looked out on the other side of the shore. There were only a few trees here and not much actual land between the back of the small building and the cliff's edge. Glancing towards the edge Max imagined where the airborne fishing boat had landed far below. Looking back toward Chloe and the building she felt her gaze drawn to the small set of strange glyphs written there on the building's wall. She'd found them earlier that week when she and Chloe had come up here. For some reason they reminded Max of the wind which she thought was funny now because the wind actually seemed calmer right where they stood.
After a moment of thought Chloe spoke, "Ok, look. We've got no where else we can get to right now. Trying to get back down the trail now would probably be a deathtrap and that trail is the only way down so inside here is probably all we have. I've got to find something to bust that door open so just wait here, I'll be right back."
Max shook her head, "No way, I'm coming with you."
Chloe smiled though her tone was serious, "Dude, Max, be real ok? You look like you're going to fall the hell over, I had to help you walk over here and you were shuffling and hanging on me the whole way, not that I mind but… I mean, you're swaying all over like you're wasted. So just chill here a minute, ok? I'll be right back, promise."
The punk braced herself for the wind and turned to make her way around the corner of the building.
Max's panic surged as she croaked a plea, "Chloe no! Don't leave!" as she reached out her hand toward her.
Chloe turned back and gently took Max's outstretched hand in hers. She smiled and cupped Max's cheek with her other hand.
"Holster that hand time-slinger, I'll be fine. Stay here and I'll be right back, I swear. I'm just going to grab something to use on that door. With all the crap this storm has thrown everywhere it shouldn't take me long."
As she finished speaking she put on what she hoped was a confident expression. Max's face was still a mix of care and worry while behind her eyes there was something else Chloe wasn't certain she'd read correctly. It made her pause as she thought.
Max reached forward grabbing Chloe's hand, her voice desperate. "Chloe please, don't leave! The storm, it's too dangerous! I mean, separating seems like a really bad idea. We came so close just now to dying, again! Just like this whole week, over and over and over! I feel like all we ever do is run from death!"
The punk's resolve softened as she listened and watched the small girl sigh heavily before looking directly into Chloe's eyes as she continued.
"Chloe I tried, just now with the lighthouse I- didn't want to, didn't even think, it just happened."
"Dude, it's ok." Chloe shook her head sympathetically, already knowing Max was blaming herself. Like it was up to her to be the one and only savior of everyone and everything.
"No, you don't understand, Chloe I couldn't, I couldn't focus and then my head felt like it was gonna explode and I couldn't do shit!" Max's eyes emphasized her fears but Chloe only smiled.
"Hey, it's cool, we're fine, we're here. You can't be expected to save the day and everyone all the damn time Max. Besides, it was nice for me to feel like I got a little bit of that hero spotlight eh?"
Max's expression was still worried, her mouth drawn down in a frown but she managed a little smile at that. She looked down at her feet when she spoke, her voice calmer. "I can't lose you again. It's happened so many times and I just can't take it anymore. Not again, not ever. I don't want to see you die anymore and I can't go on without you because I… I need to tell you…"
She sighed and looked up into Chloe's eyes again, hesitating. She felt the words catch in the back of her throat, she struggled to speak them but felt paralyzed.
What is wrong with me?
Tell. Her. I want to, why can't I say it?
Damnit Max, you'll never know if you don't tell her!
STOP being such a damn coward and SAY IT!
Chloe watched the frustrated expression on Max's face that she'd come to know well. She was fighting with herself, clearly upset about whatever the inner conflict was. Chloe reached up with her right hand and gently brushed the rain from the brunette's forehead and face before placing her hand on Max's cheek. She spoke to her in a softer voice despite the raging storm around them.
"Tell me what? Max, what's wrong? If you know something just tell me."
Max fought to speak, trying to form the words that she needed to say. They were right there in her throat, each passing second making them harder to say.
"Chloe I… Nothing is wrong no. It's just I know that-I mean I need you to know that…"
As she struggled with herself she looked into Chloe's face and felt her breath catch in that moment. The blue haired girl's beautiful face looked back at her with only concern, care, trust and warmth. Those feelings, Max realized, were for her and she felt her fear begin to drain away. What she saw behind Chloe's eyes pulled the truth from her lips.
"Chloe I…love you."
Chloe just stared at her for what seemed like forever. Her lips were parted slightly but she didn't speak as she looked back at Max with what might have been a stunned expression. Anxiety began gnawing at Max ballooning into a tight feeling her chest.
Does she know how I meant that, I thought maybe she felt the same?
I thought she…
Oh no, look at her face, no nonono shit!
