Author's Note: The beginning of the story takes place in the last scene of Episode 3 in the actual game. Spoiler Alert. I hope you can read this with the characters' voices in mind, as I did when I created it. Critique to make sure I'm doing it right! If you like it, let me know what you want to see more of in the future! This story will flow with the readers' ideas, as long as I get some! Hope you enjoy. :)
Chapter 1: Consequences
Max began to fade back into reality. Her time-traveling, life-altering journey had concluded. She saved William and now Chloe could finally be happy. This is exactly what she wanted... or was it?
The bright sun burned into Max's eyes, making the scene around her go completely white for a short moment. She could hear a faint conversation between some Vortex members...
As her vision returned, she examined her surroundings. What? Why am I here, with the Vortex club? Am I actually in with the popular crowd? She thought.
"Hello, are you even listening, Maxine?" Victoria waved her head in front of Max's face to try and draw her attention. Max looked around and gathered her thoughts.
"Max, never Maxine." she shook her head, still puzzled.
"I know, sorry, Mad Max." Victoria gave a nervous chuckle. "You're not pissed at me, right? Right?"
Victoria is actually worried I might be pissed at her? Damn, the tables hath turned...
"Do you wanna go hit the girl's potty and smoke 'em peace pipe?" Victoria inquired suggestively.
"I think Max is high." Courtney speculated from across the circle.
"She's acting, like, so weird..." Taylor added. "You cool, Max?"
No, of course I'm not "cool." All I wanted was for William to live and Chloe's life to be happier. But this... This is totally fucked up! Too many things are different. What else have I changed?
"Nobody listened when I said we shouldn't let her in the Vortex..." Courtney said with an I-Told-You-So type of tone.
"Courtney, you don't want anybody in the club." Taylor retaliated.
"Like, whatever, bitch." she spat back. The group returned to their previous conversation.
Max got up and walked away from the circle, determined to find out what has happened, leaving her new clique completely baffled.
"Shit, I knew I shouldn't have called her Maxine!" Victoria threw her palm up to her forehead. "God damn it, now she's fucking pissed at me. She totally just stormed off."
Just by walking through the courtyard, Max could see the consequences of her actions. Warren stood near the stairs at the front entrance to the campus, holding Stella's hands and smiling lovingly at her as she chatted him up. It obvious that they were together.
Warren... He hooked up with Stella? Max thought. She found herself wondering why the thought of the little science nerd having feelings for another girl bothered her so much. After all, she really didn't have any interest in him. Not as long as Chloe was around... Chloe!
Max picked up her pace a bit and jogged down to the nearest bus stop on campus. She began to anxiously wait for it's arrival.
If this much has changed because I hid William's keys, what happened to Chloe? Are we friends in this timeline? Does she know me at all? Does her family still even live in Arcadia Bay? A whirlwind of "what-if"s and "if only"s surged through her mind. Time could not go by any slower...
Finally Max could see the yellow Blackwell Academy bus pulling up from over the hill. It came to an abrupt halt and the doors swung open in front of her. David Madsen looked down at the wide-eyed girl below him and nodded his head from behind the driver's seat.
David is a Blackwell bus driver now? What happened to being head of security?
Still trying to wrap her head around the entire situation, Max hesitated before walking up the steps and onto the bus. She quickly found her seat and stared out the window, contemplating every event that took place over the course of this strange fucking day and hoping that Chloe would ultimately be safe and contented. Max let out a heavy sigh. She could deal with this new life and every change that came with it, if that meant that her Chloe was okay.
I could always try to start a new friendship with her, if- her thoughts were interrupted by the sight of three beached whales down by the shore. The majority of the passengers got out of their seats to press their faces up against the window and observe. Oh my god... What have I done? This only made Max all the more unsettled about every possible outcome her best friend could have been thrown into. The bus braked at the next stop and she rushed off, shooting down the street towards the Price house.
The house was in way better condition with William around, rather than when David resided there in a previous timeline. It had been repainted the same blue it always was, the roof and garage looked like new, and the front yard had been landscaped to host beautiful flower plants and bushes. She hoped that the Prices still lived there, that this was William's work.
Max walked up the clean sidewalk path to the front door and paused before knocking to take in the change. She noticed that there was now a ramp leading up to the door, as well as the stairs she stood upon.
* knock knock knock *
A ramp? Why would they need a ramp? She stepped back and thought before the door opened.
William stood in the doorway, a surprised smile on his face. "Max Caulfield!" he exclaimed. "Taking a break after taking Seattle by storm, huh? We thought we'd never see you again after you left for the big city." That made Max feel like complete shit for just up and leaving without even speaking to anyone.
