Chapter 14: Charity
"CHLOEEEE!"
Chloe fell out of the bed as Max suddenly woke up with a start, screaming and lashing out. Her Laptop hit the ground with a loud thud.
It took the strawberry-blonde girl some time to snap out of her first shock, but as soon as she was able to think clear, she jumped into bed again and tried to calm down her girlfriend.
"Max! Calm down, it's me…FUCK!" A fist hit her right in the face, followed by a foot in the stomach. The blonde groaned in pain, but mustered every bit of strength and threw herself on the still screaming Max, pinning her down on the mattress. "Calm down, Maxi! Sssh, I'm right here. Please, calm down…calm…down." she said with a shivering voice, brushing with her hand through the brunette girl's hair.
Finally, Max's screaming stopped and was replaced by a constant sobbing and sniffing. "Oh Chloe…" she managed to speak and embraced her most precious person in a tight hug.
"I'm here, Maxi…I'm here!" she soothed, sat her up and rocked the smaller girl gently.
The door flew open and the lights were turned on as Vanessa and Ryan rushed into the room, both of their faces showing great concern.
"What happened?" the brunette woman asked, sitting down on the bed.
Chloe gazed at her. "I-I don't know. She…she woke up like this. Probably a nightmare."
"Maxine?" the small girl's mom spoke and tried to touch her daughter, who, however, flinched upon her mother's touch, digging her head even deeper into Chloe's shoulder.
"Did you two watch horror movies again?" Ryan said sternly as he looked at the on the floor laying Laptop.
"N-no. Just Star Wars. We…"
"I-I'm fine…I'm okay…j-just a nightmare." Max spoke, her voice muffled, because it was still dug into Chloe's shoulder.
"I told you, these damn pills are messing with her head. She never had such heavy nightmares before." Max's dad suddenly mentioned, glancing at his wife, who exhaled deeply and looked at her lap.
"I…I think you're right. I'll call the doctor right after the holidays and tell him that we won't give her these pills anymore. Maxine…" Vanessa touched the shoulder of her daughter again, but this time, Max didn't back away. "I'm sorry that I made you take this stuff. I…" She sighed. "I should've listened to you and your dad."
"It's okay, mom. I-I don't blame you." the small girl said, raising her head from Chloe's shoulder. As she looked at her mom with a forced smile, the hateful feelings of the nightmare still fresh in her mind, Vanessa gasped.
"Oh my god! Maxine, your nose!"
Max brushed with the back of her hand over her nostrils, only to see that it was full of blood. "Damn!" she muttered.
With a swift move, Chloe took off her already blood spattered shirt and handed it to the brunette girl. "Here! It's dirty anyway." she said with a wry smile, now just wearing a tank top over her bra.
Max took the shirt and held it under her nose. "Thanks, Chlo!"
"I'm going to get you a cold cloth for your nose." Vanessa said and stood up.
"And a cooling pad for Chloe." Ryan added, making everyone look at him. "Because this…" He pointed at Chloe's left eye. "…is gonna be a nice shiner." His wife nodded and left rapidly to get the needed goods.
The blonde girl touched the throbbing spot under her eye and hissed. "Shit!"
"Oh my dog! D-did I do that?" the freckled girl asked, her eyes welling up again. "I-I'm so sorry, Chlo!" She tried to touch her girlfriend's cheek, but was stopped by her.
"It's okay, Maximus. You didn't mean to, and it doesn't hurt that much." the blonde replied, giving her a warm smile.
"I'm gonna take care of those devilish pills now."
"Y-you don't have to." Chloe said as Ryan was about to leave the room, which made him turn around and glance at Chloe, who was exchanging some glares with Max. "I…uhm...I already flushed them down the toilet, 'cause I don't want Max to be drugged. She…she doesn't need this. Sorry!"
At first, it seemed like Max's dad was about to go ballistic on the taller girl, but instead a smile grew on his face. "Well, looks like you had the courage to do what I never was able to."
"So…uh…I'm not in trouble?"
"Trouble for what?" Vanessa asked as she returned.
"Chloe cursed, because she touched her going-to-be black eye." her husband answered, giving the blonde girl a wink.
"Oh my poor dear! Here, put this on your eye, it will help against the pain." the brunette woman soothed and handed her the cooling pad.
"Thanks!"
"And a cold cloth for my baby-girl."
"Thanks, mom!" Max wiped away the blood in her face and held the cool fabric under her nose.
Vanessa took Chloe's blood-soaked shirt and headed to the door again. "I'll wash your shirt first thing in the morning, Chloe. If you two need anything, just tell us, we'll be awake for at least another hour."
"G'night, kids!" Ryan said and closed the door as he and Vanessa left their daughter's room.
As soon as her parents were gone, Max laid her head back on Chloe's shoulder. Some new tears formed in her eyes, but this time out of relief that her nightmare hadn't been reality. At least, not yet.
Chloe brushed with her fingers over Max's back. She felt that her girlfriend was far away from being alright. "Wanna tell me?" she asked in a quiet tone.
The last time, something like this happened, Max refused to tell Chloe about her dream. But this time it was different. Last time the blonde wasn't there to see her awakening from such a horrible nightmare. Besides, Max had the feeling that she needed to share this burden with Chloe eventually or else she would lose it at some point.
Taking some deep breathes, Max gathered her courage. "Chloe, I…I dreamt that you were dead."
"Dead?" Chloe scoffed. "That would be a shame."
Noticing that Chloe wasn't taking it seriously, Max pushed her away. "That's not funny, Chlo!" she said with some agitation. "Or would you laugh when the police calls and tells you that I've been mugged and murdered in the streets of Seattle, huh?"
"Max, I-I…"
Her voice began to tremble. "No! You would despair. You would scream. You would want to die!"
Surprised by her girlfriend's outbreak, Chloe tried to calm her down. "I'm sorry, okay? I didn't mean to make fun of you, but...damn, it was just a stupid dream. I'm right here, alive, not dead in the gutter."
At first, Max had the feeling that it was time to tell Chloe the truth, but now she wasn't so sure anymore. What if Chloe wouldn't believe, or worse, made more fun of her? What if she would call her crazy or a drama queen? All those doubts were cycling inside of her mind and made her change her decision. "Chloe…" she sighed. "Just dreaming about losing you almost drives me nuts. I…I don't know, if I could take it…"
Before she was able to finish her sentence, Chloe took her into another tight hug. "I won't die, Max!" she soothed, brushing through her brown hair. "Damn, I just managed to make you my girlfriend, the hell I will give that up!"
"I love you, Chlo!" Max muttered into the blonde's chest.
"I love you, too, Max!" she replied. Both stayed in this tight embrace for a while, enjoying their closeness and warmth.
"So…uhm…" Chloe broke the silence. "What shall we do now? It's just a bit after 10 and we're awake now. Wanna watch another movie, or…"
"No." Max answered plainly, and broke the hug. "I…" She exhaled deeply, the images of her nightmare still swirling inside of her mind. It took the young girl a lot of strength not to burst out into tears again, despite Chloe's soothing presence. "I'm all sweaty a-and my face is full of blood. I…I just need a shower to calm down. And then…I'm gonna play some WoW."
Chloe looked at Max with great concern. She felt that her girlfriend was still very far away from being okay. She saw how she was hurting, saw that this nightmare took a lot of her. "Should I keep you some company? I-I mean not in the shower, but…y'know…talk with you 'n shit."
"No, but thanks." the small girl answered with a wry, but also forced, smile. "I-I just need some time for myself." She stood up, walked to her closet, took out her pajama.
"Max..." Chloe suddenly addressed the brunette, making her stop before she left the room. "I…" she began, her voice shivering. "I'm here, okay?" But Max just closed the door without turning around or giving her an answer.
As the hot water hit her body, it almost felt like she'd entered another dimension. Everything around her went silent. Everything became unimportant. Sadly, this effect lasted only for a few moments. Without any other input, Max's mind instantly wandered back to her nightmare, the latest Vision she had about Chloe's demise.
