Chapter Five

Max's POV

After Tori's parents left, her and I went back into the bedroom to try and get some sleep. I still had work in the morning, even though Tori tried to insist that I shouldn't go. Just because memories of Chloe and her dying over and over again were becoming much louder and clearer than they'd been that morning, doesn't mean that I should shut down because of them. As much as I wanted to, I couldn't let myself sink back into what I had been before. I had already promised not to let my powers rule my life, I wouldn't let what they made me do control me either.

As I laid in bed with Tori, her arms wrapped around me as we watched an anime that she'd been obsessing over, I let sleep come over me. I had to wake up early for work the next day, anyway, might as well get what sleep I could.

But whatever hope I'd had that I'd sleep peacefully faded as the image of the junkyard came into view. I was standing inside of the little room Chloe and Rachel had taken over. The place was exactly the same, but something felt off about it. But, then again, something always felt off when I was dreaming, like they weren't those sweet, simple echos of reality. Instead, they became rough and sour and part of me wished that I would never dream again, just so that I could stop seeing people I cared about being killed and hurt over and over again.

"Hey there, Super Max." Chloe's voice rang out around me, making me whirl around to see her sitting on that ratty old couch, a cigarette held lazily between her fingers. She was looking me up and down quizzically, sitting up and resting her elbows on her knees and she leaned forward. "You look like shit, man." I couldn't help chuckling at that, giving her a shrug.

"Thanks, good to see you too," I replied, but I knew that it wasn't really her. It was just what my mind wished her to be. Alive.

She got to her feet, walking towards me and then taking a few steps around me before looking me right in the eyes as she stood in front of me.

"Icky Vicky treating you well?" She asked, taking a drag from her cigarette. I hesitated, wondering if I should let my mind keep going with this. It was strange, but it felt nice to talk to her again. Or, an image my mind had created of her, I guess. I smiled a little, nodding.

"Yeah, she's the best," I replied, unsure of what this was about. Was it just my mind trying to help me process what had happened?

"So, they think it was you, don't they?" Chloe asked, catching me a little off guard.

"How did you know that?" I asked, chiding myself as I spoke. She was in my head, of course she knew. This wasn't the real Chloe. She's not real. Chloe chuckled and shrugged, getting to her feet and letting her cigarette fall to the ground without stomping it out.

"I know more than I should nowadays, I guess," she said as she put her hands in her pockets and took a few steps towards me. "I just wanted to tell you that you don't have to worry about all that stuff with that Nathan guy or his parents. It's all gonna be alright, I think. I mean, I can't really tell the future or whatever, but being dead makes time a little weird."

"You say that like I'm not dreaming," I replied with a small laugh, feeling tears gathering in my eyes. I wished that I wasn't dreaming. Chloe just smirked, tilting her head a little.

"Just 'cause you're dreaming doesn't mean I'm not here," she said softly, taking her right hand from her pocket and reaching out to hold my left hand. When her skin met mine the warmth made me jump away, staring at my hand with wide eyes. "See? Freaky shit, right?" I looked up at her, trying to process what had just happened.

"Chloe, what the hell -"

But she interrupted me before I could finish, putting her hands on my shoulders and staring into my eyes.

"It's time to wake up, Max," she said, but her voice sounded almost like she was far away or under water. "Tell Vic I said hi, ok?" And then everything went dark, but I could still feel my heart thudding in my chest as I slept.

"Max." Tori's voice gently broke through my covering of sleep, causing my eyes to clench shut. I groaned a little, knowing somehow that it was way too early to be awake. But then I felt the warmth of Tori's lips against mine, and something in me remembered what being awake with her around was like. I couldn't help smiling a little as I opened my eyes, seeing the most beautiful woman in the world just above me, her short blond hair a bit disheveled from sleep and her bright green eyes filled with what seemed to a mixture of concern and adoration.

"Why are we awake?" I managed to croak out, my voice sounding far too deep and harsh, even to my own ears.

"Because you have work and I'm meeting your lawyer today," she whispered, leaning down and kissing my forehead. "But I wanted to make sure that you had a good breakfast before you left for work, so I made eggs and bacon and even some tater tots." I chuckled a little, watching her gentle seriousness fade into a smile. "What's so funny?"

