A/N: Hey guys! Just put this here because I wanted to catch folks' attention. Make sure you read the author notes at the end!
Morning came far too quickly; Chloe and I went to see some agonizingly dreadful flick called Addicted which was about...sex? And people...addicted...oh hell, I honestly can't remember, because it was exactly the kind of film that you go with your girlfriend...
...oh! I mean to say fiancee. Hee!
Anyhow, it's the kind of movie you go with your special someone so that you can sneak off in the back and make out, without having to worry about if you're missing something good. Believe me, I was much more interested in the erotica unfolding in the seat right next to mine than any that might have been happening on screen.
Although, it did get a little embarrassing near the end, when one of the bouncers caught us being a little too frisky; fortunately, the most flagrantly sexual phase of our bout of PDA had passed - the kind that involved hands and fingers underneath clothing and underwear - and instead they came across the two of us in the...umm...shall we say afterglow portion, cuddling and kissing. Although, Chloe nibbling on my ear and neck is probably what made them take note as they were passing by.
(Note to self: Gotta wear a scarf or put some cover up on my neck before going to work at the diner today!)
Still, as semi-mortifying as the getting caught part was, the exchange itself was absolutely hilarious to us. At the time. I mean, it probably helped we were still a little stoned.
"Miss! You and your boyfriend are going to have to calm yourselves down, or I'll have you removed from the movie!". Is what the dour, heavyset older woman patrolling the aisles hissed angrily at me.
(Also, can you believe it? Bouncers patrolling a theater? Who does that anymore? Well...I guess small town Arcadia Bay, but still...)
A minute or two later, after Chloe stopped pretending to be perfectly still and frozen, she couldn't hold it back any more and simply burst out laughing, pulling me along as we quickly rushed out of the theater. Her laughter was bright, infectious, a perfect counterpoint to the ever lengthening nights of the Autumn, to the lingering chill that seemed to eternally grip Arcadia Bay since That One Particular Week in October Last Year, a chill which had never fully dissipated.
Pushing me up against the truck, Chloe stole another hungry kiss from me, and leaned in, still giggling. "Oh! Oh God! Boyfriend? I know I butch it up a little, but that lady had to be hella blind!"
Smiling brightly, my fingers running riot through her violet locks, I murmur, "Oh, I don't know. You make an adorable boyfriend. What, you know...with your awesome boobs and everythi-"
I can't finish the sentence, because I'm laughing too hard now.
You'd think after months of riding on the road, and having sex in our own little private space, whenever we want, at the drop of a hat, coupled with having to be incredibly responsible with things like time management, budgeting, making our own meals, and dressing ourselves with a relatively high degree of accuracy, we'd be a lot more mature than we've been tonight. But something about coming back to Arcadia Bay, to that place of our childhoods, seems to bring out the giggly teenage girls in both of us.
Not exactly a bad thing; Chloe and I never got a chance to spend the majority of our teenage years together, crushing out on each other and then embracing the eventual realization that we were falling in love. As absolutely overjoyed and delighted we are to finally have each other now, I must admit it makes me kind of sad that we missed out on that opportunity. There's an ache in my heart, for everything that I let slip through my fingers, almost for good, for those five years we fell out of touch.
Those missing years we can never get back.
Ugh...God. I'm too damn young to be this fucking maudlin.
Anyhow, long story short, Chloe and I...shall we say, mayhaps tarried overlong. Despite the Bay being totally dead on a weeknight, we've always been good at making our own fun, enjoying the company of just the two of us together. Especially when you've got a pen full of awesome grade hash oil, the full moon, the sand and the surf, and a nice big sleeping bag to snuggle under until two in the morning. Which is when we finally dragged our asses back home.
So. Yeah. If I don't want to be a shitty future daughter-in-law, I need to pay the piper. Ouch.
Still, I've done this enough times that it's old hat, and I can at least run on autopilot long enough to get to the Two Whales, with its blissful promise of all the free coffee I can drink.
My old uniform's still in the closet in Chloe's room (Chloe's Chloset?). After the world's quickest, coldest shower, and just enough makeup to get the job done, I rush down the stairs, throw a cold muffin into my face, grab the keys to Joyce's car - bless her for letting me borrow it - and zoom off towards the diner, dashing in with just minutes to spare. Not exactly how I wanted to start the day - that is, sleep deprived, and a little strung out from too much hash oil and sex - but I've been through worse.
Okay, maybe the only example of 'worse' I can think of right now was being shot, but that never not counts.
Just ask poor Chloe.