A sob escaped her mouth, then another one. Her face grimaced in emotional pain and she embraced her body with her arms. She had to sit down onto the bottom of the bathtub or else her legs wouldn't have been able to hold her anymore. Max's crying intensified. Hot tears were mixing with hot water.
All of a sudden, her body was embraced by another pair of arms, while strawberry-blonde hair was falling over her shoulder as Chloe laid her head on it. "I'm so sorry, Maxi. But I couldn't let you alone. Not like this." she whispered, her voice trembling.
But Max didn't mind. She welcomed the soothing closeness, despite that, originally, she wanted to be alone. It calmed her down. Made her forget the horrors of her dream. It gave her certainty. Certainty that Chloe was still alive and with her. That she wasn't alone. That she still had a chance to save her again, and this gave her new strength to fight. It became exhausting to fight for her love's life, but it was worth it. Chloe was worth dying for.
Max broke the hug and turned around, gazing at Chloe, who was still completely dressed, but already soaked by the constant stream of hot water. Both girls were sitting in the tub, looking at each other for some time.
'I need to tell her! She's so worried about me and…she did the right thing. I was so blinded by these negative feelings that I pushed her away instead of letting her comfort me. But she saw it. She knew…no, she felt that I needed her. She's so caring, so full of love. I need her and she needs me. I'm gonna tell her about my Visions! But not right now. At first I have to figure out the reasons which caused those horrible events and try everything to stop them!'
"Maxi?" Chloe spoke and touched Max's arm softly, bringing her back to reality.
The brunette girl focused on her most beloved Chloe again. Her body was flooded by the incredible joyful and warm feeling of deep love. She jumped forward and wrapped her arms around the blonde's neck. "Thank you, Chlo!" she whispered.
"For what?"
"For ignoring my stupid idea of wanting to be alone. I was too dumb to see that I needed you and…" Max sighed. "You just did the right thing and didn't give up on me. I'm just glad that you're here."
"It felt like the right thing to do, but actually…I could've bet that you'd go all ballistic on me." Chloe said with a scoff.
"And why would I do that?"
"Well, for starters, I ignored your wish for some space and…uhm…well…maybe for barging into the shower."
Max broke the hug and gazed at Chloe, who averted the brunette's blue eyes. Her face was completely blushed, although Max couldn't tell if it was caused by the hot water or because of her.
'Okay, I think this is the right moment to talk about this stuff, too. Ugh!' the younger girl thought and felt how her head was about to turn into a tomato again.
"Chloe…" Max began, making her girlfriend look at her. "I-I…uh…w-we need to…uhm…talk…about this…uh…ugh." She took some deep breathes to calm down her nerves. "Listen, I know that couples are supposed to…y'know…do way more stuff then just cuddling and kissing, but…you're older than me and…probably want…uhm…to do more…and…"
"I-I know what you mean and…uhm…I get it, Maxi." Chloe threw in. "You're not ready, yet, and…uh…need some time 'n stuff, right?"
Averting her girlfriend's gaze, Max nodded. Almost fearing that Chloe might be hurt or offended, but instead, her chin got touched softly and her eyes brought back to meet with Chloe's deep-blue ones.
A warm smile formed on the blonde girl's lips. "It's okay, Maxi. Really. I won't push you. Just…y'know…say when you're ready and we'll take the next step together, 'kay? I-I mean, this stuff is new to me, too, right?" She leaned in and placed a gentle kiss on Max's mouth. Then her smile changed into a grin. "So…uhm…want me to wash your back, or…"
Max backed away with a fake sour expression and gave Chloe a soft push. "You're impossible!"
"Just in the mood to mock you a bit, 'cause I know it cheers you up. Does it work?"
"A bit…maybe." she answered with a wry smile. "Sorry that I got you drenched."
"Needed a shower anyway." Chloe replied with a shrug. "But I really should get rid of my clothes, 'cause it's fucking uncomfortable." she added and started to undress, making Max turn around with a blush. "Oh shit, I'm sorry! I…uhm…I let you finish first and then…"
"Chloe, i-it's okay. I'm…I'm done showering, so…t-the shower is all yours!" she stammered, opened the glass door and stepped out of the shower.
A bunch of wet garments landed on the ground right beside Max, while she was drying off her clammy body. First a blue jeans, then a white tank top, followed by a black bra and a purple pantie. The brunette girl stopped breathing and raised her gaze. As she saw the blurry silhouette of her now naked girlfriend through the milky glass, she couldn't do anything else but to gulp and to stare. Her heartrate increased rapidly and a strange, warm feeling built up inside of her stomach.
'Okay, that…is new. Why am I staring at her? Why do I have the wish to break this stupid milky glass? Why…'
"Max?" Chloe's voice interrupted her train of thought, making the young girl startle.
"Y-yeah?" she almost blurted out, because her body was still tense and full of adrenaline, ready to run away.
"Can you please fetch me a towel before you leave?"
"O-okay!" With shaky hands, Max opened the closet and took out a fresh towel, instantly dropping it.
'Oh my gosh, Max. Just keep it together! She's just asking for a towel, not for drying her off.'
She picked it up again and put it on the edge of the sink. "H-here you go."
"Thanks, Maxi! Love ya!" It chimed from within the shower.
Max just wrapped her towel around her body, grabbed her pajama and left in a fast pace without another word.
"Shit! Let's hope it's still working." Max cursed silently as she picked up her Laptop. Without finding any external damage, she plugged the power cable in and fired it up. "Thank dog!" she sighed as it came to life. While it was booting up, Max's mind wandered.
'I don't know why, but everything feels strange again. Just like the time when I started to have feelings for Chloe. Somehow I had the need to see her naked, but…' Max covered her face with her hands and exhaled deeply. 'Maybe I should just focus on this fucked up Vision, this is my top priority right now, not my raging hormones.'
The brunette girl rummaged through her old camera bag and brought forth her journal. Then she opened the upper drawer of her desk and took out a notebook with the description Possible locations for nature shots.
'My Vision log book. I hate this thing, but it became an important tool to analyze my dreams and Visions.'
She opened it and flicked through the pages. Every Vision Max had so far has been written down in there. A mess of notes and lose sheets of paper filled it additionally.
'Most of the details occur to me hours or sometimes days later. Therefore it's almost impossible to bring everything in order.'
On the last page of this book was a drawing of different lines, connecting catchwords, dates and references.
'I tried to bring some sense into this messed up shit, but so far, there's no direct connection between them, except Chloe. Chloe's fate is the only consistency.'
As the door to her room got opened and Chloe came in, she closed the log again and hid it under her journal. Two arms were wrapping around her upper body and still wet, strawberry-blond hair touched her cheek as Chloe hugged Max from behind.
"Whatcha doing there, my little geek?" she whispered warmly.
Max leaned her head against her girlfriend's and touched her bare arm, trying to get as much contact as possible. She closed her eyes and inhaled deeply, the warm feeling of love rushing through her body again.
"I'm still thinking about how I should distract myself."
"Hmm…how about some cuddling?"
The brunette girl's eyes opened instantly. Heat crawled up into her face, while this strange hot feeling emerged again. Her body screamed yes, but her mind chided her to focus on her Vision first.
"Thanks Chlo, but…" She exhaled, sadness suppressing her feelings of love. "I-I think I'm not in the mood for some cuddling right now."
"That's okay, Maximus." Chloe replied and placed a peck on Max's reddened cheek. "I'm gonna prepare my makeshift-bed and gonna listen to some music. But…" She broke the hug, walked over to her backpack, dropped the towel that had covered her body and started to put on her pajama. "…if you need some Chloe, just gimme a sign, 'kay?"
Max raised her sight and gulped again as she saw her girlfriend's bare back and butt. "O-okay. Th-thanks, Chlo!" Then she focused on her Laptop and opened a folder with all the recently taken pictures of her and Chloe.
'Okay, Caulfield, now focus. Let's start from the beginning. I watched some pictures of me and Chloe on my Laptop. They looked pretty unfamiliar, so there's the possibility that I haven't taken them yet. Checking this is the less obvious thing to do, as long as Chloe's still awake.'