"Nothing," I replied, taking in a deep breath and rubbing my eyes. "I was just convinced that you were gonna be my breakfast, but eggs is good too." Tori rolled her eyes, sitting up on top of me with a scoff.

"Barely awake and you're already insufferable," she said, about to climb off of me. But I sat up, wrapping my arms around her waist to keep her where she was before she could move away. The sun hadn't even risen yet and when I turned my head to look at the digital clock, I let out a groan, burying my face in the crook of her neck.

"Why did you wake me up at five?" I whined, pushing down memories of my dream as they suddenly flashed back into my mind. I wouldn't let a dream ruin this moment. This was the first morning Tori and I had in our new home, after all. Couldn't let a made up Chloe and some weird lucid dreaming get in the way of that.

"Because your shift starts at seven and you know that you'd have to be up this early to be on time," she retorted, stroking my hair as she kissed the top of my head. "Now let me go so you can start getting ready." I shook my head, groaning a no into her soft skin.

"You're warm and I'm tired," I said, sounding a bit childish. But, can you blame me? If you woke up to a kiss from a beautiful girl on a cold morning after finding out that you were a suspect in a murder trial, you'd understand.

"If you get up and go to work then we can have all the girlfriend bonding time you want when you get back," she said softly, the hint of smile entering her voice. The sound made me smile right along with her. I looked up at her, not loosening my grip around her waist.

"When you say bonding, you mean what I think you mean, right?" I tried to make my voice as raspy as I could in that moment, my grin growing when I saw a blush crawl onto Tori's cheeks. But there was a glint in her eyes that made my throat go dry.

"Does my sexy little Max want to try more fun things?" She asked, leaning down to kiss me again, but it was a very different kiss than the one I'd woken up to. When she pulled away, it took me a moment to come back to earth, as much as I hated it.

"You - I… I mean," I sputtered, getting a laugh from the grinning woman sitting on my lap. My grip on her must've loosened because she got up and away from me way too easily.

"You know I love when you talk random gibberish to me, dear, but you have to go to work and I have to get ready to meet your lawyer," she said, walking over and opening the door to the bathroom. As soon as she did, Bongo raced out, running to the bed and jumping on top of it. He hopped over to me, meowing adorably as he rubbed his soft head against my hand. I smiled a little, petting him between his ears.

"Mommy is mean, she keeps making me all excited and then leaving me to fend for myself," I said in a baby voice. The words even made me blush a little, but the embarrassed look on Tori's face when I looked up at her was priceless. Why was it so embarrassing to say that to an animal that couldn't even understand what I was saying? Maybe it was because he was a kitten. Poor little guy didn't need to hear that kind of stuff.

"Shut up and get ready for work, Maxine," Tori said, her voice cracking just a little as she walked into the bathroom to get ready. I chuckled, picking Bongo up and setting him to the side before I threw the covers off of myself and climbed out of bed. I walked to the dresser and grabbed a pair of black jeans, my uniform shirt that they'd given me the day before, and a pair of socks to wear with my black converse. I set it all out on the bed, realizing that I probably needed a shower. I groaned, walking over to the bathroom and closing the door when I walked in. Tori was brushing her teeth, looking at me skeptically.

"What are you doing?" She asked as I turned on the shower and started taking off my t shirt. I looked over at her, smiling a little before taking my shirt off and throwing it into the hamper next to the door.

"Can't go to work all stinky," I replied, going to take off my shorts and underwear, throwing them in the hamper as well. They weren't super dirty, but I didn't want to leave them on the floor. "Why? You opposed to seeing me in my birthday suit so early in the morning?" Tori just rolled her eyes, but she was blushing a little. I felt surprisingly bold in that moment. Maybe waking up early made me a bit braver because of how sleep deprived I felt.

"Whatever, Caulfield," she mutter around a mouthful of toothpaste. I smiled, kissing her cheek before stepping into the shower. I showered as fast as I could, knowing that it would be hella bad luck to get to be late on my first day. I wasn't always a very punctual person, but this job was important, so I needed to be on time. I got out and dried off, not really surprised to see Tori still standing in front of the mirror to apply her make up. When I was done drying off, I wrapped the towel around myself and went to wrap my arms around Tori from behind, resting my chin on her shoulder. She looked so concentrated, needing to get every detail just right so that she looked almost impossibly perfect for whoever got to see her that day.