I dash in behind the counter, and wave to Chris, the manager on duty: a thin, wiry guy in his early thirties who immediately settled for this position for some reason, despite his two years getting an Associates Degree in Management at the local community college. Thank God it's someone I know; I'd hate to have to try and explain my entire backstory to someone new, and why Joyce isn't here today, but that's the advantage to a small town like this one, I suppose; not a hell of a lot ever changes, especially in a place like the Two Whales Diner.
Still, he's clearly not expecting me; to be perfectly blunt, I don't think he even recognizes me. I can only imagine what could have been going on in his head, expecting Joyce to appear, and a young punkette with black and green hair appears instead, dressed in a uniform and clearly acting like she's not only familiar with the place - I immediately gravitate to the coffee machine in the back and gulp down a cup of dark roast - but is getting ready to hit the floor for a shift.
Before he can say a word, I give him my best smile. "Hi Chris! Been a few months! You're probably wondering why I'm here instead of Joyce today."
His mouth pauses in mid-opening, as realization starts to dawn on him.
"M-Max? Oh...well goodness sakes, you sure confused the hell out of me. Didn't even recognize you! Um. Uh - are you wanting your old job back? I'm sorry, but we went and hired another part timer, because we all thought you were moving out of town, and..."
I laugh lightly and start to shake my head, smiling when I'm not wincing from how bitter the coffee burning my mouth is. "No no no. Nothing like that. Chloe and I are just visiting; thought that Joyce would like some time together with her, so I'm picking up her shift. No need to pay me, just put it in her paycheck like you normally would. I might be back one or two more times over the next couple of weeks as well.
Chris just blinked. "Wh-what? Huh. My...well that's unusual! At...least keep her tips, or something? I mean...you deserve something. You're doing her work."
Flexibility in the face of sudden change was never one of Chris' strong suits. Don't get me wrong, the guy's plenty friendly, but I always suspected he had just a bit too much OCD. Situation changes too much, and it throws him off his game.
Still, I grin and shake my head. "Nope! Don't worry. Like I said, just pretend I'm Joyce, simple as that. I realize it's unusual, but it's only for two or three shifts."
Starting to roll with the change in program, he writes down some sort of note to himself on his clipboard, and murmurs, "Always were a sweetheart, Max. Don't tell Joyce I said anything, but I always suspected she'd be happy enough to trade her daughter for you."
I shake my head, give a laugh, and say, "Well, she doesn't have to pick between either of us. She can call us both her daughters." And with that, I hold out my left hand, the one with the ring finger. Also, the arm with the sleeve tattoo.
I'm not sure which aspect flusters and confuses him more: that dependable, reliable, hard working, ultra-trustworthy Max Caulfield, darling of the Two Whales staff for almost six months, has suddenly fallen prey to the Chloe side of the Force, or the fact that she and I are getting married. Don't get me wrong, Chris is a nice enough guy; very salt of the Earth though. He won't be winning any Nobel Prizes, and too much change clearly unnerves him, but he never, not once, has ever done or said anything to make me feel uncomfortable about my relationship with her. I mean, maybe he's got feelings about homosexuality in general...clearly it's not for him, and the notion on a general level might unnerve him for all I know. She and I have been surrounded by such amazing and enthusiastically supportive people over the last few months that it's sometimes hard to grok that there are people out there who...just don't know what to make about two girls or two guys being in a committed and loving relationship.
But given that he's never changed his attitude towards me or given me the cold shoulder over it, I can only assume that he's the sort of person who figures that as long as it's not picking his pocket or breaking his leg, it's not worth being a dick about. And you know what? That's fine. That's just fine by me. I don't need him to legitimately gush or celebrate my engagement.
I just need him to treat me like a human being who's good at her job. And that's exactly what he does.
"Ohhhhh. You and Chloe are...are getting married? Well...congrats! I'm sure you'll be a good influence on her, Max." he says, smiling, although the wary stares at my hair and tattoo suggest he feels otherwise.
I grab a pad and pencil from one of the nearby supply trays, take one last gulp of coffee, as I feel the caffein start to take away the worst of my sluggishness, and announce in a chipper tone of voice. "Welp, I'm sure the song and dance hasn't changed since the Spring, right? Time to go out there and help those folks get their grub on."
This does prompt a genuine bit of amusement from him, and he calls out, as I start to make my way out the kitchen, "Good to have you back Max, even if just for a day or two!"
The morning starts off light and easy, thank God for Wednesdays. By the time the first cup of coffee kicks in, I'm comfortably, even pleasantly functional, content with the notion that this is probably going to be an uneventful enough day; after all, most of the Blackwell people I knew already graduated, and took off to lives of their own.