Max put on her headphones and listened to some relaxing music, while she browsed through what felt like thousands of pictures, trying to remember those from her dream and compare them with the already existing ones.
Unaware of how much time had gone by, Max glimpsed at Chloe, only to see, that she was laying on her back, earplugs still in her ears and in deep slumber.
A warm smile formed on the young girl's lips as she stood up and walked over to her sleeping girlfriend. She pulled out the plugs from her ears, turned off the still blaring rock-music and tugged the cover over her entire body. "Nighty night, my love!" she whispered and placed a soft kiss on her mouth, before she returned to her desk.
'Okay, concentration, Max! I don't wanna lose her." Max thought and opened the log book again. 'None of the pictures I looked at in my dream are neither on my computer nor my cam. This means, I haven't taken them yet and the event hasn't occurred…or at least it's highly unlikely.'
She scribbled some notes in her book.
'Then my mom came into my room and…and told me about Chloe, and…it broke me. Understandable.' She wiped a tear from her cheek as she remembered all those negative feelings. 'But what really disturbs me, is this anger I felt towards my mom. Of course we don't get along every day, but…beating and yelling at her? That's really heavy and so not me! So, what happened?'
Max massaged her temple and sighed. "Come on!"
'Wait! I accused her! Accused her of…of…ugh…what was it? She threw her out! Yes, that's it! My mom threw Chloe out at night, but…why? Did Chloe do something wrong? But I can't think of anything that could make my mom go all ballistic on her. No, mom's gonna find out about our relationship, panics and throws her out. That has to be the reason!'
Again, she scribbled some notes onto the paper and connected some phrases with lines.
'Okay, this is my battle plan: I need to do anything to keep my mom from finding out about us. This means, we need to stop anything that could give her a hint. No cuddling, no kissing and no risky maneuvers.' She shifted her gaze to Chloe again. 'I'm so sorry, Chlo, but it needs to be. I can't lose you! I hope she'll understand as soon as I tell her about this whole messed up shit.'
With another big exhale, Max closed her log book and put it back into the drawer. Then she opened her journal and began to write down the events, her thoughts and feelings of this day, until her eye lids became heavier and heavier. She laid her head onto her arms on the desk and drifted into a deep, dreamless sleep.
"Mmmh…mo-om…mmmmh…I don't wanna wash my ears…" mumbled Max as she dreamt about that her mom was sticking a wet cloth into her ear. She never liked, even hated it. It felt gross.
Soon, her drowsiness abated and as she became more and more conscious, she knew that something was wrong. Still grossed out by this hateful feeling, she jumped up with a shriek, fell from the chair she'd been sleeping on and hit the ground hard with a groan.
"Whoa, holy fuck, dude!" Chloe's voice chimed as her face came slowly into Max's focus as soon as the blurriness went away.
"Ch-Chloe? What happened?" Max said in a slight drowsy voice.
"Are you alright, Maxi?" the blonde asked with some worry, helping her girlfriend to sit up.
"I-I think so." Max massaged her neck and shoulders, while she still tried to wake up entirely, the awful clammy feeling still in her ear. "Why is my ear so wet?"
Chloe looked away, gazing at her lap and scratching the back of her neck. "Well…uhm…that's…kinda my fault. I…uh…"
It took the brunette girl only a few moments to understand what Chloe just did. "Wait! You woke me up by sticking a wet finger into my ear?!"
"Uhm…yup."
Before Chloe knew what had happened, she got a hard and strong punch on her shoulder.
"OUCH! What the fuck was that for?!" she yelled, rubbing the throbbing spot.
"Chloe Elizabeth Price, I heard that!" Vanessa's voice chimed from outside the room.
"Sorry!"
"This was for waking me up like an asshole! And this…" Max leaned forward and gave her girlfriend a kiss. "…to sooth the pain. Next time, try something else, okay?"
"I did! Shaking, fondling, tickling, I even kissed your entire head…nothing worked."
"Then why didn't you let me sleep?"
"Because your mom's about to freak. Said that you planned something for us today and that we shouldn't be back too late."
Max sighed and rubbed her eyes. "What time is it?"
"About nine-ish."
"What?!" the brunette girl blurted out, jumped up and darted to her closet. "Damn, I-I need to change, a-and we need to hurry, and…"
"Whoa, whoa, whoa!" Chloe said, and stopped Max in her panicky tracks. "Chillax, Maxi! We have the whole day. Wherever we're going, your mom isn't expecting us back until 5 pm. That's 8 hours."
Taking a deep inhale, the smaller girl calmed down a bit. "I know. But there's so much to see."
Chloe gave her girlfriend a warm smile and touched her shoulder softly. "Max, we've time until – literally – next year."
"You're right. Sorry for making such a big thing. It's just…Seattle is so awesome and I want to show you as much as possible."
"I know, but it won't kill me to miss one attraction." Chloe mentioned with a shrug. "So, how about we just get a bit mushy, then have a nice breakfast and leave a bit later, hmm?"
Hearing the word kill, made Max remember of what she found out from her last Vision. She gasped and backed away from Chloe as she tried to hug here. "N-no!" she accidently blurted out, making the blonde look at her with an almost hurt expression and furrowed eyebrows. "Chloe…" She sighed. "I'm sorry, but…we need to stop doing such things."
'It really hurts me to do this to her. I love her and I'd love to cuddle with her the whole day, but…'
"Why?"
"Because…" Max saw the hurt in her eyes. She saw how Chloe didn't understand, and it ached her heart. "Because it's too risky around my mom. I…I don't want her to find out."
"But…" Chloe began to reply, but was immediately interrupted by Max, who touched her cheek softly and looked deep into her blue eyes.
"Chloe, I need you to trust me on this one, please! I'll explain everything to you in time, but not right now, okay?"
'If I tell her now, it is possible that this might fuck up everything.'
Still radiating a lot of unbelief, Chloe nodded. "Okay. I trust you, but…"
Instantly, Max wrapped her arms around Chloe's neck and pulled her in for a tight hug, whispering in her ear. "Thank you! I love you so much!"
At first, the blonde was completely surprised and stunned, but relaxed more and more the longer she was embraced by Max. "I love you, too!"
The winter sun shone through the thick safety glass and enlightened the scenery beyond it. The shutter of her digi-cam clicked as Max took another shot, before the blinding fireball was covered by the next cloud again.
The young photographer hummed in satisfaction as she looked at the taken picture on the small screen of her camera.
"Wow! This is so amazing!" Chloe cheered and hugged Max from behind.
"Told ya, the Space Needle is worth a visit." the brunette giggled.
"I promise you, as soon as we're old enough and have some more money, I'm gonna drag your sweet ass up here for a date!"
"That'd be cool." Max replied enjoying her girlfriend's closeness, as, suddenly, Chloe snapped the cam out of her hand with a snicker.
"Selfie-time!" she spoke out loud, embraced Max's shoulder and aimed the lens towards their faces. "Say Space Needle!"
"Space Needle!" the two girls said in unison and with another click the next picture was shot.
Max took back her camera and gave Chloe a soft push. "You're such a dork!" which was answered by the blonde with another giggle. Then she looked at the just taken picture on her cam and almost dropped it with a gasp.
'This picture! This is the picture I saw in my Vision! Okay Max, don't panic! You know the drill: no cuddling, no kissing, no risky maneuvers.'
"Maxi? Are you okay?"
A flick in front of her eyes brought Max back to reality. "Y-yeah. I-I…I just…"
"Are you sure? Has my make-up rubbed off my black-eye? Or is my shot that bad?" Chloe asked with a sad face.
"Wh-what?! No! It's really cool. You've got talent. Here, look for yourself."
Max handed Chloe the camera and the blonde whistled, followed by a wide, mockery grin. "Well, I think you've got some competition now."
"You wish!" replied Max and gave her another soft push. Then she gazed at her phone to check the time. "C'mon, we've got one last point left on our Chloe's-must-see-in-Seattle-list!"
"Cool. Sooo, where are we going?" the taller girl asked while they headed for the elevator.
"You'll see." the brunette responded with a wink.