"No... I'd never do that to Chloe..." she replied, understanding now how Chloe really felt all the time she left without saying one word. Maybe this was Max's chance to make it all up to her...
"Speaking of... I know she's been dying to see you. Hold on."
Well, at least we know Chloe is still alive. Max thought grimly.
William turned and looked down the hall. "Chloe!" he called out. "You have a visitor!"
Why is he calling down the hall? Chloe's room is upstairs... Max waited for Chloe to come out and see her. Would she be mad that Max hasn't talked to her since she left? Would she be happy to see her?
Max heard the faint buzzing of a motor, which drew a look of consternation on her face. She listened to see where it was coming from. The noise drifted ever closer, eventually flowing out into the hall. What Max saw moving towards her was horrifying.
There Chloe sat, in a motorized wheelchair, hooked up to all sorts of medical devices. Her hands were secured down to the armrests, her legs were covered with a thick red blanket, her head was held up with supports, and a ventilator was hooked up inside her throat to support her breathing... This wasn't the Chloe Max had ever remembered. Or wanted to remember.
Noticing that the special "visitor" standing there waiting for her was Max, Chloe's face lit up with excitement as she moved her chair faster towards the wide open front door.
What's Max doing here after all this time? Chloe thought. I wonder how she will react to my... changes.
Max took a couple steps back and covered her agape mouth in prostration.
I hope all that is just because she's excited to see me... Chloe worried to herself. She stopped in front of the doorway and cracked out a huge welcoming smile for her old friend.
What have I done? More unnerving thoughts flooded Max's head. Was this situation repairable? Can she still use her powers? What else was modified? Can Chloe speak? …What's happening...?
Max began to feel dizzy. The world was spinning in front of her.
"I-I think I should... sit down..." she stammered weakly.
Everything went in and out of focus... The last thing Max felt was the hard pain of concrete coming in contact with her shoulder first and then her head. The last thing she heard was William shouting, "Shit... Joyce! ...Bring me ...out here! ...Max just..." The words, too, began to fade away with everything else as Max went unconscious.
Max woke up in the midst of a raging storm on the lighthouse property. "Not this again," she groaned, "Do these visions ever end?" This was beginning to get vexatious. Can't a girl faint once without being transported to some crazy ominous dream world? At this point, Max already knew exactly where she needed to go. She began to walk the path up to the lighthouse, anticipating every falling tree and tumbling rock. The weird, ghostly doe she usually followed was not with her this time... Something felt different.
Once at the top, she watched the deadly tornado push closer and closer to wiping Arcadia Bay clean off the map.
What, exactly, was it that she had to do to save the town?
One thing Max did not anticipate, however, was a tall, dark, slender figure standing out by the lighthouse building.
What the hell? Who is that? Max moved closer to the mysterious character. The phantom moved out to stand in front of the small maintenance building next to the lighthouse, almost as if leading Max somewhere... Max followed over to the small structure and the aberration disappeared through the wall. Max looked around at some of the graffiti on it to see if that led her anywhere. Nothing but the same strange phrase that Nathan once scribbled all over a creepy paper.
RACHEL IN THE DARK ROOM
Was written in multiple spots on only that side of the maintenance building...
Strange. Max walked around to the door and tried opening it. Locked...
The dark world began to fade as Max rejoined reality on the old familiar couch that she knew all too well from her and Chloe's childhood. They would pretend to be pirates and plunder the living room dry of all its hidden treasures... Good times.
Man, my head is killing me. I must have fallen hard. She put her hand up to her head in a desperate attempt to soothe the pain away and found a cold washcloth folded on her forehead. This was Joyce's doing; she must have come in to check up on the poor girl before she left for work. Max turned her head to the side, looking for the time, and found Chloe sitting in front of her, watching over her and waiting patiently for her to wake up.
Max thought about how different Chloe was now... She obviously seemed like she was happier and had a better life, but then again she didn't... There had to be a way to fix this. Screwing with the past was a definite no-no.
"I brought you some water, in case you were thirsty when you woke up." Chloe spoke slowly, her voice hoarse due to the ventilator tube. Max was surprised that Chloe could speak. She wasn't sure what to even expect yet.
Don't stare, Max. You're going to screw something up ...again.
"I, uh, thanks." Max picked up the glass and took a sip of the crystal clear liquid. She was, in fact, very thirsty. And water tasted very good to her in that moment. She downed a couple more slugs of the good old H2O. Thanks Chloe.
"So, how was Seattle? What made you come back out here?" Chloe inquired.
"It was okay. I came back here for Mr. Jefferson's photography class." Max answered hesitantly, unsure of how to react to speaking with her.
Noticing Max's awkward expression and lack of words in her answer, Chloe tried to lighten the atmosphere. "Not for your bestest friend ever, Chloe Price?"