Except, of course, Justin and Trevor; both a year behind me, walk through the door, clearly looking to get their grub on before, or between classes. I give them a big smile and a friendly wave, but they don't seem to notice, short of giving a perfunctory nod.
D-dude. What the fuck? Are you guys ghosting me? I mean, we hung out a fair amount, especially after Chloe got out of the hospital and shit. So now what's the deal...oh!
It strikes me: they probably have no idea who I am, other than an overly caffeinated new waitress looking to get her tips on. Of course the Max they know wouldn't have black hair with green bangs. And she'd never have a sleeve tattoo!
Heh. Let's have a little fun with this, shall we? A game of 'How long will it take you two stoners to figure out it's me?', extra difficult mode.
With an exaggerated swagger and bump to my step, I pull out the pencil from behind my ears, lift it up to my pad, and speak.
"So what kin I getchew boys?"
Now you have to understand, I've just put on this atrocious "diner gal" accent, that sort of ditzy Brooklyn-meets-Mid-Atlantic (I think?) tone from like a million years in the past; except that I mostly end up sounding like a bad clone of Columbia from Rocky Horror.
This does get Justin and Trevor's attention; I figure it'll just be a few seconds before even their weed addled brains clue in; I mean hell, we smoked up together a fair enough, you'd think that would like...um...count for SOMEthing?
Justin, however, acts as if his brain's completely short circuited. He stares at me, as if I'm merely some sort of hallucination his mind has conjured. Takes him a couple seconds, but he asks, "Whoa. Are you...like new?"
"Me? Oh-yeh, sweetie. Just gawt into towen last week. I don't really waitress for a livin', I'm just payin' the bills until I finally get that sing-ging career off the ground at last!". Trevor is covering up his mouth, trying not to laugh, because...seriously? I'm a bad singer to begin with, but now I must look like I'm someone totally hella delusional right now.
"So whatzit gonna be, boys?" I ask again.
"Uh, yeah." Justin starts. "I'll have a couple of poached eggs on rye toast, and a cup of coffee.
Trevor barely comports himself as he adds his own order. "Biscuits and sausage gravy sounds good. Yeah, coffee for me too Oh, and a English muffin with butter."
Order collected, I strut in a fashion that would probably distract the hell out of poor Chloe if she were here to witness it, slip up the check into the rack and call out, in a slightly too loud voice to the line cook on duty.
"Chaaa-lee! I need two cups of mud, Adam and Eve on a raft, A heart attack on a rack, and burn the British in the alley with extra axle grease!"
The thing you have to know about Chuck Finch is this: he secretly loves old timey broadway musical movies. In fact, he's got this whole nostalgia fetish for the ninteen-fifties in general, and he taught me a bunch of old-timey diner kitchen lingo over the course of some really slow shifts. He could never, not ever get any of the waitresses to humor him with it. So this makes him hella joyful.
I lean in and murmur to him. "Don't get too attached, I'm just doing this to mess with some friends of mine who are too wasted to recognize me." I toss him a wink and then go about taking a few more orders. I realize too late that if I'm going to really commit, I'm stuck committing all the way, and need to carry on the "ditzy waitress with stars in her eyes routine.", at least until I decide to break it to Cheech and Chong - or until they figure it out themselves.
One of the cops, a regular who knows me, and unlike the Brothers Stoner-motzov, has quickly figured out that yes, it's still Max Caulfield under the raven dye and body ink, is looking at me like I'm absolutely insane in the damn membrane. Before he can speak up and ruin...whatever this has become, I lean in and whisper, "I'm fine, Officer Franks. Just having some fun with a couple of friends. You want your usual?"
Fifteen minutes later, and the orders are up. I finally decide it's time to drop the charade. After laying out the plates and cups, I reach around and smack each of them behind the head and murmur in my normal voice, low enough just for their ears, albeit with a shit-eating grin, "The fuck, space cases? You guys so high you can't even recognize your homegirl?"
Oh God. The looks. On their faces. So priceless! Shit, I wish I'd brought my camera, because it was a once in a lifetime shot.
"Jesus...Max? What th'...hell? Is that you? D-damn, girl! Looks like Chloe's totally turned you into her clone. Ha ha! How are you?"
There's enough of a lull in the crowd that I'm able to spare at least a few minutes catching up. They don't have much news for me, other than they're obviously enjoying senior year at school. They eventually notice the ring on my finger, and naturally ask about it.
"Damn, you two are getting married? Awesome...totally awesome." Justin exclaims. "Are we invited to the wedding?"
"Sure!" I respond and with a smile add, "I mean, you assholes were probably just going to crash it anyhow, right?"
"Screw the wedding, I wanna be invited to the honeymoon!" Trevor pipes up.