The elevator doors opened with a Bing and closed right after Chloe and Max had entered the complete empty lift. All of a sudden, Chloe grabbed Max by her shoulders, pushed her softly against the wall of the cabin and gave her long kiss. At first, the younger girl was entirely taken aback and tried to free herself, but only half-hearted. Although she knew that this was against her plan, she let it happen. She wanted it, too. Max literally yearned for this the whole day.
Chloe broke the kiss. Her breathing was fast and she gave her girlfriend a long and intense glare. "I'm sorry, Max! I know, you asked me not to do such things, but I couldn't hold back. I…I just love you too much, and not being allowed to touch or kiss you is just torture." she said with a soft voice.
"I know." Max whispered back with sadness, as she remembered the reason and saw the hurt in Chloe's deep-blue eyes again. The young girl didn't know what to do or what to feel. The fear of losing Chloe was a constant threat, hovering over her like a ton of stones, ready to crush her fragile body. Everything was wrong again, and if she would've been alone right now, she would've had a meltdown.
"But I trust you." Chloe spoke, ending the uncomfortable silence and gave her another soft peck, before the doors opened again with another Bing. "Let's continue our little tour, hmm?"
Hearing those words of commitment soothed her a bit, but not enough. It still felt for Max like she'd betrayed her girlfriend, like she lied to her continuously. The pressure of finally telling her the truth increased with every moment. But when was the right time to do it? So far, everything Max was able to do in her state was to stall. And if Chloe hadn't put her arm around her shoulder and lead her out of the elevator, she would've stayed there. Forever lost in her thoughts.
"The Chase Space?" Chloe said with furrowed eyebrows as she gazed at a sign above a glass front, which was decorated with colorful light strings and other Christmassy stuff. "Sounds for me like a place where art-hipsters meet to get high."
"Well, you're actually not that wrong. Although, they don't get high on drugs but on art, 'cause this is an art-gallery!" Max cheered with a big smile, but only received an expression of pure unbelief paired with crossed arms.
"So, you dragged my ass to an art-gallery, though you knew I'm not into art at all?"
But Max's smile didn't even falter a bit. "Yup, because…" The smaller girl now turned to Chloe, crossing her arms equally. "If you visit the Mecca of Arts, you've got to visit at least one gallery. Besides, you have an artistic side inside of you. I saw your doodles and they're so cool. And I know that you're drawing templates for tattoos, secretly. Truth be told, if I'd be 18 and into tats, I'd make you my artist!"
Chloe let out a big sigh, dropping her arms in defeat. "You're such a nosy smartass! Fine, let us look at some overpriced paintings."
"Not paintings, Chlo. This is one of the city's most famous art-galleries for modern art, in this case for photography."
"Fine, overpriced photos then. Are you even sure that they will let us into this fancy-pansy place?"
"Definitely. Every Christmas, they throw a charity event. It's an exhibition where everybody, even the homeless, is invited to look at the best pictures of the year."
"Well, seems like I'm lacking some more excuses. Ugh, fuck it, let's get it on!"
"That's the spirit!" Max announced victoriously, hooked her arm with Chloe's and led her inside, where everything looked even more pompous than from the outside.
The warm smell of cookies, eggnog and warm punch engulfed the two girls as they took off their beanies and opened their jackets. The room was filled with the almost quiet sound of soft chitter-chatter from the few peoples that were already there.
"Whoa, they even got a bigass buffet!" Chloe whisper-yelled to Max and headed straight for the food. The blonde took a handful of cookies and stuffed the sweets in her mouth. "Diff if rea'y goo'." she mumbled, spilling some crumbs onto Max, who gave her an angry glare.
"Will you stop behaving like an oaf?" the smaller girl hissed angrily, giving her girlfriend a slight push.
"Sorry, Maxi!" Chloe replied after she'd gulped down the food, blushed in shame.
"It's fine." Max sighed, regretting a bit that she'd dragged Chloe here. "Just…take some cookies and let's watch some photos, okay?"
They both strolled through the gallery, looking at the different pictures. Every time Max saw the photo of a famous artist she became giddy and started to give Chloe a small lecture, which the older girl mostly commented with a bunch of plain uh-huhs.
Suddenly, Chloe stopped in front of a picture. "Okay, that is kinda hot!" she spoke out.
Max stopped in her tracks and gazed at the shot. She gasped and her head became beet-red as she saw that it showed an almost completely naked woman. "Th-that's a nude, Chlo!"
"So?" the blonde replied and as she glimpsed at her totally ashamed girlfriend, a big, mockery grin formed on her lips. "Don't tell me that my little photo-freak here doesn't like those kind of shots." She leaned forward and whispered in her ear. "Or does it turn you on?"
"No, it doesn't!" Max almost shrieked. The push that followed wasn't as soft as the others before and made Chloe stumble backwards with a groan, while Max walked on to another picture.
"Maxi?" Chloe asked cautiously after she'd caught up, but the brunette girl stayed silent, staring at the exhibited photo in front of her. "Listen, I'm sorry. I…"
"It kinda turned me on." Max interrupted her.
"What?!"
Averting her sight from the picture, Max gazed at Chloe intensely. "Chloe, I'm…I started to have feelings…strange feelings…I…" She let out a big sigh. "I-I don't know what to do. Everything changes so fast and…"
Giving her a warm smile, Chloe touched Max's slender shoulder softly. "Don't push yourself too hard, Maxi! These feelings are normal, and just having them, doesn't mean that you are ready for…y'know…more."
Max closed in and gave her girlfriend a tight hug. "Ugh, growing up just sucks!"
"I know, Maxi, I know." the blonde comforted, enjoying the closeness once more.
"How did you get through with it, without me noticing it?"
Chloe broke the embrace and shrugged. "Bawling. Lots of Bawling and a shitload of ice cream."
"Okay, that sounds very depressing."
"Really? It makes me kinda hungry, though. I'm gonna grab us some more cookies." the blonde said in a nonchalantly tone and started to make her way to the buffet again, but was stopped by Max before she was out of reach.
"How are you doing this?" she asked, gazing into her girlfriend's eyes deeply.
"Doing what?" Chloe replied with furrowed eyebrows.
"Staying so positive? Always seeing the bright side?"
Chloe leaned forward with a wide smile. Once again, her voice was merely a whisper. "Just look into the mirror and you'll know the answer!" The blonde chuckled and went on with her hunt for crunchy sweets.
Max stayed behind, completely stunned as she realized again, what an important part of Chloe's life she'd always been. Chloe needed her and she needed Chloe. They were bound together, not able to function without each other.
"A fabulous shot, isn't it?" chimed a female voice right beside the young girl, startling her as she was brought back into the here-and-now. She turned her head and glanced at a blond-haired, young girl with a pixie-cut, dressed in very fancy clothes, who was still looking at the exhibited photo.
Not wanting to be rude, Max now gazed at the picture to give the girl an answer. Before, she'd just pretended to look at it to avert Chloe, but now that she took a closer look, she gasped. "Wowser! I-is this an original Jefferson?"
"Indeed it is." said the other girl. "I take it that you're familiar with his work?"
"Y-yeah, he's one of my favorite photographers." Max answered, her voice dripping with praise about her idol.
"Samesies here!" the blonde cheered, now shifting her gaze towards Max, a friendly smile on her face.
"Hey Maxi, I brought you some hot chocolate!" spoke Chloe as she came back from the buffet, reaching her girlfriend a cup of hot chocolate.
The brunette girl took the hot beverage and gave Chloe a warm smile. "Thanks, Chlo!" she said, and glanced at the other girl again. "Anyway, I'd love to meet him in person some day."
The original smile of the other girl had now changed into a cold expression. "Well, he's gonna attend the New Year's Eve soiree, but sadly it will be a closed event, for invited persons only."
"And what makes you think that you will be invited?" Chloe shot back as she recognized the arrogant and hostile tone in the other young girl's voice.
"How about the fact that my parents are the owners of this gallery?" the pixie-blonde said with an even more arrogance-dripping voice.