I should have just kept my stupid mouth sh-
Max's mind froze as she felt her eyes lock onto the taller girl's blue eyes, her mouth, and she couldn't look away, she didn't want to.
Chloe's lips formed a warm smile then still cupping Max's face with her palm, the warmth in her eyes seemed to glimmer now as she leaned in towards her. Max felt drawn to her, falling into her gaze, as Chloe's face moved to meet her Max stood up on her tiptoes as their lips met.
Chloe's lips felt cool and wet from the rain but soft and inviting as they met gently, hesitating at first but after a moment the feeling drew them both deeper into the kiss. The air surrounding their faces was intimate and alive, almost magnetic and their lips warmed as they pressed closer.
Max felt the core of her body tense at first as her mind tried to logically process what was happening, the sudden realization of it. But quickly her emotions took over and she relaxed, surrendering to the feeling. She felt almost weightless as her hips drew forward to press against Chloe's. It all felt deliciously new and wonderful and her mind shut down as she floated, lost in the moment.
She reached both her hands up to cradle Chloe's face feeling the taller girl press her hips forward against her. Chloe glided her hand from Max's cheek to the back of her neck as she slid her opposite hand behind her waist pulling her into a tight embrace.
Around them the winds howled as the trees bucked and swayed in a violent dance. Behind them, blinding lighting like a camera's flash illuminated their shadows on the building wall, their embraced silhouettes reflected as one. Lightning cracked punctuating the storm's fury as the world they knew was torn from it's roots, all ripped, ruined and turned to dust. The sounds of the chaos faded into the background as their entire awareness shrank to only that moment, to only the breath between their faces. The universe itself forgotten.
After a few moments in eternity, their lips slowly separated as their foreheads came to rest together, neither one speaking in the delicate quiet of the moment.
Chloe finally spoke looking back into Max's eyes "I love you more."
Max exhaled a small laugh and gazed back at her as small tears of joy and relief ran down her cheeks. Chloe chuckled before speaking softly, "Took you long enough though, ya little dork. Almost thought you were gonna leave me hanging."
Max smiled "Never again, promise."
Chloe sniffed and took a deep breath, "Ok, deal."
Max's expression looked slightly apprehensive as she spoke "So. What now? I mean where do we go from here?"
Chloe seemed to think a moment "Well, I think I'd really like to not be yanno, soaking wet! So, maybe from here we get inside this building so I can wring my ass out?"
Max rolled her eyes "You know what I meant."
"I know." Chloe grinned "Let's just get out of this crap for starters and then I guess we'll figure it out from there?"
Still huddled close Max traced her index finger gently down Chloe's chest to rest on her necklace. After a moment she spoke quietly. "Sounds fair. Just, be careful ok? I'm serious. If you're not back in five minutes I'm coming for you."
Chloe straightened up a little as a sly grin crept onto her mouth, her tone alluring "Why Max, you tease. Naughty promises like that get me all wet." she finished with a gesture at her soaked clothing.
Max's eyes grew wide, her mouth dropping open slightly as her mind registered the innuendo.
Wait, did… ohmygods!
Max smiled even as her face flushed in mild shock. She tried to reply but her mind failed to come up with anything resembling an intelligible response.
Chloe laughed at her reaction and puckered her lips, blowing the disarmed brunette a kiss. Giving her a quick wink she shielded her face with her jacket and ducked around the corner of the building out of site. Max exhaled as she watched Chloe disappear around the corner.
And like that, she was alone.
Anxiety began to crawl through her stomach as worry crept in. She didn't feel like she HAD to be at Chloe's side every minute but so much had happened that week she had to admit she felt a little paranoid. Ok, maybe more than a little. So many times she thought she was making the right choices or doing something good it all seemed to twist around on itself until she was left scrambling trying to correct it. Ironically she realized a little what David might feel like. Paranoia forcing you to imagine every outcome, plan for every contingency and worried if you miss something those you care about could be hurt because YOU didn't think of everything.
She didn't know what happened to him during his service but she imagined it must have been something bad to drive him to be so overprotective. She didn't think she would become like that, overprotective and paranoid to the point of smothering Chloe. But she felt she understood David a tiny bit more.
Or Max, maybe David can manipulate time and space too and nothing ever went right for him either.
She scoffed inwardly at herself.
Yeah, that's it, mystery solved Sherlock.
As she looked around she tried to focus her mind on other things to distract herself. She found it wasn't hard as a flood of thoughts came rushing to the front of her mind, racing from one to the next.
Chloe will be fine, she'll be careful. Shouldn't be too hard to grab something we can use on the door and then she'll be back.
