Thanks to everyone who put in their suggestions! It really helped a lot :) Most of the songs will be featured later in the story.
Until then, this chapter will feature the classic song from the game for Chloe, Piano Fire, and Alone by Halsey for Max. Just to get us started.
And I'm just gonna rip this bandaid off right now. Updates will, unfortunately, be coming much slower because I'm going into my freshman year of college on August 29th. I won't abandon this story, though. So don't worry about that.
~I got sunburnt waiting for the jets to land
Circus people with hairy little hands
Come on, boys, strike up the army band
I got sunburnt waiting for the jets...~
Chloe thrashed about lazily to the song blasting from her stereo system. She was wearing a smile as she mumbled along to the lyrics and sorted through the clothes she hung up in her closet. Her hips swayed, her head bobbed, and her feet stomped gently against the floor. She picked out her studded camouflage jacket, black beanie, and ripped gray pants. She moved on to her drawers to choose a pair of black boxers and a light blue bra.
~How do you feel?
How do you feel?
I can't seem to see through
Solid marble eyes...~
Chloe's phone chimed from its spot on her pillow and she did a quick skip over to grab it. She unlocked it, smiling that she'd received a message from Rachel, and opened the text.
Rach (Mon 09/04/2017, 7:21 am): Heyyy girl!
Chloe quickly typed her response.
Chloe (Mon 09/04/2017, 7:22 am): yo, wassup?
Rach (Mon 09/04/2017, 7:24 am): Excited to hang with Max?
About as excited as I can get. Chloe thought to herself, and that's exactly what she sent. While she awaits Rachel to answer this time, she goes to gather her shower supplies. For some odd reason, she enjoyed the way Old Spice smelled so that tended to be the soap she used. Her personal favorite was the Wolfthorn one.
Rach (Mon 09/04/2017, 7:27 am): Gonna go into super sleuthing mode still?
Chloe set her jaw and her expression scrunched up a bit.
Chloe (Mon 09/04/2017, 7:29 am): Still not comfortable doing that
Oh, come on. What have you got to lose?
Besides our friendship?
Just before Chloe could grab her towel and head out the door, there was a loud banging coming from the other side of it. Chloe nearly jumped out of her skin, dropping her phone and clutching her stuff closer to her chest in the process. Her heart pounded in her ears.
"Open up in there!"
You've got to be fucking kidding me.
Chloe sighed and approached the door. After a second of hesitation, she opened it to reveal a steaming Victoria Chase. She was still in her pajamas, with her hands clenched at her sides and her hair slightly mussed from sleep. Her expression only soured further when she recognized Chloe.
"Of course it's you blasting that punk shit." Victoria said through her teeth.
"What's that supposed to mean?" Chloe stood up straighter, staring Victoria down.
"Do you think that because you're "friends" with Maxine you can get away with anything you want?" Victoria asked. She returned Chloe's gaze with a challenging glare.
"The fuck does that have to do with anything?" Chloe said. "I'm just playing music."
"While the rest of us are trying to sleep! Classes don't start until tomorrow, and some of us like to enjoy the day before in peace." Victoria said.
"I'm not stopping anyone from "enjoying their peace."" Chloe replied.
Victoria huffed. "Just turn it off before I get security down here."
Chloe didn't get the chance to say something before Victoria turned and all but stomped down the hallway back to her room, where she slammed the door closed. Chloe stared at the closed door for a moment before rolling her eyes.
God, I really hope Max didn't turn into that. She thought as she retrieved her phone from the floor and turned off her stereo. She opened Rachel's new message.
Rach (Mon 09/04/2017, 7:33 am): You don't really have much of a choice, Che. You know that.
Chloe rolled her eyes. She really hated to admit that Rachel was right in that sense. But she also knew she had to take it easy. If she stressed too much about this, everything could go wrong and she'd never get her answer.
Chloe (Mon 09/07/2017, 7:34 am): I'll figure it out
With that being said, Chloe put her phone down on the dresser and left to the showers. There were only a couple other doors open, which gave Chloe the impression that Victoria wasn't entirely exaggerating when she said others were sleeping in peace. Chloe shrugged and continued on to the bathroom. She was almost surprised to see someone already at the sink, whom she recognized as Kate when she picked her head up.
"Hey, Kate." she greeted, smiling at the girl in the mirror.
Kate's eyes moved to Chloe's reflection before she turned around and a pleasant smile graced her lips. "Good morning, Chloe." She paused for a moment, hesitant. "Are you okay?"
Chloe quirked an eyebrow and made her way further into the washroom. "Yeah, why wouldn't I be?"
"I heard Victoria go off on you." Kate said, her cheeks coloring a faint red like she was ashamed of overhearing the conversation. "And... After what was said last night, I was hoping you weren't still upset with us..."