"You're so pretty," I said dreamily, smiling as I watched her face in the mirror. She smiled even after trying to hide it, reaching to grab a tube of lipstick off of the counter.

"You really want to be late for work, don't you?" She asked, uncapping the lipstick and applying it to her lips. I shrugged, relaxing against her as I let myself be mesmerized by the way her lips pursed together, spreading the light pink lipstick over her perfect lips.

"Can't a girl be happy to spend a morning with her beautiful girlfriend?" I asked, kissing her shoulder.

"Stop trying to flatter me and go get dressed," she said, but her voice wasn't as firm as I'd expected it to be. "You can shower me in compliments as soon as you get home." She turned around and smiled at me, kissing me softly before pulling away and walking past me. I hadn't noticed that she'd gotten dressed while I was in the shower. Now, instead of her t shirt and panties, she wore a black skirt that went down to her mid thigh and a silver blouse with the top button undone to show off a bit of skin. I watched her walk away from me, her hips swaying a little. I knew that she was doing it because I was watching her, but that didn't mean I was gonna stop looking. How could everything she wore possibly make her ass look so good all the time? Then again, her ass was just nice as is, maybe the clothes didn't even do anything.

"Maxine." Her firm tone snapped me back into reality and I shook my head, meeting her eyes. "Were you even listening?" Oh shit.

"I… I'm sorry, I spaced out," I replied sheepishly, smiling a little. She just rolled her eyes for the millionth time that morning, but she was smirking a bit.

"Just get ready, for heaven's sake," she said, grabbing a coat off the bed and walking out of our bedroom. I got dressed quickly, waiting to brush my teeth and stuff until after breakfast. After I'd finished getting ready, I refilled Bongo's food and water bowl and put him back in the bathroom, much to his dismay. Then I grabbed my messenger bag that had my stuff in it, including my camera, and followed Tori out to her car.

The air was surprisingly cold for a summer morning and Tori was definitely feeling the effects. She blew air into her cupped hands then rubbed her arms as her shoulders tensed and bunched up until they were practically blocking her ears from the cool breeze. I couldn't help giggling a little as we hopped into her car and she immediately turned on the heater and seat warmers. When the warm air hit whatever parts of her skin had been exposed to the cold, she sighed happily, sinking into the warming leather seat.

"Why do we always live places where it's cold?" She asked, putting the car in reverse and pulling out of the apartment complex. I smiled, shrugging as I sat back in the passenger seat, enjoying the warmth of it. Even though I liked when it was cold, it was too early to enjoy it. Especially when my hair was still wet from my shower.

"Better than living in Arizona or Texas," I replied, looking out the window to watch the sleeping world. Except, not everyone was sleeping. We passed more cars than I would've expected, probably people going to work. I even saw a few joggers with their little reflective outfits to make sure we could see them since it was still dark out. The sun was starting to rise, but its light hadn't made it past the mountains on the horizon.

"Ok, better question then: why do all the people who have money and class live in places where it's cold?" She asked, making me laugh a little. She started laughing along with me and I was honestly surprised that we could be so civil so early in the morning.

"You realize that you just called me someone who has money and class, right?" I joked, watching her scoff in amusement.

"Only because my class has rubbed off on you and I'm your girlfriend so I get to buy you things," she replied, using that kind of babyish sounding voice she liked to use when she teased me or decided that she wanted to make sure I knew how cute she thought I was.

"You spoil me," I joked, kissing her cheek. "Who would've guessed that I'd be dating the prettiest girl in all of the west coast, let alone that she actually wanted to buy me things or liked me." We pulled up to the school that my first shift was at and Tori put the car in park, leaning over the center console to kiss me softly.

"I don't like you," she said, smirking a little and pulling me in for another kiss by the collar of my uniform shirt. It was more passionate this time, waking me up while also filling my entire body with so much warmth that I was pretty sure I'd never need to use a heater again. "I love you," she said as she pulled away, letting go of my collar and nodding to the passenger side door. "Now get out of here so that you can come home. Try not to worry about what my parents said yesterday, ok?" I opened my mouth to say something, but she held up her finger in front of my face to stop me, staring into my eyes. "I'm going to take care of it, alright? So don't even bother stressing. When you get home, everything will be right as rain and we'll be able to suffer through the beginnings of adulthood in peace." I smiled despite myself, kissing her cheek.