Chloe crossed her arms and furrowed her eyebrows. Max knew this expression. She knew it very well. Her girlfriend was about to go into full pissed-off mode, backtalking included. She scoffed, scanning her opponent from head to toe. "Oooh, I'm sorry. I should've known by the ugly, overpriced stuff that covers your oh-so-privileged body."
Now the other girl crossed her arms, too. She radiated pure anger, clearly being insulted, but she tried suppressed it rather well. "At least I don't look like a street-rat fresh out of the gutter."
Unimpressed by this comment, a mischievous grin formed on Chloe's lips. "No, you don't. You're more like cheap copy of Paris Hilton. And rats are cute, by the way. Paris Hilton is not. So, when's your sex-tape coming out? I definitely want something to laugh at."
"I-I'm not a slut!" the blonde yelled, her hands clawing in her arms and her head red out of anger. With this outburst, the conversation drew more attention to the fighting girls.
"Yeah, you're not a slut, but definitely a bitch!" Chloe continued calmly, obviously amused.
"YOU…" the arrogant girl began to scream, but was interrupted by another female person.
"Victoria Maribeth Chase, what is this commotion all about?" angrily hissed a woman that could've been a perfect, but older and way taller clone of the girl she'd called Victoria.
Internally, Max already prepared herself to get thrown out of this gallery any moment now, because this woman was definitely the mother of this other girl and therefore the owner of this place. But to her own surprise, something completely different happened.
"We…" Victoria began, shifting her gaze between Max, Chloe and her mother. Her anger seemed to be gone and had been replaced by pure coldness, like she didn't want to show any weakness towards her mom. "We had a very lively conversation about Mark Jefferson's picture."
"Oh yes, this one is very controversial. And who are your…" Mrs. Chase glimpsed at the two girls derogatively. "Acquaintances?"
"These are…" Victoria started and looked intensively at Max, almost ordering her to continue her sentence.
"H-hi, I'm Max." the brunette said with a smile, trying to cool down the situation. But neither Chloe nor Victoria seemed to be willing to let it drop, still having their arms crossed and sights fixed at each other.
"Chloe." the strawberry-blonde spoke plainly.
Mrs. Chase's lips formed a fake smile. "It's a pleasure to see that some…young girls like you two have an interest in arts. A rather scarce sight these days."
"Your daughter seems to take it pretty seriously." Chloe said, the cynically undertone being unnoticed by the blonde woman, but not by Victoria, who gave her an even more agitated glare.
"Oh yes, she'd better be, because she's on her best way to become a famous photographer herself. Isn't this right, dear?"
This time, the girl with the pixie-cut let her gaze drop and exhaled, like this was a topic she doesn't want to talk about. "Yes, mom." she muttered.
Victoria's answer turned the fake smile into a satisfactory one, followed by an agreeing nod. "Well, since your discussion was so lively and I admire the opinion of other people, especially our young generation, let us take another look at this picture and discuss it again."
Realizing that Victoria's mother wouldn't take a no for an answer, the three girls looked at the picture again.
Max focused on the photo and tried to catch the details in order to interpret them. The shot was monochrome, showing a woman, her hands entangled in light strings. Her hair was a bit messed up and she looked like she was half asleep.
'Controversial my ass! This shot makes me feel uncomfortable, like I should rip it from the wall.'
For a split second a stinging pain rushed through Max's head, followed by a strange voice. 'Oh Max…you have a gift!'
'Okay, what the fuck was that?' she asked herself internally, while a shiver went over her spine.
The small girl averted her sight from the picture, clearly being disgusted by it and shifted her gaze to the comforting presence of her girlfriend. But as her view fell on Chloe, who stood there, embracing her own body, Max knew that something wasn't right.
"Chloe?" she asked, touching her girlfriend's shoulder softly.
"This picture creeps the shit out of me." Chloe said with a shaking voice.
A snicker let both girls look at Mrs. Chase. "I don't think that it was Mark's intention to scare little girls."
"I-I think she's right. Something's off with this picture." Max replied, earning another skeptically glare from the blonde woman.
"And what should that be?"
"Just look at it, will ya?!" Chloe suddenly blurted out. "This woman…it seems like she didn't want to do this shot freely. Like she's been forced to do it. This isn't art! This is some sick, fucked up shit!" Tears were flowing down Chloe's cheeks as she moved closer to Max, who embraced her into a soothing hug.
"See, Victoria, and this is why I always say that art can't be understood by every person."
"Yes, mom." Victoria answered quietly, her gaze, again, lowered. Max recognized that, whatever she and Chloe were seeing in this picture, Victoria saw it, too. But she didn't say a word about it, because of her mother.
"Isn't your statement against the spirit of this charity event to grant every person access to art?" Chloe suddenly pointed out, breaking the hug. Her pissed-off mode was active again, but this time against Mrs. Chase.
Another chuckle of amusement emerged from the blonde woman. "Actually, no, Zoe."
"It's Chloe!"
"Yes, yes. Chloe, Zoe, whatever. But just because everyone can look at art, doesn't necessarily mean that they can understand it. Only privileged people are able to understand art."
Chloe crossed her arms again, this time really angry. "Wow, last time the world heard such fascist bullshit, our country bombed the shit out of Hitler."
Somehow, this comment hit a nerve. There was no snickering and no arrogance anymore. Mrs. Chase's face turned deep red out of anger. "This is outrageous! How dare you little brat calling me a Nazi?"
"I didn't call you a Nazi. Just said that your opinion belongs into this era, Eva!"
Max saw that Mrs. Chase had to fight to hold her composure, her jaw clenched. "Victoria, please see our guests here out!" she hissed.
"Thanks, but we know where the door is, Mrs. Braun. C'mon, Maxi!" Chloe snipped back, took Max's hand and walked past the Chases.
The cold winter air whipped into Max's face and sent another shiver through her body. She drank the rest of the hot chocolate, threw the paper cup into the next garbage bin and closed her jacket.
"Sorry for fucking this up, Maxi. But I couldn't take this shit anymore." Chloe mentioned with a sad face.
Max took a step towards her girlfriend and gave her a wry smile as she grabbed her hand again. "It's okay, Chlo. I…I would've done the same, if I weren't such a chicken."
"You're not a chicken. You backed me up when I freaked out." Chloe said warmly and brushed a lose streak out of Max's face. "That's worth more than raging against some assholes."
Max embraced Chloe again, the warm feeling if love rushed through her body and warmed her from the inside. Chloe always gave her confidence and showed her that there's more behind her cozy comfort-zone.
"Say, Maxi, do you have a pen?" the blonde suddenly asked.
The smaller girl backed away and gazed at her with furrowed eyebrows? "Why?"
A mischievous grin formed on Chloe's face. "Well, I wanna leave a message."
"Hmm…I just have an old red marker, which I always use as a scale. It should still work, though." Max said as she rummaged through her bag and brought forth a red permanent-marker.
Chloe picked it from her hand. "That should do the trick." With a whistle she walked over to the white board, standing in front of the gallery, and started to draw something on it. "Keep watch, 'kay?"
This time, Max's hands began to shake out of nervousness. Her head turned like the lamp of a lighthouse. She wanted to run away, but somehow the thrill kept her there. She literally enjoyed it to be Chloe's partner in crime. Luckily, no one cared about what Chloe was doing.
"Now that is what I call art!" she cheered with a smile, stepped back and looked at her masterpiece. It showed Mrs. Chase with a Hitler-beard and Hitler-hair-cut. In a speech bubble it said: 'Art is only for the privileged! -Mrs. Chase'
Max bobbed her head to one side as she took a look at the tagged white board. "I think you got her rather well. Told you, you're an artist!"
Both looked at each other and started to giggle, which turned into loud laughter as both began to run away.
It was almost dark as Chloe and Max reached the Caulfield's house. Both girls still giggled and laughed about the great adventures they both had experienced today.
Max began to rummage through her bag to take out her keys. "Shit!" she suddenly muttered, her hand still dug deep in her camera bag.
"What is it, Maxi? Have you lost your keys?" Chloe asked with some concern, rubbing her hands because of the further decreasing temperatures.