Oh. Right. Chloe had nearly forgotten about that. She huffed a dismissive breath and waved her hand. "Bygones are bygones. I might've overreacted. And as for Victoria, it's not too big of a deal. I've dealt with worse back in Seattle."
Kate visibly relaxed at Chloe's assurance, glad that she was past what Brooke insinuated about Maxine. She'd hate to see their new friend already turning against them. "For the record, I liked the song you were playing. Piano Fire by Sparklehorse right?"
"Color me intrigued, Marsh. Didn't think you were into punk music." Chloe said with a laugh.
Kate laughed. "Not me, my cousin. He recently went through a punk rock phase and that was one of the songs he played."
"Then your cousin has great taste." Chloe made her way over to the first shower, her hand out to pull the curtain back, when Kate hurriedly grabbed her wrist. Chloe turned to her and started to say something.
"Don't use that one." Kate said before Chloe could speak. "The water never gets hot in that one." She nodded toward the other two showers. "Those two work okay, though I prefer the third one. Oh, and never use the sink if the shower is running. That makes the water cold in all of them."
"Heh, thanks for the tips." Chloe smiled and moved over to the third shower. She moved the curtain away and reached inside to turn the water on. She left her small basket of supplies in front of the shower.
"So, when are you supposed to see Maxine again?" Kate asked, hoping she wasn't intruding too much with her question.
Chloe didn't mind. "We're supposed to go to Two Whales at noon. Y'know, to catch up."
"That's good." Kate said. "I'm sure you two will have fun."
"Thanks, Kate." Chloe pulled the curtain around behind her and started to undress, feeling the water splattering off the floor of the shower onto her legs.
"I'm gonna head back to my room, I'll see you later?" Kate said, her voice getting farther away.
"Yep." Chloe said. She stuck her head out from under the curtain. "Oh, and Kate?"
Kate looked back when she reached the doorway. "Yes?"
"Nothing against buns, but you should keep your hair down more often." Chloe said, smiling. "You look hella cuter like that."
A bright red blush covered Kate's cheeks and her hair absently reached up to graze the ends of her hair. Her smile turned shy. "Th-thank you."
Chloe smiled wider and ducked back under the curtain, stepping into the shower.
Chloe finished drying off her hair in the mirror and placed her towel over her shoulder. She leaned against the basin and checked out her reflection. Tilting her head down slightly, she took a glance at her roots.
I really need to redye my hair soon.
She grabbed her toothbrush from her basket and proceeded to brush her teeth, followed by gathering the rest of her belongings and heading back to her room. There were a few more doors open now and more people walking about.
I wonder which one of these is Max's.
No one made an effort to greet Chloe, and she wasn't really one to put herself out there, so she made a beeline for her room and closed the door behind her. She put her toiletries away in her closet and picked up her phone, wondering why the blue notification light was flashing. She unlocked her phone and made a face. She had a text from an unfamiliar person, received ten minutes before.
Okay, what the fuck?
(555)xxx-xxxx (Mon 09/04/2017, 8:05 am): Hey, Che, hope this is still your number. I realized I didn't give you my new one yesterday so I'm taking a chance. Meet me in the parking lot at 11:45 so we can go to Two Whales, okay :)
Chloe's heart kicked faster in her chest and she couldn't understand why. Maybe it was the delayed, relieved hope that Max would finally text her again. Yeah. It had to be that.
Chloe saved Max's number before texting back, smiling a bit.
Chloe (Mon 09/04/2017, 8:18 am): I'm not Chloe, I'm a crazed ax murderer that now has a time and location on where to find you
Chloe (Mon 09/04/2017, 8:19 am): And no emoji
It took only a few minutes for her to get an answer.
Max (Mon 09/04/2017, 8:22 am): Your humor hasn't changed either lol good to know
Chloe (Mon 09/04/2017, 8:24 am): And you still appreciate the little things
Max (Mon 09/04/2017, 8:26 am): Well, when that's all that's left
Too true.
Max (Mon 09/04/2017, 8:29 am): Before I forget, I have a VC meeting at 10 so if I'm late just wait by the gray Volkswagen Passat.
Chloe (Mon 09/04/2017, 8:31 am): Understood. See you then.
Max (Mon 09/04/2017, 8:34 am): Definitely :)
Chloe (Mon 09/04/2017, 8:36 am): NO EMOJI
Chloe didn't expect an answer after that, so she shut the screen off and tucked her phone in her pocket. She stood there in the middle of her room with her arms folded over her chest. What the hell am I supposed to do for the next three hours?
You could hang with Kate and Brooke, or explore the school grounds some more.