Ugh! God. Men. Boys! Jesus Christ...
I kick at his chair and mutter, "Shit, I should tell Dana you said that."
They both glance away from me, exchanging a sad, nervous look between each other soon after.
"Oh. Damn. Didn't turn into a happily ever after thing, huh? Well, yeah. Say no more. Anyhow, I'll forgive your bro-hole comments. Either of you maniacs feel like hanging out this weekend?"
"Yeah! You got our numbers and everything, right?" Justin asks.
I nod. "Yup! And..." I lean in, "We still have goodies from the land of milk and honey; Denver. So no more cracks about our sexuality, and we'll share. Now, you excuse me, I gotta get to the next couple tables filling up"
That's enough to shut them up and get emphatic nods. Trevor even smiles slightly and offers a lame, but heartfelt, "Sorry."
"See ya soon, Maxima Damage! Killer tats!" Justin calls out, tapping his left arm appropriately.
The next hour passes uneventfully, and I'm just about to take off for a fifteen minute break when who should walk in the door but...
"...Kate?"
Kate Marsh! Who doesn't look like she's changed a bit. Okay, wait, that's not entirely true. She still dresses modestly, and her hair is neatly put up, but...there's a new radiance about her. She doesn't have this dour attitude like before. I mean, the cross is still there, and I'm still going to assume she's kept the faith, even after all the terrible stuff that happened with her parents and family last year - although no small amount of that was ameliorated by Nathan's capture and confession. But still, shit that you just can't take back was said to her, by people she loved.
She does a double take, clearly not recognizing me at first. I give her a smile, and a wave, and then it finally kicks in for her.
"Max...Caulfield? Oh my gosh! Hi! How are you?! Goodness, I didn't even recognize you! It seems a certain someone has been rubbing off on you."
We hug close and smile. She and I had remained good friends, got even closer sitting vigil with Chloe during her coma. I'd done my best to try and stay in touch with her via email after we left, but I'm rather embarrassed to admit I didn't get more than a couple of messages out to her. And left her last reply hanging.
God, I suck at maintaining long distance friendships!
"Ha ha! Yeah...yeah, I guess you could say that. I'm...I'm good. Great! C'mon, sit, I got a few minutes before I go back on my shift. Wow! Hi...so...so what are you doing here? I thought you were going to college. Or was that you were looking at colleges...or?" I lead her over to one of the booths off to the rear.
"Sorry, I know I haven't been great at keeping in touch." I add. "Some habits die hard."
She smiles happily. "It's alright. It sounds like your life has been hectic, not to mention exciting for you and Chloe. Traveling around in that RV of yours. I'm surprised to see you back in town though. Pleasantly, of course! I mean...everything's okay?" she asks, giving me the cutest smile of genuine concern.
"Oh, yeah. Fine. Great!" I say, waving away with a hand. "Uhhhm. We wanted to buy a motorcycle in San Francisco, found out you need a special cycle license, so we're back in town. Chloe's going to go out later today, sign us up for lessons. A couple weeks, and then we're out of here, I guess. I'm just being nice and taking a few shifts for Joyce so she can Chloe can spend time together."
Kate shakes her head once, the easy smile not having left her lips. "Max, that's what I love about you. You're always trying to do good for others, without any gain for yourself. That's so sweet."
This prompts a blush from me, and a shrug. "Yeah well...uh. I mean. It beats the alternative, right? So how about you? You graduated and everything. I figured you'd probably leave Arcadia Bay and never look back."
"Oh! Well, I did get into college. I was thinking about studying theology at Francis Xavier, but then I changed my mind. I'm going to be studying English at Amherst College. I figured it was the best path to take, if I'm serious about trying to write. That, and there's this wonderful children's book museum that Eric Carle founded, barely four miles away from campus. I just took that as a sign that this was the place I should attend, and since they have such a large endowment, there were some very generous scholarship grants that made going there feasible."
I blink, wondering at first why the name of the place sounds so familiar; then it hits me.
"Oh shit!" I cover my mouth with my fingers. "Sorry..."
Kate laughs, shaking her head, and bides me to continue.
"Kate, that's right next door to where I'm going to school. Literally the next town over."
She gives a soft smirk, nodding. "Yes. I know. I decided to defer a year, just like you did, so that I have some time to do a little traveling and gain some more life experience. I'm actually about to start a stint with Habitat for Humanity in one of the neighboring towns, and then work my way out East. You might almost say I was inspired by you, in that regard."
This causes me to blush, and then stammer out, "W-well. I'm just glad that Chloe and I will have a good friend nearby when we finally settle down." I glance down at my hand, and then giggle. "Oh! And...and speaking of settling down." I hold my hand out, with the goofiest, most sparkling smile I can produce, showing off the ring.