"I love you so much," I said, moving to get out of the car. "Be safe and don't scare the lawyer too shitless." She chuckled, but there was a mischievous glint in her eyes that I couldn't have missed even if I tried.

"I'll do my best to behave," she said as I got out of the car. I rolled my eyes, smiling as I closed the door and watched Tori drive away. As she turned a corner, I let out a sigh, wondering how I'd gotten so luck but also so unlucky at the same time. I thought the things that had happened at Blackwell were finally behind me, but then Nathan and the Prescott family were suddenly back in my life, hammering away at the fragility of my mental state in that moment.

But then I thought about Tori and my new job and how, after the trial was over, things would be just fine. Plus, I didn't have much time to worry because I heard Kate's voice from behind me, making me jump a little. She giggled and I laughed, rubbing the back of my neck.

"Oh, hey, Kate," I greeted her, loving the fact that she looked so happy and enthusiastic despite having woken up so early in the morning. "How are you this morning?"

"I'm good," Kate replied, hugging herself a little and rubbing her arms to keep warm. "It's a bit chilly, though."

"Yeah, you should've seen the look on Tori's face when we left the apartment this morning," I said, again wishing that I didn't have to wait until after work to see her. Kate smiled, laughing a little.

"Speaking of Victoria, how are things living with her and all?" She asked, her smile remaining but a slightly more serious tone entering her voice. I'd be concerned for my friend too if she was living with someone who'd bullied her and many others back at Blackwell, but Tori was sort of different now. Not completely, she was still kind of snappy sometimes and stubborn as hell, but she was willing to bring her walls down more now and show me parts of herself most people never saw. That's part of what made Tori so strange and often made people judge at first glance, I guess. She had so many masks on at a time that it was hard to tell when she was being herself. I was one of the lucky few who actually got to see Tori with her guard down. It was weird sometimes because it was so out of the ordinary, but it was definitely more exciting and adorable than anything.

"Things are going really well," I replied, feeling myself starting to smile too much as I blushed a little. Thinking about Tori always seemed to make me feel a little lighter and a bit dazed, but I loved it. "We actually got a cat yesterday." Kate beamed, making an aw sound as she clasped her hands together.

"Max, that is so adorable," she exclaimed, her eyes bright. Kate had always loved all types of animals, not just her little bunny, Alice. "Do you have any pictures?"

"Not right now, unfortunately." Saying those words almost felt unnatural since I was so used to taking pictures of whatever I could. Granted, I'd had… other things happening at the time, but still. "Tori and I got distracted and then her parents showed up out of nowhere. But you and Dana should totally come over this weekend and meet the cat and see the apartment. I haven't seen Dana in forever and you and I still need time to catch up."

"Oh, yes, definitely," Kate replied, smiling so big that I couldn't help smiling back. I hadn't seen Kate like this in awhile. Not since before what'd happened to her at that Vortex Club party. Being out of Blackwell and with Dana must have really been helping her. "Just text me the time and address to your place and Dana will be there in no time." I was about to reply when I saw my boss, Angela walking towards us from the building that looked like the main office of the school.

"Good morning, ladies," she said, her lips quirked up in a smirk that made me shiver a little. She was completely terrifying to me and I couldn't quite figure out why. She was wearing bright red lipstick along with a pair of black jeans that were probably way too tight to actually wear, along with the standard blue uniform shirt we were supposed to wear.

"Good morning, Miss Marshal," Kate said with a smile. Angela laughed, shaking her head.

"Please, call me Angie, or Angela at least," the tall woman replied, holding out two name tags. One said Maxine and the other said Kate, pictures of us just above the names. "You'll need these. Make sure that you wear them to every shoot that we do." I nodded, taking my name tag and clasping it to my shirt so that people could see it.

The van full of the photography equipment showed up moments later and we all made to unload it. It took a total of twenty minutes to get all the equipment out of the van and set up, not counting the small teaching moments where Angela or the other photographer, Bryan, had to show Kate and I how to set everything up. The whole time I just hoped that I would be able to remember everything. It was all so much measuring and making sure that nothing broke while also trying to be quick. Luckily, I knew how most of the stuff worked and how to set it because the classes I'd taken at Blackwell, so I ended up impressing Bryan a little.