"Of course I came here for you, too. How have you been?" What Max really wanted to know was why Chloe was wheelchair-bound and hooked up to all of that crazy stuff.
"I've been okay, we-"
Lost in her own thought, Max interrupted Chloe. "What happened to you? Why are you... You know..."
Nice job, dummy. Wait to make things awkward. At least finish your own questions.
"In a wheelchair?" Chloe finished it for her. "For my 16th birthday, my dad bought me a brand new red Chevy. It was awesome... I loved showing it off to everyone. One day, my mom asked me to go pick up some groceries for her. I was texting and I ran a red light... An eighteen-wheeler was pulling through the intersection and couldn't stop in time. The doctors all said I'm lucky to be alive."
"Wowser, Chloe, that's some serious shit." Max replied, shocked at how close Chloe was to death... Because of her.
So, because I hid William's keys and he didn't die in that car accident, Chloe ended up being the one who went through it? Oh my god...
"Where are William and Joyce?" she asked, curious as to why the house was so quiet.
"Mom is at work. Dad is upstairs working on a project."
Max looked across the room at a small digital clock setting on the side table.
12:32 PM
Holy shit, I've been out his long? It's a whole new day...
"Oh, wow, I'm late for Mr. Jefferson's class. He'll have my head on a pike if I don't turn my photo in soon..." she thought out loud. "Chloe, I have to go right now. Can we can hang later?" Max almost felt relieved that she had an excuse to leave.
"Yeah, of course Max. See you later." Chloe said roughly.
Max got up and walked down the hallway to the front door. Before she turned the handle, she looked back at Chloe's lively face. It killed Max to see her like that, even if she was smiling...
"Tell your parents I said hi." Max waved goodbye and turned the handle.
Once outside, Max shut the door and leaned up against it.
I've got to find out how to make things right, she thought. For Chloe.
On the other side of the door, Chloe thought to herself. Why is Max acting so strange? I know this is the first time she's seen me in, like, five years, but damn. Something else is up with her. I hope it's not because of what I told her... Max...
Chloe...
Max gathered herself and began to walk down to the end of the street to wait for the bus. She checked her phone. No new texts, and the time was 12:38. Picking up every 15 minutes, she shouldn't have to wait very long for the "Blackhell Prison Bus," as the old Chloe used to call it. Max stood by the sign, riddled with graffiti, and watched the end of the road.
* bzz bzz *
An incoming text message startled her out of intense concentration.
Victoria: Where r u, homie? Jefferson's class started like 15 mins ago
Max: I'm waiting for the bus. Had to catch up with an old friend.
Victoria: K see u soon. XO
This is totally strange. Victoria is my friend. She's being totally nice... What happened? Max pondered for a moment. As much as she hated to admit it, she needed to keep this relationship with Victoria as it was for the time being if she wanted to get anywhere with her investigation. She had to play it cool and act as if nothing had ever happened, while still figuring the new world out. Not to mention the giant ass tornado that would wipe the town out on Friday. Tomorrow.
The town is going to be destroyed tomorrow. The night of the End of the World party. Was that still happening? Max was in the Vortex Club now, so she had an easy way in. That would be a hell of a great place to look for clues of Rachel or Kate... Those things still happened, right?
Gotta get down to the bottom of this, Max. This time, all alone...
The bus pulled up to the stop. Max was so absorbed in her thoughts that she hadn't noticed it.
"You gonna get on or what, girl?" the driver impatiently asked. "I ain't got all day."
"Sorry." Max shook her head and boarded the bus to Blackwell. This was going to be a long day.
After a few lengthy minutes, the bus came to a stop at the front of the campus. Max got off and headed straight for Jefferson's class. She couldn't afford any distractions, she was already late enough.
Although, class did seem pretty insignificant at this point.
I've altered reality and the world is going to end tomorrow... and I'm still going to class. You make the greatest superhero, Max.
As she approached the photography classroom, Max noticed Warren leaning against the door waiting for Stella.
I hope he knows Jefferson's class doesn't end for another thirty minutes... Still, I guess he's being a good boyfriend and waiting loyally. Barf.
Max walked past the lovesick science wiz and into the classroom, trying not to attract the attention of every soul within seeing distance. She failed.
"Well, well, Max. Nice to see you decided to finally join us today." Mr. Jefferson joked. Max ignored his comment and took her seat.
Victoria's eyes followed her all the way across the room and past the perfectly good, empty chair she had set out for Max right beside her. Perplexed, she whipped out her phone and sent Max a quick text.
"No texting in class, Miss Chase. You know that." Jefferson warned.
* bzz bzz *
Victoria: What's with u today?