"N-no…at least I hope not. Ugh, dammit! The fabric between the compartments ripped, so my keys could be anywhere in there. Here, hold this!"
Completely annoyed by the holdup, the brunette girl pulled out everything that was in her way on her quest to find the infamous lost keys, and pressed it in Chloe's hands. Her instant-cam, the diary, note book, today's instant-pictures and other stuff. "Isn't it easier to use the door bell and continue your search inside? 'Cause, I don't know about you, but my ass is already frozen off and other important parts will follow soon." Chloe mentioned, yearning for the warmth inside of the house and a hot shower.
"Aaa-ha…gottcha!" Max triumphed, holding the keys in the air with a tingling sound and a big victorious grin on her face.
"Ma-ax…still freezing…ass is almost lost…need warmth!"
"Y-yeah…sorry!"
Max stuffed the items Chloe still held in her hands back in her bag in a hurry and opened the door.
"Finally!" the blonde sighed and rushed past her girlfriend.
After she'd closed the door, Max and Chloe took off their winter garments and boots. They headed straight into the kitchen, expecting Vanessa to still prepare Christmas dinner, but to their surprise, there was no cooking going on and the table was already set.
"Mom?" the brunette called out, but received no answer.
"Hey, your mom left a note!"
Max took the piece of paper out of Chloe's hand and read it.
Dear Maxine and Chloe,
I need to get some more stuff from the grocery store. Dinner is already prepared and ready. Hope you two had a nice stroll through Seattle. I'll be back soon.
Kisses for Maxine and a hug for Chloe.
Vanessa
P.S. Don't spoil your appetite with sweets!
"Huh…" was everything Max brought forth.
"Well, looks like we got some spare time…" Chloe said with a shrug. Then she leaned closer to Max and spoke softly into her ear. "…and like we got the house all to ourselves. How about we go upstairs and get a bit mushy?"
Heat crawled up Max's face immediately, reddening her cheeks. She'd love to do it. She literally yearned for it. But as she remembered the dream and the picture, Max dropped her gaze and let out a sigh of frustration. "Chloe…I want to. I really do, but…"
"Yeah, I know. You don't want your mom to find out."
Now Chloe was the one who exhaled deeply, walked up and down the living room, her hands brushing through her strawberry-blonde hair. Max could see that it frustrated her, too. That this wasn't the holidays she'd expected. And this made Max sad. Her eyes were already welling up as she decided to walk over to her so much wanted girlfriend and embraced her into a very tight hug, hoping it would sooth Chloe enough. "I'm so sorry!" she said with a trembling voice.
Chloe laid her head on Max's shoulder and inhaled her scent, before she answered calmly. "I know and…it's just…I love you so much and…"
Max backed away, two pairs of watery blue eyes gazing at each other. "I love you, too, Chlo!" Overwhelmed by a strong wave of love, Max ignored everything around them, leaned in and placed a small kiss on her girlfriend's soft lips.
A big smile of joy formed on Chloe's lips. "Damn, Caulfield, you're such a tease!"
Max broke eye contact and looked at her feet. "M-maybe…uhm…w-wanna go upstairs and look at the pictures I took today?"
"Sounds awesome!" Chloe replied, took Max's hand and walked with her into the smaller girl's room.
"Wow, this one looks amazing, too! Can I get a copy of this one?"
"Sure thing!" said Max as she made another note on a sheet that was already filled with a lot of numbers. "I'll order them online and give them your address for delivery."
"Awesome! But…uh…what about…y'know…money?"
Already awaited this question, especially because Joyce still fought with the insurance company about the money, Max gave Chloe a warm smile. "Don't worry about it. It'll be my Christmas present for you."
"You're the best!" Chloe cheered in joy and wrapped her arms around her girlfriend's neck, which made the brunette girl giggle.
"You're welcome!"
Both girls quickly broke the hug as the front door got slammed shut loudly. "MAXINE CAULFIELD! GET YOUR BEHIND DOWN HERE, RIGHT NOW!" Vanessa yelled from downstairs.
Max's gaze dropped. "Uh-oh."
"Trouble?"
"Seems that way." the small girl sighed as she stood up from her chair and made her way to the door.
"But why?"
"I don't know. Guess there's only one way to find out." Max opened the door, but glimpsed one last time over her shoulder. "Stay here, I'll be back in a bit…hopefully with my head still attached."
Chloe just gave her a nod, glaring at Max with worry, before the door closed.
As Max came into the kitchen - the traditional Caulfield get-your-rage-room - her mom already stood there, her back facing the brunette girl, hands on the counter.
The young girl's hands were already clammy and her small heart hammered in her chest like crazy. Max knew that a shitstorm was heading her way and was about to hit her with full force. But still, she tried to play it cool.
"Wh-what's up, mom?" she asked with a low voice.
"Sit!" her mother ordered with a sharp tone, pointing at the stool right beside her.
'Shit! Mom really seems do be angry at me. But why? Last time she behaved that strange, I wrecked her brand-new iPad and tried to hide it by tossing it in the trash can. I need to find out what's going on!'
"Mom, what's…"
"I said…sit…down!" Vanessa interrupted her daughter, her tone making clear that this wasn't negotiable.
Like a little doe, trying to sneak past a big, hungry predator, Max approached the stool with slow and cautious movements and sat down. The nervousness was almost killing her and made it hard to bring out her next words.
"M-mom, wh-what's wrong?"
Vanessa's first answer was a scoff and as her mom suddenly turned around and faced her with an angry glare, she threw a picture in front of her. "This is wrong, Maxine!" her mother yelled, making Max almost fall from the stool.
Max glimpsed at the instant-photo in front of her and gasped in shock, covering her mouth with her hand. It was the shot that showed her and Chloe kissing under the mistletoe.
'Oh no! This shot…this is how my mom found out about us. But…how did she get it?'
"Where…?" the girl began with a whisper, but couldn't even finish her question.
"…did I find it? Right on our doorstep."
'No, no! It must've fallen out of my journal as I rummaged through my bag and gave Chloe my stuff. And I idiot didn't even notice…it's my fault!'
Tears were forming in the brunette girl's eyes as she shifted her gaze to her mom again, trying to calm her down, before her Vision's about to come true.
"Mom, I-I can explain."
"Yes, Maxine, I want an explanation, right now!" Vanessa spoke loudly at her daughter.
'Okay, this is it. I have to do this right, so that Chloe doesn't get thrown out! But I don't think that lying might be the best option here.'
Closing her eyes for a short moment, Max gathered all her courage to tell her mother the truth and to make a stand against her. "Mom, I and Chloe…we're in love. She's my…girlfriend."
"I can't believe it." Max's mom huffed, shook her head and began to walk up and down.
First tears were flowing down her cheeks, while her lips began to tremble. "Mom, please! I love her."
"ARE YOU FUCKING KIDDING ME?!"
This sudden and surprising outburst of her mother destroyed every bit of build up courage in a blink of an eye. A first sob escaped the young girl's mouth.
Vanessa darted towards her daughter. "This here…" she hissed with gritted teeth and grabbed the photo from the counter, holding it in front of her. "…is over, right now!"
Completely shocked, Max had to watch with eyes wide open how her mother ripped the picture into pieces and threw them on the floor. Her crying intensified.
"I don't know how you're doing it or what you're gonna tell her, but I want this…this slut out of my house, this instant!"
"No!" Max cried out in desperation. She wanted to speak up; wanted to tell her mother that this was a fatal mistake; that she should go to hell. But instead, fear and panic took a grasp on her tiny heart. Her sobs became even stronger as she began to loose all hope.
"Stop bawling like a baby and get her out of the house!" Vanessa shouted without any mercy.
"She doesn't need to." chimed Chloe's voice from behind.
Max turned around and gasped. Chloe stood right in the doorframe, her cheeks were wet from tears and her hands clenched into fists. Her expression was a mixture of pain and anger.
"I'm leaving, just…just stop being so…so mean to Maxi. She doesn't deserve this. It's…" Chloe closed her eyes, fighting down the need to freak out and making things worse, like she'd done it at Thanksgiving. "It's been my fault. I talked her into this and…and…" She sighed, clearly not able to apologize for something she hadn't done wrong. "I'm gone, okay! Just leave her alone!"
