Author's Notes:
The next two chapters are going to be the darkest of the whole story so far. Although, there will be no explicit content, if you're sensitive to topics like bullying, physically and/or mentally abuse, just be cautious!
But don't worry, these topics won't be the main canon and I don't want to turn this into an M-Rated story!
Chapter 7: Beat the bullies, part 1
An annoying melody from her phone woke Max from her deep, but restless slumber. With a groan she turned on her back, shut off the alarm and opened her reddened eyes slowly.
'Ugh! Four hours of sleep are definitely not enough for me. I still wonder why Chloe acted so strange last night. She literally barricaded herself in her room and I think I even heard her crying. I need to ask her as soon as I see her, otherwise it will give me another sleepless night.'
With another groan, Max slowly stood up, stretched her limbs and let out a big yawn. Like the day before, she walked like a zombie, first to the drawer to get some fresh clothes and then into the bathroom.
Despite her grogginess and bad mood, Max couldn't suppress a smile as she saw her new hair-cut in the mirror.
'Wowser! It still looks amazing, even after such a shitty night. Chloe really knows how to style.'
Max splashed some cold water into her face, fixed one or two stray streaks of hair and put on her daily armor: some blue-jeans, a pink shirt and a grey hoodie.
'I think a change of my clothing is next on my big list of style changing.'
It knocked on the door and Chloe's voice chimed from the other side. "Hey Maxi, can I come in?"
'Okay, here she is. Let's hope that she's in the mood to talk.' Max thought, unlocked and opened the door.
Chloe gave her friend a short "Morning!" with a wry smile as they looked at each other. Max could see that she had a rough night too. Her strawberry-blonde hair was a complete mess and her eyes were red from a lot of shed tears. Normally, Chloe was someone who's always full of energy, no matter if it was early in the morning or late at night. But this time she was more like Max, groggy and slow moving, lacking any motivation.
"Morning." Max answered more plainly than she intended to. "Come in!" she added, turned around and went to the sink again to brush her teeth.
"Thanks." Chloe responded in a low tone, entered and closed the door. Just standing there, the blonde gazed at her friend for some time, like she was overthinking what to do next.
Max answered her glance by looking into the mirror, mumbling a "What?" with her toothbrush in her mouth.
"Max…" Chloe began with a sigh, her shoulders dropped. "I'm sorry about freakin' out last night. It was…"
"It's okay, Chlo. I mean, seeing me having a meltdown and my parents…" Max replied after spitting out the foam.
"I-it was not just that. It…" Chloe let out a deep sigh again, dropped her gaze and wrapped her arms around her body, a gesture Max never saw her doing before.
'She looks so weak; so fragile, like something really heavy is burdening her. I think it would help if she'd just let it out.'
Max touched Chloe's shoulders, making the blonde girl looking into the doe-eyes of her friend again. "Chlo, what is going on? Since last night you act so strange. I…I've been up all night, because I was so worried. Please Chloe, just tell me!"
"I-I wanna tell you, it's just…I'm scared, Max. Scared about how you might react. Scared that it will change everything between us. I…" Chloe said, hugged herself even stronger and began to cry.
"Chloe…" Max gasped and took her crying friend into a close hug. "You know that no matter what you're gonna tell me, you'll always be my friend. Just say it! Share your burden with me. That's what best friends are for." the smaller girl told her with a soothing voice.
Chloe nodded, burying her head deeper into Max's shoulder. "Max, I'm…I think I…"
A strong knocking on the door let both girls startle and break their hug. "Max, Chloe! If you two want some breakfast you better hurry up or else I'm gonna be late!" Joyce's voice chimed from outside the bathroom.
"Just a minute!" Max responded, but shifted her focus on Chloe again, who just stood there, eyes fixed on the ground. "Chloe, you wanna…?"
"No." she said plainly, shaking her head. "We…we better talk about this after school."
"But…"
Chloe raised her gaze and looked at her friend sternly. "Max, I don't wanna talk about this in a rush, okay? It's too important."
"Okay." Max answered in a calm tone. "Listen, Chlo, I need to get going, 'cause I wanna take some shots of the sunrise."
Giving her a wry smile, Chloe gave Max a soft push on her shoulder. "Yeah, do that, you little photo-geek! We see us in school then."
"Mh-hm. Lunch break. Special spot. I'll bring the food." the brunette girl spoke with a smile.
"Thanks, by the way, for the pizza you left on my doorstep."
"No biggie, I thought that you might need some soulfood, and it was yours anyway. Pepperonis are just yuck!"
"You just don't know what's good for you!" Chloe told her with an impish grin, starting to take off her pajamas, what made Max turn around and leaving the bathroom in a hurry, nearly colliding with Joyce.
"What are you two doing in there?" the tall woman asked.