She gently takes my hand in hers, studying it for a few seconds, and then favors me with one of the warmest looks I think I've ever seen her give. She reaches across the table and pulls me into a close hug. "Oh...Max! I am so...just so happy for you. You and Chloe. Congratulations! I mean, I'm not surprised; once I had a chance to see the two of you together, it seemed like it was just a matter of time."
I nod. "We haven't exactly started planning the wedding but...but you're invited, of course. Totally! Ummm..." I start to fiddle nervously with my hair, rubbing the fingertips of my other hand against the table. "I was even...well I mean normally, I'd ask if...if you wanted to be the Maid of Honor, but I know...you know, you're not, ugh!" I stop, then try again. "I realize that might make you uncomfortable."
She shakes her head. "No. No it wouldn't make me uncomfortable at all, Max. And if the offer is still open, I would absolutely be honored. No pun intended." She smirks at this.
"Wow. Really? I mean...I mean, Kate! That's great! Thank you. I was just...I didn't want to be disrespectful, you know. You're not pushy about it, but I know your faith means a lot to you."
She nods slowly, almost sagely. "A year or two ago, I might have been much more - um - conflicted about it. But I've been doing a lot of thinking. A lot of reflecting, when I've prayed, at home, in church. Thinking about the love I was shown, as well as the scorn and judgement that was cast my way, after what happened last year. I came to realize that God was trying to show me something, something very important. About the true nature of love, and family: the ones that we choose and the ones that He chooses for us."
Kate takes a deep breath and then continues. "I spent a lot of time trying to reconcile the beliefs of my faith, or at least the beliefs held by a lot the followers, with what I saw between you and Chloe, and people in relationships like your own. I spent even more time going over the Bible again and again, reading over what Christ taught, looking for answers and meaning. And I realized a simple truth: He said nothing at all specifically condemning same-sex relationships. But he did say so much about love! After our love for God, we must love our neighbors as we would ourselves. In Matthew, Christ says that all of the Law and the Prophets hang upon these two commandments."
She bows her head for a moment. "I can't say whether your relationship with Chloe is 'right' or not. That's not for me to judge. Only God can do so. But...but I see the love that you and she share. How much you mean to each other, and how much that love shapes and guides your heart, how it runs over and touches the people around you. I see how devoted you are to each other, how you support one another. And then I look at some of the married couples in my church. The...the meanness. The backbiting. Catiness. The masks they wear. But you and Chloe are so free, open with your love."
Reaching out for my hand, Kate holds it, "I was there. I saw you at her side, both in the hospital, and during her recovery. The love in your hearts is a good and pure thing, and I simply can't believe that Christ wouldn't look favorably upon it. Maybe neither of you walk along His path but...but I have to believe that you walk alongside it. Certainly a closer than a lot of other people who say they follow Him."
I reach up, brushing away a few tears. "Kate, that...that's so sweet." I bite down on my lip. "Thank you, just...thanks. I really wish a lot more devout people were like you. You know?"
Because seriously, if the Church were peopled by a buttload of Kate clones, this Christianity thing would look pretty damn attractive to me.
She shrugs good naturedly. "If the path He laid out for us was an easy one to walk, then salvation wouldn't be so precious, Max. All I can do is try and spread the Good Word by example."
I squeezed her hand tightly. "Well...well this is just gonna fucking rock! Oooh!" I cover up my mouth with my hand, blushing furiously. "Sorry Kate! So look, I gotta get back to work. Tell me what you want, and it's gonna be my treat, okay?"
Kate ordered some chocolate chip pancakes. We chatted idly a little bit longer, with a promise to sit down and spend some quality time with me and Chloe, before she finally headed off, but not without giving me at least one more tight hug.
Awww...geeze. Well that was really nice! I can't believe she's going to be going to school in the same county as me. Man, college is going to totally rock now!
"Wow! That was really nice. Man, Kate is like the world's most hella awesome Christian. She's the Super-Christian or something!"
I groan slightly, covering up my face with my hand as we drive along in her old truck, Chloe having just picked me up a minute or two ago. As much as it pains us...well, her especially, she's already looking to find someone that she can sell it to, probably for a song. We had a lot of good times and memories in this thing, but it's taking up space at the house, and certainly Joyce and Dave could use the room. But for now, we still have it, and just a few last memories to make.
"So how did it go? You find anything?" I ask.
"Oh, you mean the motorcycle license class? Yeah, yeah, no sweat. Didn't even leave the house, worked it out all online. Mom says thanks, by the way. And I do too. That was really cool, babe. I don't know why you're hanging out with a loser like me." She smirks, tilting her head casually, giving me a sideways glance.