Bryan was hella tall, his dark hair spiked up with gel to make him look even taller. I swear, I would've thought he was at least seven feet tall if he hadn't told me that he was only six foot six. He had darker skin and a smile that would've caused most people to swoon almost immediately. Luckily, I had a sexy, smiling girlfriend already, so I felt pretty much immune to his charm. Was it charm? I'm not sure. He was surprisingly clumsy for someone who looked like he kicked ass in every sport ever for most of his life. I ended up working with him for the day, assisting with grabbing papers from teachers while also posing kids and making sure they looked somewhat decent for their ID pictures. It was all surprisingly intense. The room echoed with loud, laughing voices as boys and girls alike struggled to fix their hair and tried to make themselves look perfect for a picture that they wouldn't even have for a full year. They were just lucky that this wasn't their driver's license picture, that thing stayed with you for several years until your license expired.

By the end of the day, I was completely exhausted and hella ready for an afternoon of relaxation with a certain blond haired lady, but when I walked outside where she said she'd be to pick me up, she wasn't there. So I called her, more concerned by the fact that she was late than anything else.

"Hey," she answered after three rings, sounding just as exhausted as I felt.

"Hey, are you ok?" I asked, looking over at Kate who had decided to walk me to where I thought Tori would be, saying that she had parked in the same place anyways.

"Oh god, Max, I'm so sorry," she said, letting out a sharp sigh. I could just imagine her running her fingers through her hair in frustration and it made me a little nervous. "This meeting is taking way longer than I thought it would. I don't know when it will be over."

"Tori, it's like two in the afternoon and you've been there since seven thirty," I replied, wishing that the idea of her talking to some lawyer for so long didn't make me totally nervous.

"I'll explain later," she replied, sounding more worried than I was used to. Tori rarely let down that confident facade. "Are you going to be able get a ride home?" I looked over to Kate and she smiled sweetly at me.

"Yeah, I think so," I said, feeling kind of guilty thinking that I'd have to ask Kate for a ride. She probably had better things to do than drive me home. "Are you gonna be ok? Do you need me to meet you there?"

"Do I need you to come to a boring meeting that might go on for another few hours so that I have to deal with you bouncing your leg and looking like a deer in the headlights? I love you, Max, but I doubt that would be helpful right now." She sounded tired, but there was no bite behind her words and I couldn't help smiling a little. She was right, really. I hated having to do things like that, especially when those things involved people investigating me for my best friend's murder.

"Ok, I'll see you at home then," I said, wishing that I could help in some other way. Maybe I'd make Tori her favorite dinner tonight and we could watch one of her favorite animes or something. "We'll have a nice, relaxing night after a long day of work and legal gargane."

"That sounds amazing," she replied and I could hear the smile in her voice. "Maybe we can open that bottle of wine Taylor sent us and get silly." I felt my cheeks heat up as I laughed, hoping that Kate hadn't heard Tori. She wasn't on speaker, but you never know, phone conversations could be weirdly loud sometimes.

"Maybe," I said, looking over at Kate again who was watching a few leaves get picked up by the breeze and twirled around before they were blown away. "You should get back to your meeting. I'll find a way home."

"Ok, love you."

"Love you too," I replied, ending the call and smiling nervously at Kate.

"Is everything ok?" She asked, looking slightly concerned even though she was still smiling a bit.

"Yeah, Tori just got stuck in a meeting," I replied. "Would you mind giving me a ride home?"

"Oh, of course," she said excitedly. "Maybe I could meet Bongo and you can show me your place." I smiled, nodding as we walked to Kate's car.

"For sure," I replied, admiring the way the silver cross that hung from her rearview mirror shimmered in the light as I sat down in the passenger seat. "It would be nice to hang out and catch up a bit."

Kate drove me home, telling me about some of the adventures of being an art student and how much fun it all was. It was nice listening to her talk about all of that stuff because she just seemed so excited about it all. By the time Kate had left the apartment and I started making dinner, I had almost forgotten about everything that I'd been told the day before.

Maybe this whole thing wouldn't be so bad if I had people like Tori and Kate and Dana around to help me through it.