"Getting ready for the day?" Max answered, clearly avoiding the topic about Chloe's strange behavior.
'If Chloe has a problem that she doesn't want to talk with me about, then she definitely doesn't wanna tell Joyce about it. Or at least she should tell her in person.'
"This early? Normally you two aren't up for another half an hour." she said suspiciously.
"I wanna take some shots of the sunrise, so…"
Joyce scoffed. "I should've known that the only thing that gets you out of bed this early has something to do with photography. Well, then don't let me stop you and if you're hungry, just take some of the muffins I made yesterday." she said and continued her way into the bathroom.
'This day is gonna be exhausting!' the small girl thought, grabbed the needed stuff from her room, plus some muffins from the kitchen and left the house.
The old mansion wasn't far away from Chloe's home, but still an exhausting walk up the hill. As Max reached the rusty and withered gate, she breathed heavily.
'Well, here I am. And where is Taylor? I better text her.'
Max: Hey Taylor, I'm at the gate. Where are you?
While waiting for her friend's reply, Max turned her gaze towards the bay. The sun wasn't up yet, but the already reddened sky painted the scenery in a beautiful color.
"Wowser!" Max whispered, took out her cam and made her first shot. "Never thought that this location is so awesome." she spoke to herself, taking another picture. Her phone chimed in her pocket.
Taylor: Inside.
Max's eyes widen in surprise. 'Inside?! I thought we just meet here and do the shots from the surrounding area.' she thought, answering Taylor's message.
Max: I thought we take the shots in front of the house.
Taylor: From the rooftop we'll have an amazing view!
Max: I'm not the breaking-and-entering-type.
Taylor: C'mon girl. No risk, no fun!
'Why does anybody want to bring out my rebellious side? But she's right. you have to take some risks if you want the best shots.' Max thought with a sigh and typed a reply.
Max: Is there an open door or…
Taylor: Hole in the fence, about 5 feet left from the gate. Meet me at the front door.
Max searched and found the improvised entrance. 'Well, here goes nothing.' the small girl thought, her nervousness at a peak. She took a last look around and crawled through the hole. Boughs and thorns of the wild grown bushes scratched over her bare skin. One or two times, her hair and the sling of her bag got caught in the overgrown thicket, until she finally reached the paved way that leaded up to the house.
'I bet my hair looks messy now. Duh, Max! You have a messy-style anyway. And again, thanks Chloe! But honestly, this is quite fun. Too bad, that Chloe isn't here to share this adventure with me.'
As Max reached the entrance she's startled. "Jasmine!" she gasped as she stared at the black-haired girl, who stood there with crossed arms and a devilish grin on her face. Max took a few steps back, only to run into two of her cronies who were taking her into a tight hold.
"Surprise!" the chubby girl singsonged, followed by an evil snickering in which the other girls joined in.
Max's gaze scanned the area in order to evaluate her chances, but her sigh just fixed on a blonde girl behind Jasmine Graves. "Taylor?! Wh-what is going on? W-why…"
"Oh Maxine, let me stop your tiny train of stupid questions right there." Jasmine said with a wide and victorious grin, walking towards Max with small steps. "Taylor wants to be one of us, the cool girls, and not such a loser like you are. So, she told me yesterday that she met a small, geeky wannabe-photographer, who was actually nice to her. And I thought to myself that this could only be our little Maxine Cockfield, and I was right."
She now stood directly in front of Max, her grin now even wider. "I told you that you're gonna pay for what you said about my dad." she hissed and before Max even knew what was happening, Jasmine's fist punched right into her belly with full force, making the small girl groan. The pain was so intense that Max's legs couldn't support her anymore and she fell to the ground as the two lackeys failed to hold her entire bodyweight.
Lying on the ground, Max gasped for air, trying to suppress the throbbing pain that went through her body.
"Look at you! You're a disgrace. Pathetic!" Jasmine continued, walking around the Max in a slow pace. "You really think that someone like Taylor wants to be your friend? That a new hair-cut and some dye makes you cool, huh?" The black-haired girl kneeled down beside Max, grabbed her hair and pulled her head up, making her cry out in pain. The freckled girl was forced to look into the brown eyes of her nemesis again. "Not so tough anymore when your little doggy Chloe isn't around, aren't ya? Now, just say to me that you're sorry and that you're my bitch." she whispered in her ear in a vicious tone.
"F-f-fuck you!" Max replied with a weak voice, holding Jasmine's gaze.
The bully's face turned beet-red out of anger. She let Max's head drop to the ground, so that it hit the pavement hard, making the small girl covering it with her hands. Jasmine Graves stood up and used the opportunity to kick Max in her now uncovered belly and chest, repeatedly.