Victoria: U stormed off yesterday and today u sat all the way across the room
"That goes for you too, Miss Caulfield."
Max looked up and shook her head at Victoria, who had an unreadable expression painted across her face. She turned her gaze over to the empty seat next to Victoria. Shit, she's going to figure me out soon. I should probably rewind and sit next to her so she doesn't get suspicious.
Max held her hand up and rewound time to the moment she entered the classroom. Everything played out just as before.
"Well, well, Max. Nice to see you decided to finally join us today."
Max ignored her teacher again and plopped herself into the open seat beside Victoria. She noticed a sly grin on Victoria's face out of the corner of her eye.
"Hi."
"Hey."
With that out of the way now, Max examined the rest of her peers in the classroom as the lesson was resumed. No Kate. Weird. Everything else seemed relatively normal. Daniel was lost in his sketching, Stella scribbled away at her notes, and Alyssa stared into space, her thoughts getting the best of her.
Finally, the bell rang and everyone shot out of their seats. "Don't forget to turn in your pictures for the Everyday Heroes contest. Taylor, stop hiding and get it done. And yes, Max, I see you pretending not to see me." Mr. Jefferson always concluded class like that. It was almost like a sort of ritual.
Victoria turned to Max as she packed her supplies up. "We're having a party tonight before we do the End of the World bash tomorrow. Vortex members only. Just sort of, like, a before-the-party party. You're coming, right?"
Max nodded her head in response. Sweet. The End of the World bash was on and Max was going to party hard tonight with Vortex members only. Time to find out what happened to Kate... or Rachel.
"Hey, this might be a dumb question that I may or may not already know the answer to, but... Where is Kate Marsh?"
"Kate? Kate, Kate, Kate, Kate, Kate." Victoria searched her brain. "Doesn't ring a bell. Sorry. She must not attend Blackwell."
"Oh, okay. Thanks." Wowser, Kate doesn't even go to Blackwell anymore? I have to find a way to fix this, and fast.
Max headed out of the main building and to the Prescott Dormitories. Still owned by that douchebag Nathan and his family. She walked through the main courtyard and into the Girls' Dormitories.
Looking down the hall, Max could still see that not much had changed there. "NO BOYS ALLOWED" was still on the bathroom sign, the sex-ed posters still hung up everywhere. One thing that did seem different was Dana's room. The door was closed, and no music was blaring. Her slate was clean. This was not normal Dana's personality... Max walked up to the door and knocked lightly.
"Hey it's me, Max. Dana?"
"What?" she heard Dana's voice call from inside. "Did you come to make fun of me, too? It's not like I wanted to get pregnant! Just go away... You Vortex Club pricks are all the same... "
Damn, Dana must be really pregnant if everyone is teasing her that bad... She has to be uber depressed. This reality needs to end! I have to stop this!
Max made her way down the hall to her dorm room and shut the door behind her. Oh, how her life was changed. Any other person would think it was all for the better, but not Max. She wanted her old world back.
The room around Max looked similar to the way Victoria's used to, judging from the many times the Blackwell Ninja had broken into the prep's room to rummage through her dirty secrets. To her immediate right sat a high-end bed with fancy silk sheets. The "Max Caulfield Photo Memorial Wall" was still there, nothing altered.
Same, stupid pictures, Max thought, Out of everything in this room, that's the only thing still here? Embarrassing, but it makes feel a little closer to my real home.
On the left side of the room Max found her closet, filled with thousands of dollars worth of designer clothes. Past that was a glamorous modern couch and a glass coffee table in place of the cheap old bargain couch that Max's parents insisted on getting. An expensive-looking wooden desk replaced her tiny particle-board version, and a Macbook rested on the surface. Max noticed that her cork board brimming with Post-It notes and scribbled writings about time alteration was still there, hung on the wall perfectly above the beautiful dark desk.
Good, she thought, that makes two promising things.
Max wondered that if her notes and Memorial Wall were still there then, somewhere in this alternate universe, there had to be that picture of her and Chloe that William took the day he, uh, took the bus... The one she used to warp back and convince him to actually take it. She walked across her new contemporary room and scanned her desk. Underneath some science papers lay a picture of Max and Chloe dressed as pirates. Joyce had taken that picture, Max could remember, on the last Halloween she and her best friend ever spent together, although her memory was slightly fuzzy. She gently picked it up and carried it over to her bed as she sat on the edge.
A single tear splashed onto the film as Max remembered her lovable blue-haired punk and the countless times she saved her from the clutches of death. It was time to nab that picture and go back to the day she let William live. As much as she hated the thought, Max knew that the only way she could save her friend and bring the world back to its original state was to let him die in that car crash... It was the way the universe meant for it to be.
Hold on, Che. I'm coming.