Holy shit Max Caulfield! She feels the same way about you…
Aw YES!
I was afraid she wouldn't, then I choked-up and when I finally did tell her she just gives me that blank look.
But then she smiled!
Oh man this feels…scary and amazing!
She smiled to herself at the memory of their kiss and the happiness that lingered.
She hadn't realized until now how much telling Chloe about her feelings had been weighing on her mind. With everything going on this week it had been easy to distract herself, mostly.
She exhaled a deep breath, trying to calm the strong shivering ache in her stomach.
Her mind drifted back to Seattle.
She had a few close friends she hung out with, there were even a couple guys she'd dated that she'd met through her friend Kristen. Dating was ok but she'd usually felt awkward and didn't feel she had anything that interesting to talk about. There was always the newness of it, getting to know them, going places together and that was usually fun. Her Seattle friends had all been a couple years older than her but that suited Max just fine. They were a lot more chill and there was less drama.
It seemed like Kristen was always trying to play matchmaker for Max during the years she'd known her. Max was ok with it at first but after the second attempt went nowhere Max had asked her to knock it off. Kristen said she understood and had sort of laughed it off with an 'uh huh.'
There was one girl she'd met through Kristen that had been pretty cool. Zoe was an old friend of Kristen's that had moved back out to Seattle from Chicago last year and was rooming with Kristen for a few months while she got set-up.
Thinking about her reminded Max of both herself and Chloe in some ways. She wasn't shy really, but she didn't seem to like people much so she wasn't big on conversation. She was cynical with a dark sense of humor.
She'd was into computers and tech stuff but she hadn't dressed like the typical computer geeks Max knew from school. If Max went on appearances alone and had to guess, she would have thought Zoe headed up a punk band. Her style was an odd mash-up between grunge and goth, yet from what Max knew her music tastes were all over the place. Mostly what Max had found cool was she was her own person without fronting or acting like someone else. Max had known plenty of kids from school that were more like carbon copies of each other instead of being themselves.
Plus Zoe had a thing for old computers and retro tech which Max had appreciated because of her own love for old analog retro cameras.
When Max had hung out at Kristen's and Zoe had been there the two of them usually talked about music or gaming, having both been into World of Warcraft and a couple others. She found they liked some of the same music too.
Also impossible to miss was that Zoe seemed to have a epic addiction to coffee, now that she thought about it she couldn't recall ever seeing the girl without coffee of some kind.
Zoe was moody around most people but she hadn't seemed to be that way with Max which she took as a compliment. Whenever Max had asked what she thought was a dumb tech question Zoe never seemed to mind and took the time to explain things to her in a way that made sense.
They'd been kicking around plans for just the two of them to hang out before Max had left for Arcadia Bay but then her Blackwell scholarship letter came and Max had thought about nothing else. The next few weeks of planning and packing and been a whirlwind, and on reflection she realized she never really said a proper goodbye to her friends or Zoe.
As her thoughts wandered she realized with Chloe there wasn't a whole lot Max didn't know, but she kind of liked that about her. No bullshit secrets. Sure there were the years they were apart and Chloe's relationship with Rachel. But that wasn't like a secret Chloe had been keeping, just something Max didn't know much about other than they were really close. Sure she was a little curious to know more but she didn't want to be THAT girlfriend, so she figured Chloe would share more when she was ready.
Chloe's music and style were a lot different now too but Max felt she was catching up on all that pretty fast. It hadn't taken long to see that the old Chloe, the one Max had gone on so many childhood adventures with, had countless sleepovers and Saturday morning breakfasts with, the Chloe she'd grown up with, was still there. Still bossy at times but with a wonderful, caring heart and constantly trying to get Max to challenge herself and come out of her shell. To be better and grow. The way Chloe was now was a pretty good summary of those five years. So there wasn't that newness with her, but for some reason Max found that even more attractive.
Since none of the guys she'd dated in Seattle ever lasted she'd dismissed it as maybe she just wasn't into any of them that much or she hadn't met the right one yet. She never worried about it as she had her friends and school to keep her busy. Plus her mom's cliche mantra that she'd intone any time one of Max's dates didn't pan out rolled through her head, "You're too young to be hooking up with any boys yet."
Max chuckled to herself.
Well mom, you were half right. They weren't Chloe.
I was afraid it would make things feel different or weird if I told her. But this actually all feels kinda normal.
And Chloe's smile, oh man. She looked the happiest I've seen her all week.
Max pictured the blue-haired punk's radiant smile and the way her eyes glimmered when she was happy, in spite of herself Max's mental photo of Chloe made her crack a huge grin until shortly another very real thought hit her.