Every hit sent a wave of more intense pain through Max's body. Every kick made her groan and as Jasmine's foot hit her chest, the small girl cried out in agony.
"JAZZ, STOP IT!" Taylor shouted and shoved Max's tormentor aside to make her stop. Her eyes were red from crying.
"Are you out of your fucking mind?" Jasmine blurted at her.
"I should ask you the same. You told me that you wanted to play her a prank, this…" She pointed at Max who lied on the ground, winding and whining. "…is not a prank, this is torture and Max doesn't deserve this!"
"WRONG!" Jasmine yelled, closing in on her and grabbed the blonde by the collar of her jacket. "This bitch talked shit about my dad and is a nuisance! She's a loser; a lowlife and we treat her like one. And now YOU have the choice: be with us or join her!" With these hissed words she raised her fist as a threat.
Taylor wanted to say something; wanted to stand her ground, but looking into Jasmine's anger radiating eyes and the threat of being beaten up like Max, she faltered, lowered her gaze and stayed silent.
"That's what I thought." the chubby girl commented Taylor's absence of words with a scoff and released her. "I understand that you don't want to get your hands dirty, yet. So,…" she kneeled down again, rummaged through Max's bag and brought forth her instant-camera, giving it to Taylor who glanced at it. "…let's start with something easy. Smash it."
"What?!" the blonde girl gasped in surprise. "Jazz, I-I can't, this cam means a lot to her."
"So?" the bully retorted with a shrug, her arms crossed.
Taylor's gaze shifted between Jasmine, the cam in her hands and Max, who was now looking at her with a pain grimaced face too, begging her silently not to do it. And after some moments the blonde finally decided to make a stand against Jasmine.
"DO IT!" the chubby girl screamed suddenly at Taylor, who startled and let drop Max's cam accidently as it slid from her already clammy and shaky hands.
Max watched in horror how her precious cam fell to the ground in slow-motion. It was like time's flowing like thick honey. Every positive memory linked with that camera rushed through the small girl's head. How happy she was as her parents gave it to her on her 10th birthday. Each and every photo she took with it. How Chloe never understood her passion for photography, but nonetheless posed for every shot she took of her and it were a lot of shots.
As the cam hit the old stones, it broke into bits and pieces with a clattering sound. Max dropped her head and started to cry again, while Taylor gasped, covering her mouth with her hand.
Jasmine and the other girls laughed out loud. "I think she learned her lesson. Nice job, Taylor." She smiled, satisfied with her doing, and flicked with her finger. "C'mon girls!"
But Taylor didn't move. Shocked about what she'd just done to the one person, who - besides her mom - ever treated her nicely, without expecting anything in return, she started to cry.
"What a pussy." Jasmine scoffed, turned around and left the abandoned estate with her pose. What remained, were two crying girls.
After some time, Taylor reached out with her hand, touching Max's shoulder. "Max…I'm so sorry. I-I didn't know that…that she would do something like this. I…"
"Go away, Taylor. Leave me alone." Max said quietly between some sniffs.
"B-but I…Max…" the blonde stammered.
Now Max raised her head and looked at Taylor with a mixture of fury, sadness and disappointment. "I said…go…AWAY!"
Crying even harder, Taylor passed Max and ran away.
Clouds were now covering the morning sky, hiding the sunrise Max originally wanted to take pictures of. Now all alone, Max stayed on the ground, the emotionally and physically pain she was into were too much to stand up. She hugged her legs and cried again. "Chloe…I need you…please…help me…"
Unaware of the amount of time that had passed, Max finally managed to get up. Every part of her body hurt, especially the left side of her chest. She tried to stand up, but failed. So she crawled towards her broken camera, and as she picked up the pieces of this well of fond memories she sobbed again.
The freckled girl put every bit she could find into her bag, hoping deep inside that it could be repaired, although she knew better. It was destroyed beyond repair.
First raindrops fell from the dark and cloudy sky, as Max finally found the strength to stand up. She slowly walked towards the spot where the hole in the fence was located, right hand holding her left side. With every step a burning pain emerged from her chest, breathing was hard. She finally reached the spot, got on all four and started to crawl through the thicket again. This time it was even harder, because the brunette girl's movements were slow and she almost too weak to free herself from the grasp of the wild plants. More than one time she was about to give up; to just lie down and stay there.
But she couldn't! Chloe needed her and she wanted to be with Chloe! Thinking about this, Max gathered all her strength and reached the fence.
After she finally left the estate, Max leaned against the fence, taking a break. Her jacket was ripped and her freckled face bruised and cut.
The rain was already intensifying as Max thought about what she should do next. Going to the hospital: too far away. Going home: a possibility, but Chloe was on her way to school and Joyce at work. Only one logical possibility was left: school, because it had an infirmary and Chloe was there too.