"Stop! You suck so hard when you're down on yourself. You're awesome. I don't marry the non-awesome, so...stop." I gently punch her shoulder, then kiss her cheek. "Hey. You know what?"
"You love me?" she smirks.
"Yeah! But also? You just called Joyce 'Mom'. Don't think you've done that since I left for Seattle all those years back."
She blinks, tilting her head this way and that as she considers. "Huuuh. Yeah. Yeah I guess I did." She gives me a wink, and says nothing more about it.
"Good chat, huh?" I ask.
"Yup!, It was nice to hang out together. Been a long, long time since we've been able to talk like that. Without all the barriers in the way. We have you to thank for that, baby."
I shrug. "I can lead Prices to water, but I can't make them drink."
She smirks and murmurs, "I can think of several inappropriate ways to respond to that remark."
I laugh and smack her shoulder again, "Oh my God, you are such a boy sometimes!"
Chloe sticks her tongue out at me and says, "I'm the boy with the awesome boobs, remember?"
This prompts a giggle from me. "Yeah, I suppose I didn't toke up nearly hard enough for that to blur out. God, that was still just the teeniest bit embarrassing." I then give a large stretch and yawn, as I look around.
"Hon? Where are we headed, this looks like the road to the..."
"To the junkyard, yeah." she interrupts. "I figured since we had a couple hours to kill before nightfall, we could visit some of our old hangouts."
She pulls aside to an out of the way spot on the road, and reaches over into the glove compartment, pulling out her oil vaporizer. "Hair of the dog that bit you?"
I groan slightly. "The dog that bit me the hardest last night was named Chloe Price."
"Arf arf." she murmurs saucily, before taking a hit, and then holding it out to me.
I groan again. "Sex and drugs was the cause of my being all tired and worn out today, baby. God, I thought that last hour at the diner was never going to end."
Chloe shrugs. "You get to sleep in tomorrow, right? So let's have some fun." She holds the vape out and waves it around my face. "C'mon little girl, you know you want some caaaaandy."
I give Chloe a Look. "Okay, now you're kind of weird and creepy, doing that."
"I am!" she replies brightly. "But don't tell me you're not just a little bit turned on by me trying to tempt you down the path of excess at this moment."
I give a sigh of disgust, a slight buzzing noise rising up from the back. "Fuck you for being right." With that, I lean over, taking a nice, healthy pull while she still holds the chunky unit, hold it for a few seconds, and then blow it in her face. Then I slip over, however awkwardly, and straddle her lap, grinning down as I pin her back on the seat.
"Whoa! Where did that come from?"
I lean in, starting to nibble on her ear. "You mess with the bull, you get the sexy, sexy horns. Don't turn me on unless you can handle the job, Che."
She gives a nervous flush, and then looks around, laughing lightly. "Uhh...yeah...but...someone could come driving by, and see us, and..."
I grin wickedly. "Yeah. They sure could." Keeping my eyes locked on her eye, I reach over to my blouse, and start to slowly undo the buttons, one by one. I part it, and then reach down, and only consider doing this because I happen to be wearing a front clasping bra today. Which quickly becomes unclasped.
"Order up, baby..." I breathe out with a purrr, watching her squirm, both from discomfort and hot need.
"O-okay Max, now I know how fucking evil you are. You're basically dressed up like my Mom, trying to seduce me. This is both incredibly uncomfortable and ridiculously hot." Chloe bites down on her bottom lip, glancing around nervously.
I tilt my head, wondering how far to push this. "I can always stop...if you like." All the same, I lean in, kissing and nibbling on her lips.
"Ah...ummmm. I didn't say...stop." she murmurs, as a faraway look starts to cloud her eyes. I lean in, helping myself to another nice hit from the vape, then quickly kiss her, my tongue parting her lips open, and breathe the mist down into her lungs. As much as Chloe loves shotgunning me, she absolutely goes wild when I take the initiative and do it to her. And I hate to admit it, but as the buzz sweeps me away, it does a lovely job of taking the worst of the workday blech away from my body and brain.
(Note to self: this is fun, but don't start liking it too much. I still have college coming up in barely a year.)
Her hand reaches up to my chest, hefting one of my breasts, tracing her thumb delicately across nipple, which is stiff, almost to the point of discomfort by this point. I straddle her thigh, and she welcomes me pressing mine, hard between her legs, after lifting up the skirt high above my hips. As I steal another ferocious kiss from her, I think to myself how glad I am to be hot, bothered, and stoned, because otherwise, the discomfort of being so crammed in this seat, with a steering wheel barely an inch from jamming painfully into my back would make all of this a serious turn off.