"Chloe…" Max whispered and shook her head. She couldn't believe what she just heard. Chloe was taking all the blame to protect her; she literally sacrificed herself for her. For Max, it was the ultimate proof of Chloe's deep feelings for her.
"Well, that's something I learned to admire about you, Chloe. You know when to accept inevitable things." Vanessa said dryly.
This statement let Chloe bring forth a mixed sound of a scoff and a sob. "Just fuck off, Vanessa!" the blonde replied, turned around and went away.
"Chloe!" Max called out, stood up and wanted to follow her hurt girlfriend. She wanted to stop Chloe and talk to her, before she'd be leaving the house and therefore walking into her death.
The young girl hadn't even taken a step towards the door as her mother stopped her by taking the girl's shoulder into a tight grip. "Not so fast, Maxine! We still have a lot of talking to do!"
Then something happened. Something that Max only experienced in her Vision before. Her sadness and desperation turned into burning hate and anger. She grabbed the brunette woman's hand and tossed it from her shoulder, turned around and gazed at her with furious eyes.
"Don't touch me ever again!" she yelled. "Are you finally happy?"
Vanessa, clearly surprised by her daughter's unusual behavior, backed away. "M-Maxine…"
"Are you happy that you're ruining my life, huh? Does it make you feel good to crush my heart?"
"I just want to protect you." Vanessa defended herself.
"Protect me from what? Love? From the only person that makes me happy, and shows me how to enjoy life?"
"Your dad and I…"
"Yes, besides Chloe, dad is the only one who understands me. But you…" Tears build up in Max's eyes as she spoke out her next words. She knew that they'd hurt her mother, but in this situation she didn't care. She was just disappointed in Vanessa and the next step was a hard, but in her eyes, necessary one. "You always treated my like a puppy. Yes, you loved me, but you never accepted that I have a mind of my own. You always tried to control me; tried to turn me into a younger version of yourself. But that's not me and you never understood it. During Thanksgiving, I thought you'd changed as you finally accepted Chloe as my friend, but now I see that I was wrong. You'll never change and…" A sob escaped her mouth. "I don't see you as my mom anymore, because you just hurt Chloe and especially me so bad. No mother should do something like that!"
With watery eyes, Vanessa tried to touch her daughter, who, however, backed away. "Maxine…"
Max took another step back, increasing the physical and mental distance even more. "You never cared about my feelings and I hate you for what you've done! I love Chloe and there's nothing you can do to break us apart!"
"I-I'm so sorry…" Vanessa pleaded with a shaking voice.
"I don't care!" was Max's plain answer as she turned around, only to pause in her tracks for one last statement. "Just go to hell, Vanessa!"
This was the first time Max had called her mother by her first name. But it didn't bother her. Like in her Vision, there were no feelings left for her mom. Nevertheless, the young girl felt a sting in her heart as she left a desperately crying Vanessa behind. She walked up the stairs to her room in slow-motion. So many feelings were swirling around in her head, almost driving her insane. She still could hear the loud sobs of her mother, but somehow, none of this bothered her.
As she arrived at her room door, it got opened and in front of the young girl stood Chloe, backpack on her back, ready to leave. Max put her hand on her girlfriend's chest, shoved her back inside and closed the door.
"Max, I don't wanna stay here. I already got you in enough trouble and…Maxi?"
Max leaned against the door, her arms embracing her body and her gaze fixed at the floor. "I-I don't wanna ask you to stay, I…just wanna ask you, if you could wait for me until I've packed my stuff."
"What?!" Chloe gasped. "Max, are you sure that…"
The young girl raised her gaze and looked into her girlfriend's eyes with determination, telling her mentally that there was nothing to discus about. "Chloe, I don't wanna live with a person under one roof that tries to tell me who I should love and who not. Christmas is ruined anyway and I'd rather spend it with you than with my fucking bitch of a mother! Or are you the next one who wants to break my heart and dictate me around?"
It was a seldom event when Chloe Price lacked some words, but this was one of them. Instead of answering, she closed in, wrapped her arms around Max's neck and pressed her skinny body as close as possible.
"Never!" the blonde girl whispered. With a sob of joy, she broke the hug and gave Max a long kiss.
Max knew that leaving the house could get them both killed. But there was also a chance that her presence could change everything. She didn't know and, at this point, she didn't care. Her only wish was to be together with Chloe, in life or death.
One last look back, one shed tear. That's all Max could do after she and Chloe had left the house. Sneaking out wasn't that hard, since her dad wasn't home yet and Vanessa still busy crying.
Chloe's hand touched the brunette girl's shoulder softly. "Maxi?"
The smaller girl turned around, sniffed, wiped her nose with the back of her hand and exhaled deeply, her breath forming a white cloud in the cold winter air. "I'm fine. Let's go!"
"I'm sorry!" Chloe suddenly spoke, her gaze fixed on the way ahead of them.
"What for? You didn't screw up. It was my entire fault that Vanessa found this picture, and she was the one who freaked out in the first place." Max sighed, and stopped Chloe by grabbing the sleeve of her jacket. "Chloe, what happened today would've happened eventually. As soon as we're on the train to Portland, I'm gonna call my dad and talk things through. And we…we need to talk, too."
"About what?"
"Chloe, to tell you everything now would take too long. Just know this: I knew that this would happen and that, as long as we're in Seattle, we're in danger." Chloe was about to reply something, but was stopped immediately by Max's finger on her mouth. "I know, lots of questions, but we need to keep going in order to catch the last train to Portland. The bus station is right on the other side of the park. I think it's the fastest and safest way to walk through it."
"Lead the way, oh my mysterious Max!" Chloe answered with a shrug and a smile, reaching Max her hand, who took it and both girls entwined their fingers as they kept on walking.
Despite feeling Chloe's closeness the whole time, Max felt extremely tense. Her whole body was shaking, but not because of the coldness. The young girl scanned every inch of the way in front of her, fearing that something might happen to Chloe.
Somehow, the blonde must've sensed her girlfriend's unrest. But instead of talking to her, she just wrapped her arm around Max's shoulder and held her even closer.
"Good evening, ladies!" chimed a male voice from the shadow of a big tree, startling both girls.
Out of pure instinct, Chloe shoved Max behind her, as a skeevy person, dressed in dark clothes, emerged from the shadows, his face partially covered by a hood.
"Now where are two lovely girls like you two are going at this time of night on Christmas Eve? Shouldn't you two be at home, celebrating with you folks?" the unknown man said with a wide grin.
"That's none of your business, dude. Merry Christmas and good bye." Chloe answered him, grabbed Max's hand and tried to walk past, only to get stopped again as the man blocked their way once more.
"Whoa, missy! What is it with this attitude? I just wanna chat a bit, that's all."
"And we need to catch a bus, so if you'll excuse us now?"
With another try, the two girls tried to continue their way, but again, they were stopped.
The seedy man's grin turned an eerie forced smile. "Okay, you nice girls need to be on your way and that's fine, BUT since it's Christmas Eve, how about you do some Charity for a poor fella like me?"
"Charity? Wh-what do you mean?" the blonde girl asked, cautiously taking a step back.
"Oh, that's simple. You just give me all your valuables and then we'll all be on our ways again."
'Oh no! The robbery…that's…this can't be! I changed everything by being here. Why is this happening anyway?' Max thought in shock. She could feel through Chloe's shaking hand that she was at least as scared as her girlfriend.
But Chloe tried to stay strong; tried to be the strong protector for Max she'd always been for all those years they've known each other. Therefore, she tried to mask her fear with boldness. "And where's the Charity for us in your fucked-up plan, asshole?" she scoffed and took another step back.
This time, the skeevy guy snickered evilly, reached inside the pocket of his black jacket and brought forth a switchblade, which unfolded with a loud click. "How about I'll let you two bitches live to see another day? Charity enough for you? And don't even think of running away! Now empty your fucking pockets and packs!" he hissed.