Max hissed and groaned as she started to make her way towards her school. She had no sense of time, felt weak and cold, just kept on walking and walking, until she'd almost reached her High School, completely drenched by the cold rain.
"Maxi?!" Chloe's surprised voice chimed from behind and as Max turned around, everything rushed over her again. Her face grimaced and big, hot tears were mixing with cold water on her face. Now that she finally saw her only hope, all strength left Max.
"Shit!" Chloe cursed silently, jumped off her skateboard, darted towards Max and caught her before the small girl could collapse and hit the ground.
Both girls sat on the ground, while Max buried her head as deep as possible into Chloe's chest and cried out loud. All the blonde girl could do was to caress her friend's back and rock her softly. "Sssh. I'm here, Maxi. I'm here…I'm…" she said in a soft and comforting voice, but couldn't suppress to sob herself.
Chloe broke the long hug, after Max had calmed down as much as possible. She looked deep into her friend's doe-eyes and brushed over her cheek. "What happened? What monster did this to you?" the blonde girl asked, trying to not burst into tears again as she recognized the bruises and scratches on Max's freckled face.
"J-Jasmine…she…oh Chloe!" was all she could stammer, before the brunette girl pressed her head against Chloe and started to sob again.
From one moment to the other, Chloe's expression changed. At first it was worried and sad, but now it became just emotionless. She stared into empty space, her once caressing hands became clenched fists. "Jasmine!" she hissed with gritted teeth.
"C'mon Max. Let's get you to the infirmary!" Chloe spoke, now looking at her best friend with a warm smile again. Max nodded in agreement. Chloe helped her up and supported her on their way to the infirmary.
Chloe knocked at the white door with a red cross on it. A few seconds later it is opened by a young woman in her late twenties. Her long hair was black with a wild mixture of different colored streaks, bound into a ponytail. She also had some piercings and a sleeve-tattoo that could be clearly seen, because she always wore her white robe with rolled up sleeves. The black clothes under the white garment perfected the emo-look. "Hey Chloe, 'sup?"
"She needs your help, Audrey." Chloe answered sternly, carrying Max inside.
"Holy shit! What happened to her?" Audrey Spencer, the school's nurse, said in surprise as she saw Max's bruised face and bad condition.
"Jasmine Graves." the blonde girl replied plainly as she sat Max down on the bed and placed herself right beside her. The small girl laid her head on her best friend's shoulder, closing her eyes.
"This stupid, little bitch!" the nurse cursed, while sitting down onto a rolling stool and began to take a closer look at Max. "Okay, firstly, you two should get rid of your wet clothes to prevent hypothermia."
The two girls obeyed and stripped off their jackets. "Chloe…c-can you help me, please?" Max said as she tried to get rid of her soaked hoodie and shirt.
Without any hesitation, Chloe helped her. And as she lifted the brunette girl's undershirt over her head, she froze. Her expression became emotionless again and hot tears were forming in the corners of her eyes as she touched one of the blue spots on her best friend's belly.
"Holy fuck!" Audrey gasped out, covering her mouth as she saw Max's completely bruised body. "I know I shouldn't curse in front of students, but this…" she continued and shook her head, giving the two girls some blankets.
"Is she gonna be okay?" Chloe asked, putting the blanket around Max's shoulder, who gave her a weak smile and laid her head on the blonde's shoulder again.
"I guess so, but I can't treat her here. Because this…" The nurse pointed at a big, blue and swollen spot on the left side of Max's chest. "…is at least one fractured rib. And believe me, in my time as a nurse I saw enough broken bones for a lifetime." She sighed before she continued. "I have to call an ambulance and get her to the hospital. There they can do some x-ray and look if she has any internal bleeding."
"Do that." Chloe stated, gave Max a kiss on her head and pushed herself from the bed. "Take good care of her. She…she means the world to me." she told the nurse on her way out of the infirmary.
Audrey nodded and Max gazed at the blonde quizzically. "Chloe, where are you going?"
Cold and empty looking eyes glanced at Max. "I'm gonna make sure that something like this never happens again!" Chloe answered and left the room without another word.
"This little brat went too far this time. Principal Hargrove's gonna bust her ass for sure." the black-haired woman said while she was rummaging through a pile of paper. "Damn, where did I put this fucking number?" she mumbled to herself. "Y'know, normally, I treat some bruises, scratches, sprained wrists and ankles, and maybe the one or other bumped balls from Chloe's skater-posse. A Band-Aid here, a painkiller there, but no hospital needed. But your stuff is serious and…"
Wondering about the complete silence of her patient, Audrey turned around, only to see that Max was now bend over, holding her head in her hands, while blood dripped from her nose onto the floor.
"Shit!" Audrey cursed and hurried towards Max.