By the time we start to get hot and heavy, grinding needfully against each other, I do get a back full of wheel a couple of times, which starts to wreck the mood. But Chloe knows exactly what to do. Slipping me off, shimmying out the door, and beckoning to follow. I button up, just quickly enough for public consumption, and she takes my hand as we giddily stumble in the ever growing dark towards the junkyard proper, and her old 'clubhouse'. Once it's obvious we're the only two souls around, we find a comfy - okay, comfier - corner and fall back to the ground, desperate and hungry. By this point, I'm actually a bit more baked than I intended to be, and things get a little frenetic, and shameless, instinct and pure lust doing an absolutely awesome job pushing my dignity and self-awareness out the door.
A few minutes later, someone is moaning loud enough to be heard. I'm not entirely certain that it's not both of us. I'd lament that Chloe and I have a real problem with acting like a pair of horny teenagers except: hello?! Duh!?
The last fragments of sunlight are slowly melting off into the distance when we come back to ourselves. I glance down and groan softly.
Damnit. I'm going to need to get my uniform dry cleaned; seriously, I am a total hot mess at the moment, with my mussed hair, the dirt stains on my blouse and skirt. Chloe reaches over, pulling small twigs out of my hair. We glance at each other and laugh lightly, as I stroke her cheek, giving a soft and tender kiss; quite the inverse of those hungry, primal, instinctive ones we were sharing barely half an hour before.
Chloe looks over my shoulder towards one of the ruined walls and groans. "Awwww...damn asshole kids."
I glance behind and notice that where "Chloe was here. Rachel was here. Max was here." was written, it's all been crossed out, with "Jayce rulez, bitches!" scrawled underneath.
"No fucking respect!" Chloe hisses. Her reaction prompts a laugh from me. I reach up to lay a finger over her lips before she can say anything more and murmur, "We had our fun while it lasted. This was your territory for a while, and then for a shorter time still, it was ours. But it belongs to the past. Let these kids have their fun, baby."
Chloe is mollified by this, but just barely. She stands, dusts herself off, and walks over, tracing her fingers over my name, and then Rachel's.
"Funny though. I wish we figured out what happened to her." she sighs. "I think...think you two would have gotten along pretty awesome, you know?"
"Yeah, I know we would have, sweetie."
I leave out about how part of me is glad she hasn't come back. I'd really not like to find out how quickly my kitty claws would come out. I don't know whether the fact that Chloe and I are engaged now would make me more or less insecure and jealous.
I study my fingertips, see them instinctively curled into claws already. Glance over at Rachel's name, just across Chloe's shoulder...
"Babe?" she asks me questioningly. "Where are you going?"
Am I going somewhere? Oh...shit! What am I doing?!
Apparently I am. I'm just barely presentable as I walk out into the purplish twilight spreading it's murk across the junkyard. Following some strange, undeniable instinct, I walk over towards a small clearing kneel down, and start digging away at the ground.
"Hon? Baby...Max?" Chloe asks following me the whole way. "What...what are you doing?"
"I really don't know..." I answer back, trying to hold down the note of panic in my voice. "Honest. I just suddenly had the urge to dig. I can't...can't quite seem to stop myself. I don't know if it's the weed, or if the weed is keeping me from completely freaking out over this. I think I need to just let this play out."
Chloe kneels down next to me. "Okay...game's over hon. Ha ha, can we go now?"
I shake my head. "I...I really can't stop, Chloe. I'm...I'm really trying to keep from going totally mental right now. Can...can you help me dig? I think it'll go away, if I keep digging."
Bless her, she helps me. As insane, and pointless and weird as this all comes out, she helps me dig. After ten minutes, we've got a small hole, a foot and a half deep. A foot and a three quarters...
...by the time we hit roughly two feet, the urge dissipates as quickly as it came over me.
I pull myself back, seriously scared that if I don't leave right now, it'll come over me again. I stand up and start to hurry towards the truck. I want to leave...want to get out of here. Now!
I make it to the truck until I burst out, crying; more out of relief than anything else. Chloe is there, quickly encircling me with comforting arms, stroking your hair, shhhing me.
"Oh God!" I whisper. "What...I have no fucking idea what happened, Chloe. I just saw Rachel's name, and the urge to dig, right in that spot, suddenly came over me. Don't know why, don't know what I was expecting to find. But it's obviously not there."
I bury my face against her chest and let a few more sobs out.
"Maybe it's related to all your time travel stuff? Something that happened before, that didn't happen this time around?" she offers.