Holy shit!
What am I going to tell Mom and Dad!?
She brought her hand to her face as she leaned back against the building, a small exasperated groan escaping her throat.
Oh man, how the hell am I going to tell them anything, there is no smoke-screening it either. I can just hear that call now:
"Hi guys! I'm good, no worries. Nothing much goin on here.
Oh that storm? Yeah they canceled classes and stuff for the rest of the year at least. No no, I'm not hurt.
Speaking of classes my photography teacher, Mark Jefferson? He turned out to be a psycho kidnapper and murderer. Heh, so that was pretty weird.
I know right, who knew?
What else… Oh! I tried to shoot this drug dealer in a junkyard.
No no it's fine. So, Chloe and I were shooting stuff with her gun that she swiped from her stepdad until this guy Frank walked up and pulled a knife on Chloe.
Frank? No, he's the guy Chloe gets her weed from. Plus she owed him like three grand.
So anyway, he pulled a knife on her and I tried to shoot him but the gun was empty. He kinda laughed about it and left but later he turned out to be cool and now we're all friends, soft of.
What? Chloe? Yeah Chloe Price, remember her?
Oh yanno, nothin much. She and I reconnected and have been hanging out, doin stuff. Turns out that we realized we're in love.
Yeah mom… Uh huh… Yes…
Frank? Um, No. Chloe and I.
Yes, with each other mom.
So, we're kinda dating now. Heh, surprise!
So…yeah. Um…how are you guys?"
She groaned out loud.
Hella awkward Max. This is gonna have to be a face to face talk with some serious padding.
Prolly can't bring up the time travel though, that wouldn't sell. Man, about the only thing I can tell them about from this week is me and Chloe and that's going to be hard enough, UGH.
Dad will be cool with it but...mom, I dunno.
I could maybe talk about Jefferson's arrest?
Fucking psycho.
I tell them any other details they'll prolly get me my own padded room.
Shit, maybe I need one. Maybe I am crazy. Would I even know if I was, like, do crazy people know they're crazy?
It's not like I can talk to a doctor about all this or anything and there is only one other person in the world who believes me.
Where the hell is she? It's been long enough hasn't it?
Max's mind came back to the present as worry began to creep back in. If something happened she thought she could rewind, if it came to that. She hoped it wouldn't. If she was totally honest with herself, she didn't want to anymore and she thought darkly that maybe that's why it failed her earlier. Her head had felt like it would explode but she felt she probably could have powered through it. Using her powers now though, she felt like that made her weaker, like she was running away from reality and avoiding things again and she was over that crap. Feeling scared all the time.
I was able to save Chloe this week, but that is one of the few good things that ever came out of it.
Well, Kate too, sorta. My power didn't work on the roof but it did buy me enough time to get up there. So thankfully that worked out in the end.
Most everything else I just made worse.
Maybe I did use it just to get people to like me.
But…I don't need to now. Chloe was right, I don't feel so chickenshit anymore.
But what if someone else needs my help...
She irritatedly shook her head.
I'm so freakin tired of thinking about all this crap.
I wish I could take like a week off to just not think about ANYTHING.
She thought about testing it just a second, just to see if she still could. She raised her hand slightly and began to concentrate on that place in her mind, extending her will. The sensation felt a lot to her like plunging her hand into a fast-moving river and pushing against the current until the current itself slowed and then reversed, flowing backwards on itself. The soft, dull rushing sound slowly began to build in her head.
But as she started a terrifying anxiety began to grip her. Even this little bit of a test might alter something critical and that thought scared her as much as Jefferson's creepy underground dark room.
One pebble that landed differently somewhere, one branch that would now snap that didn't before, a person doing something slightly different than they did before.
Chloe…
Time is such a mind-fuck.
Max felt the dull throbbing in her head return, shooting little needles of pain through her forehead and into her temples. Her focus returned to the present and the rushing sound faded to be replaced by the sounds of the storm around her.
And what if you black-out again genius? Chloe could be in trouble and I'd be face-down in the dirt.
Lot of good you'd do anyone then Max.
The needle like pain increased the more she thought about it. Like her skull was filling with razor blades. She relaxed her outstretched hand and instead brought it to her forehead, lightly massaging it.
No. If I have to I will, for her.
"I'm not losing you again." she said softly to herself.
Max pressed harder into the wall as the storm's force and the driving rain redoubled. The sheer size of the storm and it's proximity where it made landfall was also now closer to the cliff where they were. As Max tried to look around the corner of the building toward the cliff she found visibility was terrible, looking to her left she couldn't even see the path that led up here from the parking lot anymore. At times the ground and the sky were just different shades of gray rain-streaked, debris-choked blur.