I'll take you up on the first suggestion, no way in hell am I walking campus alone.
Chloe turned her attention to her mirror for a final once over of her appearance before grabbing her headphones off her dresser and leaving again.
"You can stay longer, if you need to."
She shook her head. "I can't, I have to go."
"Will I at least see you at the meeting?" His question was out of genuine curiosity and worry.
She almost laughed. It was amusing how he played like he thought she had a choice in attendance. "Of course."
Max entered the staff room the Vortex Club occasionally used for their meetings. Everyone was already there, excluding Victoria. Max, of course, received her usual greetings from everyone.
"Hey, Maxine."
"Morning."
"Good morning, Maxine."
"Maxine, hey!"
Max smiled as she made her way to her chair, next to Victoria's vacant seat. And one over from Nathan. He gave her a look as she passed, a silent 'Are you okay?' as she passed him. She answered with a small, discreet nod and took her seat.
"Morning, everyone." she finally said. She shared a smile with the circle.
Max was the first Vice President of the Vortex Club. This meant that she assisted Victoria as needed and stood in for her when she was not around. When she was acting as president she would take on all the responsibilities that Victoria would have that day. Supervising progress, overseeing initiations of the newbies, and so on. Despite the fact that Victoria was one of her closest friends (however being moved down a spot now that Chloe was back in her life), she sometimes found herself wishing for Victoria to be sick or away every now and then so she could feel in control for a while.
Just for a while.
It was the only time she felt she truly had control over something in her life.
But today was not one of those days.
The door creaking gave away Victoria's grand entrance, and all heads turned to take it in. She swept into the room with her usual grace and haughtiness. Everyone in the room knew it was all a ruse, especially Max and Nathan. However, she was the one with the power. So no one said a word.
No one.
Victoria took her seat between Max and Nathan. The snooty air she gave off melted away and she smiled. "Welcome, everyone, to the first Vortex Club meeting of the new school year." The club members responded with applause and small 'whoops.' Victoria let them settle down before continuing. "Now, before we begin I'd like to address that we reinforce the 'Disturbing the Peace' rule we have standing in the dorms.
"Seeing as we have an unusual amount of new students arriving this year compared to the past, I want to make sure that they understand there are ground rules when attending Blackwell Academy. And I want them to know who enforces said rules." Victoria paused for a moment. "Since we can't have a Disciplinary Committee here, I'm requesting that one of you report any disturbance in each of the dorms."
Dana Ward, head of the Activity/Event and Volunteer committees, raised her hand slightly. "This doesn't have anything to do with that girl blasting her music this morning, does it?"
Max's ears perked up. Girl? Which girl?
Victoria shot a look at Dana, her composure tense. "We are not singling out any blue-haired punks at the given moment, Dana."
Max could've sworn Victoria glanced in her direction from the corner of her eye.
"Hayden, I'd like you to watch in the boys dormitories." Victoria said, looking at the Schedule Manager of the club.
"You got it, Vic." Hayden made finger guns at her and smiled.
"Great." Victoria turned to Max.
Oh, no.
"Maxine, would you do the girls dorm?"
Shit.
"Uh, I don't know Victoria-" Max started.
"Don't worry, it's not as stressful as it sounds." Victoria interrupted. She took her attention to the rest of the club, ending the conversation with her. "Alright, let's get to business..."
Chloe exited Brooke's room with a soda in her hand, bidding her and Kate goodbye as she headed for the door outside. They'd spent the last two and a half hours watching a show called Stranger Things, which Chloe admitted to never having the time to check it out. Brooke immediately pounced on her suitcase and unpacked her Playstation 3 to hook it up, demanding that Chloe watch the show. Especially since season two was coming out in just over a month.
By the end of the first episode, Chloe could understand the hype she'd heard about it. Hence why she had a somewhat disappointed look on her face when she looked at the time and told them she had to go.
"Trust me, we'll finish later." Chloe promised. "I'll come find you guys when we get back, okay?"
"Alright, but we want all the details!" Brooke said, and Chloe laughed. She sounded exactly like Rachel.
They exchanged numbers before Chloe left to make it easier to find each other when she got back. Chloe checked the time on her phone as she stepped outside. Eleven forty. Not bad; it wouldn't take her five minutes to get to the parking lot. She tossed her can on the nearest recycle bin and reached into her pocket, pulling out a loose cigarette and a lighter. She placed the cigarette between her slightly pursed lips and lit the end.
With her hand shoved into her pocket, Chloe crossed the courtyard and passed the school building towards the parking lot. She exhaled the smoke through her nose and watched two squirrels scurrying up a tree in fright of her arrival. Everything seemed unusually serene and, oddly enough, it made Chloe smile to herself. She usually preferred overcast with the smell of rain as it was somewhat therapeutic to her loud thoughts. But this was fine.