"It's as good an explanation as any." I whisper out, then cough. "Um. Could we please leave now? I really, really, really want to go home, okay? I think I've had my fill of having hot monkey sex in our old haunts for the rest of the year.
We drive back home in utter silence, as I stare out the window, trying to make sense of what just happened. In the end, I simply accept it as a thing. An event. An old, tangled mental landmine that went off. I can other obsess about it, worry what's happened, worry more about what else could happen in the future, or I can just...let it go. Let it lie in the past, and forget about it. Accept it as collaterate damage, mental scarring, from my Life-That-Never-Was.
Maybe it's foolish, but the latter part sounds more my speed. Yeah.
Chloe drives us back to her parent's house. Undresses me, takes me in the shower, and washes me off. Treating me like an absolute princess, kissing me, reassuring me, being absolutely...
...oh God, I love her! So much. There's this amazing, emotional, tender side of her that she still has trouble showing. But when she let's it down, and displays it for me...
...I feel like the most special woman in the world.
"Okay, I got flannel PJ's for both of us. I got popcorn, and cake, and root beer, and movies." she announces, as I get toweled off in the bedroom. "This is me, putting the vape away." And she does, hiding it in her old stash box. "And for the rest of the night, I hereby declare this room a drug-free cuddle and kissing only zone. Movies, snacks, and you. That's all I need in my life tonight. Probably ever, but...it's good, yeah?"
I laugh, pulling on the classic red flannel pajamas. This is why we're going to be forever awesome and married until we're a zillion and two. Because Chloe is in perfect synch with me. Able to go from depraved sybarite to frumpy homebody in under an hour flat. She knows what I want, what I need, and gives it to me, no questions asked. I don't know what I did to deserve her, but I promise, I'm never going to take her for granted.
Not once, not ever.
I give her a tiny headbutt and whisper. "Sounds like the best."
That night, we start our movie marathon with Big Trouble in Little China, loving trading bites of chocolate cake and tossing popcorn into each other's mouths, I try to relish each and every second, make the futile attempt to commit all the minutes to memory. Something tells me we'll never quite have something like this night again; the two of us, in her room, watching TV and just enjoying each other's company, like we're sixteen and seventeen, without a care in the world, in no rush to reach adulthood.
"Love you, baby" I whisper, kissing her cheek.
"I know." she whispers back, winking roguishly at me.
"Oh! I am going to spank you so hard when we go back to being adults tomorrow."
But tonight, I'm more than happy to just drift off to sleep in her arms, the comforting warmth of her weight against me, as the even quieting dialogue of whatever movie we're watching at one in the morning fades away into a silent burble.
I wake up in much better shape than I did yesterday.
A/N: HAPPY BIRTHDAY, MAX!
Hi kids! So I'm still keeping to my once a month Riotgrrls schedule at least, continuing on with a fluffier offering of sex, drugs, and rock and/or roll!
Someone, I forget who, suggested the scene where Justin and Trevor (who may or may not have been in Max's class...I decided to make them a year younger for the sake of believability) are messed with by Max. I want to say rowanred81, but if it wasn't, PLEASE let me know, so I can stop feeling like a ditz, and give proper credit where credit is due. Because it worked out surprisingly well! And if it was him: Thanks a million! :-D
Also boy...writing Kate was interesting for this. I don't have to tell folks that same sex marriage is still a touchy subject...I mean, probably not for THIS audience, duh, but I really wanted to try and be respectful of Kate, without turning her into a mouthpiece. I wanted her to act in a way that I honestly think she would, in a situation like this. Hopefully I did her justice.
Now...THIS is the part I wanted to get everyone's attention for: Riotgrrls has been fun, but I'm starting to run out of steam, I'm afraid. I have some ideas for a Seattle chapter, and then I DEFINITELY KNOW what Max is going to do for Chloe's 21st birthday in March of 2015 (and that is gonna be hot!) and obviously I have some ideas for the end...but right now, in all the between spaces? I'm drawing blanks. :-( Most of my inspiration and effort are being sucked up by Black Swan. Not a bad thing, but a thing all the same. I mean, I'd hate to have this all wrapped up in three or four more chapters, but that's kind of what I'm looking at right now.
So I'm throwing open the floor to ideas. Mention it in the reviews, or PM me. I won't promise to use it, but I will promise to consider it, and if it does get used, you of course get all my thanks and credit! So let's see what you people got, yeah?! :-D Obviously, keep ideas within the theme of this series, and it should be vaguely realistic. But beyond that, go nuts!
(Man I hope I don't regret this *laugh!*)
Anyhow, thanks for all your continued support!
P.S. October 20th! Oh God! Oh God! I am both horrified and elated!