Here it is: the final chapter. Enjoy :)

I do not own Life is Strange nor any of its Affiliates

"Today you'll all submit your aspect projects," Mr. Jefferson began, "or so I hope. I'm sure each and every one of you put a lot of thought into your photographs. It was a simple enough prompt, and I'm positive I'll enjoy grading your individual work as objectively as I can. Please make a decent pile on my desk as you leave."

Max leaned, her hand on her chin. She watched as Mr. Jefferson began his daily lecture, only half-tuned to his endless stream of buzzwords: contrast this, lighting that. She found herself paying less and less attention as the school year progressed. Perhaps this is what they call senioritis, Max thought, If so I'm mortally afflicted. Max glanced from peer to peer, her scan transient. With some hesitation, she turned to face Victoria, who she found was looking back at her. Her heart skipped a beat upon seeing the older girl's bitter, burning expression. She had an inkling that she wasn't out of the forest yet in regards to the whole love triangle situation, and that she'd be arguing with the blonde again sometime soon.

Now that she had rejected Victoria, Max had noticed her shooting angry glances more and more often. When they met each other in the hallway, the blonde was always just a notch below fuming. She wasn't avoiding Max like before, but Max kind of wished she would have the decency to. They hadn't talked since the incident in her room; Max recalled the memory in an unpleasant daydream, remembering the betrayed look Victoria gave as she openly cried, and the sound of the door as it slammed behind her. Had she made the right decision? Max thought so, though she had her doubts. If I had only worked on her some more, I could've gotten through to her. There was no use in 'what ifs' Max rationalized, and turned her mind to something else.

She turned her head and looked out the window. The day was coming down slow, light blues darkening in the afternoon pull. Not daring to check the clock (for fear of slowing time), Max felt a small suspicion that she had a long day ahead of her. She had planned to meet Chloe after school, and was looking forward to the excuse to see her childhood friend again. Were they dating? They had never made it official, so the issue was up in the air. Max decided that she'd like to date Chloe, exclusively. Max suspected that Chloe likely wanted the same thing. Now that she had made a decision, the future never seemed so clear.

An hour later, Max was dragged back to reality as Mr. Jefferson ended his lecture. She couldn't believe just how long she had dozed, and internally scolded herself for doing so. Max stood, collecting her things, then deposited them in her bag. She made her way across the room in a beeline for the door, halting only when Mr. Jefferson said, "Max, a word." She nodded her head, waiting for her teacher to finish speaking with Kate. The air between them was still tense: that, she could feel. As Kate left, Mr. Jefferson turned his attention to Max. "Today's the last day to submit a photo to the Everyday Heroes contest."

Max rifled through her bag, withdrawing her chosen photograph. She handed it to Mr. Jefferson, who inspected the work with a raised eyebrow. "So you chose the picture of Chloe you showed me. I'm a little surprised, but still impressed. It's good work, you definitely have a shot," he voiced, still looking at the square. Max had deliberated over what to submit for her aspect project much longer than she had for the Everyday Heroes one, and had finally settled on the photograph of Victoria she had taken; in it, her head was dipped, an unabashed smile playing at her lips. It was how Max wanted to remember her, instead of the snarling bitch she had returned to being.

Max left the classroom out into the hallway, and left the hallway out into the courtyard. She crossed the courtyard and reached the parking lot just in time for Chloe's truck to pull up. Chloe leaned out the window, waving her hand, before she exited the car and met Max halfway, pulling the younger girl into a warm hug. They held the embrace for longer than socially appropriate before pulling back. When they did, Max removed her cigarettes from her pocket and placed one in her mouth, lighting it up. She offered one to Chloe, who graciously accepted.

"Pleasure to see you Maxamillion. You want to hit up the Two Whales? Or should we chill at my place?" Chloe asked, grinning a cattish grin. Max smiled back, a bit enamored with the older girl. Before she had a chance to respond…

"Excuse me?" Victoria said, her voice raised like the hackles of a threatened cat. She stood, one hand on her hip as she looked at the both of them. Max recognized her expression of betrayal; it was familiar to her now. "Max, we need to talk. Tell your degenerate friend to give us a minute," Victoria growled, hardly acknowledging Chloe at all. The look on the bluenette's face scarcely looked human.

"No, excuse me you raging bitch," Chloe shot back, dragging from her cigarette. She exhaled the smoke in Victoria's face. "Max could honestly give a fuck about what you have to say to her. So go find a dick to sit on," she said, clearly provoking an argument. Max took a step back, unsure of what to say or who to side with. On one hand, she could humor Victoria if she just wanted to talk, but the fact that she insulted Chloe made her grit her teeth.

"Why don't you blow me, Price."

"Why don't you go blow Nathan, Chase."

Victoria cringed, shaking her head. "Shut the fuck up, you don't know shit about anything. I'm going to talk with Max whether you like it or not, so back off, slut." Victoria pushed Chloe's shoulder. Max blinked. The birds stopped singing. The stream stopped warbling. The sun hid behind a passing cloud. Chloe pushed Victoria back. Hard. She stumbled, almost tripping over her foot before she regained her balance. She then threw a right hook, which Victoria ducked. They slapped at each other, suddenly a tangle of limbs. Max watched as each girl grabbed the other's hair, ripping and tearing and shaking from side to side.

"ENOUGH!" Max shouted, and both Chloe and Victoria stopped to face her.

"No, I've had enough!" Victoria yelled back. "Max, you're coming with me." She moved to grab Max's wrist, but Max slapped her hand away.

"Listen up, Victoria. We're done. I don't want to talk to you. Ever again. So leave me and Chloe alone. Goodbye," Max spat, her brow furrowed and shoulders raised. Both Chloe and Victoria shared a look of surprise, before the latter stomped off, humiliated. They watched as she left, pushing an unsuspecting freshman out of the way as she did so. The harmless boy tripped and fell in Victoria's wake.

"Huh," was all Chloe could manage, following Victoria's retreating figure. She slammed the door to the girl's dormitory loud enough that they could hear it from the parking lot. "That was all kinds of badass, Max. You've done a good thing today," she said, crossing her arms.

Max nodded. It was time for her to move on.

"Let's go," she said. And they did, holding hands as the sun began to set.

And so ends Kingdom Came. I hope you enjoyed the story, I'll be writing more in the future. I appreciate every review. Thanks ;)