Let's hope that's not ruined.
Chloe's eyes scanned the parking lot and didn't find Max anywhere. She did find the Passat, though, and made her way over to it. She took another drag from her cigarette, leaning in a bit to look in through the window. She laughed softly at the Hotdog Man figurine hanging from Max's rearview mirror.
"Been a long time since we watched that, huh?"
Chloe jumped and stumbled back a bit, her back pressing slightly into someone's hands and front as the person that startled her caught and stabilized her.
That person being Max.
Max laughed softly once Chloe caught her footing and moved her hands away from her back. "Sorry, didn't mean to scare you."
Chloe turned around to face her and jokingly scoffed, crossing her arms. "Pfft, you? Scare me? As if."
"You looked pretty scared to me." Max said. She waltzed around to the driver side of the car, pulling her key out of her pocket.
"Shut up." Chloe shot back with a smile.
Max pressed the button on her keys to unlock the car doors and Chloe stepped up to the passenger side. They opened their doors and slipped inside, instantaneously putting on their seat belts. Max stuck the key into the ignition and started the car.
"There are CDs in the middle compartment if you want to put some music on." Max offered as she glanced over her shoulder to back out of the space.
"Well, we'll only be able to handle awkward silence for so long, right?" Chloe laughed. And Max did, too.
Chloe shifted to the side and flipped open the middle compartment. She saw a miscellaneous selection of CDs, ranging from Syd Matters to Daughter. Chloe smiled and plucked a Tegan and Sara CD, So Jealous, from the collection, waving it gently in the air. "Tegan and Sara? Angsty, angsty, Maxie."
Max shook her head and smiled a bit. She felt and odd tingling in her chest at the nickname. "A friend of mine left it in the car, and then told me I could keep it. I don't listen to it very often." Max caught the look Chloe gave her in her peripheral vision and blushed. "Alright, I might've listened to it once or twice."
"Maybe I'll put that one in after I see what else you've got in here." Chloe continued her search through Max's music and took out a CD in a blank blue case. Inside was a regular CD with the words 'Max's Mix' on it. "What's this?"
"Oh, I was given that by a-" Max paused. Chloe didn't miss it. Max cleared her throat. "Another friend of mine. I don't even remember what's on it."
"Let's find out then." Chloe suggested. She let go of Max's odd pause, figuring it was someone Max had...seen...in her past and wasn't comfortable sharing.
In the silence, she opened up the CD case and took the CD out. As gently as possible she stuck it in the player and pressed play. A fast-paced song started blaring through the speakers and Max tapped the steering wheel.
"No, skip that one." she said. Chloe did so, and an 80's-ish style song started playing. Chloe recognized it and chuckled.
"Halsey? Really?" she teased.
"I didn't pick the songs." Max said, echoing Chloe's mild laughter. "But I do like this one."
~Said he tried to phone me
But I never have time
He said that I never listen
But I don't even try...~
"Soo..." Max said slowly. "How was Seattle the past three years?"
Chloe sat back in the chair and exhaled melodramatically, a small smile gracing her lips. "Man, it sucked hard. Was not all that impressed."
~I got a new place in Cali
But I'm gone every night
So I fill it with strangers
So they keep on the lights...~
"You sounded so enthralled at first. Like you were having a lot of fun." Max said.
"Maybe I was trying to make you miss me more than you already did." Chloe's small smile became a smug grin when she looked at Max. "Or jealous."
"I doubt you could've made me miss you more than I already did." Max said. She turned a corner.
~She said she told you she knows me
But the face isn't right
She asked if I recognized her
And I told her I might...~
"Did I?" Chloe asked. Why did she sound so hopeful?
Max huffed, amused. "Maybe."
~See, everywhere I go
I got a million different people tryna' kick it
But I'm still alone in my mind...~
"It wasn't the same without you, if I can be honest." Chloe admitted and looked ahead at the road stretching before them.
~I know you're dying to meet me
But I can just tell you this
Baby, as soon as you meet me
You'll wish that you never did
(You'll wish that you never did)...~
"Yeah?" Max said, sounding breathless. Her heart pounded. The sound reverberated in her thoughts. She almost smiled. "Same here."
Woo! Chapter 3 finally complete! Have I built up your appetite? You should be hungry for more, because there's plenty coming! I'm still changing plans for this story, and there are a few things still in the "to be determined" category. I had to make this story modern because of the reference to media (like Stranger Things) that wasn't released in 2013 and songs that will be featured here. I hope that doesn't deter you from this story! Stick around!
CaptainVampireKing awaaay!