Large branches and other foliage whipped across the view and the snapping and cracking of a larger trees cut through the loud roar of the wind causing her to jump. In the background the immense vortex was still visible and Max guessed it's location was well onto the shore now. As she looked at it, she couldn't help but feel that the storm was watching her still and that made her anxiety even worse.
I told you, I made my choice! Just go!
Just do what you need to and go the FUCK away!
She looked down at her shoes as she leaned back against the building and hugged herself tightly trying to fight back anxiety and physical chills. Small tears from stress formed in the corners of her eyes.
She didn't regret this, she couldn't. She and Chloe had beat all odds. They had found Rachel, they had brought Jefferson's crimes to light. Kate and many other girls had gotten justice. It was all over, finally.
Everything except this fucking storm.
For some reason she found her thoughts drift to David and hoped he was ok, he had come through for them in the end and he'd even saved her life in a couple realities. Even in this one when they'd needed him most, he listened and acted. All his other faults aside, he was truly a hero in Max's mind. She reminded herself to tell Chloe when the time was right, she owed David that much at least.
She thought of Joyce, Kate, Dana, Victoria, Warren and all the others, even Frank, she hoped they all stayed somewhere safe and would make it through. In other realities she'd seen things go terribly wrong. But she was starting to see that events didn't always play out the same way each time or even in each reality. Her recent experiences here on the cliff pointed to that too. Much seemed the same like she'd expected from her visions but there were still differences. She wasn't sure if that was a good thing or not.
Maybe in this one everyone had found safety though.
A sudden violent shiver shot through her body as chills gripped her and a wave of dizziness swept through her head. She felt colder now and she was slowly losing the battle to keep her teeth from chattering. With all the heavy thoughts on her mind her body's reluctance to cooperate was irritating her.
Gods, why is it so fucking cold, it's not like it's winter, what the hell.
She hugged herself tightly but only succeeded in pressing her wet clothing onto her skin in a failed attempt to warm herself.
Stranger still was another growing feeling. That after she'd made what felt like a lifetime's worth of decisions in only a matter of days this was the first point at which she felt like she'd finally reached a true decision. It was puzzling because as terrible as everything looked around her at that moment she couldn't help but feel an odd sense of conclusion. Like some cycle had closed and part of her felt relief at that and maybe a little hopeful too? She scoffed a little at how out-of-place those thoughts and feelings seemed.
Looking around her things sure didn't seem like they'd ended. Another loud crash caused her to jump as her thoughts snapped back to the present. She wanted to push off the wall and go see if she could find Chloe. It seemed like it had been too long and her anxiety was making her a little angry.
Where the hell is she?
She was always doing shit like this to me when we were kids and she's been gone way too long.
Swear to gods Chloe if you try to jump me from behind again you're gonna be a punk ghost…
She started to make her way along the wall to the front edge of the building. As she came around the corner to the side by the door the wind gusts pushed her around like a doll. She tensed her legs to keep herself upright as she moved forward half leaning, half sliding along the building's side for support. She had almost reached the front corner when Chloe suddenly stumbled back in front of her holding something large and round with both hands. She looked even more soaked, as if that were possible.
A wave of relief began to sweep through Max but her tone came out a little sharper than she intended "What the hell took you so long?"
She inwardly rebuked herself as soon as the words left her mouth. As relief finally settled in her voice was calmer "Did you find anything Chlo?"
Chloe hadn't seemed to notice Max's initial snap and instead smirked, "Yeah I sure did!"
The girl heaved a bowling ball sized rock up to her chest level and walked over to the door.
"I found-" she said as she slammed it down on the door handle, "-a key!"
The handle made a dull metallic snapping sound as it was wrenched off the door. Still holding the rock Chloe swung it sideways and with the second stroke rammed the rock into the door where the handle once was snapping the latch. The door shuddered and swung inwards being helped by the force of the wind.
She tossed the rock inside and grabbed Max's hand "Max c'mon! inside!" and they both stumbled into the small one room building.
Outside the storm's fury raged.
A/N: Huge chapter what?!
Plus this storm right? In the future I don't see Max ever having a particular fondness for lighthouses again ;)
So this chapter ended up larger! I'd originally intended it to be broken into two separate chapters but after some trimming from both I just couldn't find a break point I liked so viola, big chapter! (at least for me.)
Hope you are enjoying the story so far! If you feel particularly inspired to do a review I'd love to hear from you!
Much love and thanks again!