Max gasped and tightened her hold on Chloe's hand, afraid that everything she foresaw might become true.
"Okay, we got it. Listen, I've got 150 bucks in my wallet. Take it and just leave us alone, 'kay?" Chloe tried to negotiate, her voice dripping with nervousness.
But the robber didn't seem to be impressed. "Nice to know, but were not on a fucking bazar here. Now put all your stuff on the ground or I'll cut you open and take what I want!"
"Chloe…" Max whimpered out of fear, making the older girl look at her. "L-let us do wh-what he wants…I'm so scared…" she said and added in her thoughts. 'About you!'
Chloe gazed at Max for some moments and then nodded. Max saw how she had to fight with her need to freak out and the acceptance of her defeat. Nevertheless, she took off her backpack and began to empty everything. Max followed stat.
Everything of value landed on one pile; wallets, phones, Max's iPod and Laptop, Chloe's MP3-Player and Max's digital-cam. On another pile were their clothes and other stuff that wasn't of any value. It hurt Max to lose her new Laptop and camera, but Chloe's life was priceless, and therefor worth the sacrifice.
The guy crouched in front of the goods and let out a whistle. "Looks like its Christmas for me after all. Never thought that I'd hit the jackpot today." he said with a greedy grin, took Max's empty backpack and began to put the valuables in it. "Wait! What's that?" the mugger complained and held up Chloe's blue, decorated phone.
"How about a phone, dipshit?" Chloe shot back, arms crossed and clearly pissed-off.
"You really have some attitude problems, girl!" he chuckled, ignoring the insult. "But this shit is worthless." With these words he threw the custom-styled phone against the next tree.
"HEY!" Chloe yelled and made a step towards the armed man. Only Max's fast grip on her jacket held her back.
The guy stood up, his knife up and ready. "Uh-uh-uh! Don't do this again, bitch. I may be amused by your attitude, but if you come any closer I'll kill you!" He shifted his gaze to Max and grinned again. "At least your little friend seems to have some brain, but…wait!" The grin vanished as he pointed with the tip of his knife at Max's camera-bag. "What is this? Haven't I told you to empty everything?" he yelled in anger. "Gimme the fucking bag, bitch!"
This time, Chloe stepped between the mugger and her girlfriend, her hands raised to calm down the situation. "Listen, dude, this is just her cam bag, there's nothing of value…"
Before both girls knew what was happening, the skeevy guy had grabbed Chloe by her collar and pressed her against the big tree with full force, making the young girl groan in pain.
His face was right in front of hers, and the shining blade of the knife at her throat. "Do I look like I give a fuck about your opinion, HUH?"
Completely stunned, Max watched the whole situation with horror. She saw the fear in Chloe's blue eyes; how a tear rolled down her cheek and her lips were trembling. Max knew that her beloved Chloe's life was in grave danger; that she needed to do something.
'Be a hero for once, Max! You can safe her!'
The small girl clenched her hands into fists and gathered every bit of courage by remembering all those feelings from her dream. She scanned the situation and realized that the skeevy man wasn't paying her any attention. Reminding her learned self-protection skills, Max darted forward, grabbed the man's hand with the knife, pulled it away from Chloe's throat and tried to rip it from the robber's grasp.
She doesn't know how it happened; if it was her fear, the lack of experience or the possibility that her opponent had some experience himself; but somehow the armed hand slipped away. She tried to grab it again as she suddenly felt a hot, stinging pain in her chest that made her gasp.
The young girls blue doe-eyes met with the man's brown wide open ones. She stumbled a few steps back, holding the spot where the strong pain pulsed through her entire body.
"WHY THE FUCK DID YOU DO THAT?" the man shouted in her face, but Max didn't care. She shifted her gaze to Chloe; her beloved Chloe; who still stood at the tree, staring at her.
"Max…" Chloe whispered with a shivering voice.
Max tried to answer her, but wasn't able to form words. Instead she attempted to give her a smile, but failed again. From one moment to another, the world turned upside down.
The next time she was able to focus her sight again, her gaze was fixed on the night sky. She looked at the wandering clouds; at the stars that could be seen in the gaps between them. She saw how little, glittering snowflakes; the first snowflakes of this winter; sailed through the air and she wished to have a camera right now to capture this peaceful moment of silence, which was broken by Chloe's eerie scream.
"YOU FUCKING ASSHOLE!"
Max didn't know what was going on, but she heard how the man groaned and cried, accompanied by a barrage of thuds. "Argh! Get off of me, you crazy bitch!"
Then there was silence again and fear put its claws around Max's tiny heart again, until it was replaced by relief as Chloe's face appeared in her view. Tears run from her eyes and her breathing is near to hyperventilation. Max could see the panic and shock in her watery eyes. "Max! Oh shitshitshit! Okay, chill…I got this! First Aid! I-I need to remember my first aid class. That's all. No panic! Okay! I-I need to put something under your head and keep you warm."
The blonde took off her thick jacket and laid it onto Max's legs. Then she went out of the injured girl's view, just to come back a few moments later with a bunch of their clothes. She took one of her sweaters and put it under Max's head as a cushion.
"Okay, next I need to treat your wound. Sorry, Maxi, but I have to open your jacket."
While Chloe opened Max's jacket, the brunette noticed a red stain on her girlfriend's right arm. "Ch-Chloe…your arm…" she managed to say with a weak voice.
"That's just a scratch. Nothing to worry 'bout." Chloe replied, still focused on her task. "Take your hand off the wound, Max!"
Just now as Chloe touched her hand, Max felt how cold her own really was.
"Shit!" the blonde hissed, shifting Max's attention back to her. "Okay, Maximus, I have to put some pressure on it…this might hurt, got it?"
Max answered her with a slight nod, but as soon as Chloe put some pressure on the wound, she groaned in pain as it throbbed through her entire body.
"It's okay…you…you did it! You did it! Sssh!" Seeing Max in such pain let some tears flowing down her cheeks, which she wiped away with the back of her hand. "Okay Maxi, I-I need to call some help. Here…" she took Max's small hand and put it onto a ball of warm and wet fabric. "Put some pressure on it, 'kay?"
Feeling Chloe's warmth again, let Max realize how the coldness crawled through her limbs and was about to take over her entire body. "Ch-Chloe…I'm s-so cold."
"I-I know, just…just wait a sec!"
For a short moment, Chloe vanished from Max's sight. A slight drowsiness engulfed her mind and, although she knew she shouldn't close her eyes, Max wanted to do it, only Chloe's yelling prevented her from doing so.
"FUCK!" Chloe screamed and came back into her girlfriend's gaze. This time she looked even more worried then before. "Okay, listen Maxi…this asshole wrecked my phone and took yours. I…" Her face grimaced for a moment, before she inhaled deeply to hold her composure. "I need to get some help, okay? Just…just hold on, Maxi…I'll be right back!"
As the blonde was about to stand up, Max managed to take a weak hold of her hand, making her stay in place. "Chlo, p-please don't leave me. I-I don't wanna be alone."
A sob of desperation escaped the blonde girl's mouth. "I won't leave you, Maxi!" she whispered, holding Max's hand tightly.
The coldness had now taken over her entire body. She had no feeling in her limbs. Breathing became hard and shallow with every passing second. The pain in her chest was almost gone. Another wave of drowsiness engulfed her. "Chloe…"
"I-I'm here, Maximus." whispered Chloe with a shivering voice, her face now entirely wet from tears.
"I'm so tired, Chlo. I-I wanna sleep."
"Nonononono! Don't fall asleep, sleepyhead! Stay with me, okay?" she said panicky, shaking Max's body softly.
Max wanted to listen to her girlfriend; wanted to stay awake; but eventually exhaustion, coldness and drowsiness took over merciless and were closing her eyes with full force.
"Max? Stay with me! C'mon, wake up! Max? Max!"
Max heard the whisper of the wind and it faded. She felt Chloe's warmth and it faded. The light of a streetlamp shone weakly through her eyelids and it faded into darkness. She heard Chloe's desperate voice and, eventually, it faded, too. Everything that remained was silence and darkness, until it was replaced by a bright, white light.