"Max, you better start talking." Chloe looked over at Rachel, steadily growing impatient, "Like now."
Max, Chloe, and Rachel were all sitting around the Monopoly board, waiting for Max to become coherent enough to speak. They had already been sitting there for a while now, giving the girl space, but enough was enough. Chloe was the most concerned for her friend, worried to see her have yet another blackout. It freaked her out the first time back in the lighthouse, then merely a day ago, but having it happen for a third time was scary. She didn't know what was going on, or if Max was even going to be alright.
Max sat back, trying to buy some time before speaking. She was hesitating to answer because she was so unsure what either of them would think. Everything was leading up to this exact moment, and she knew that she was probably going to say things she never planned on saying in the first place. What was even stranger was that this specific blackout she had just woken up from was so much different from the ones she had previously, and even more prophetic from the ones in October.
She was still quite shaken up from the whole ordeal, but knew exactly why. Max saw Chloe. Her Chloe, in the shape of a blue butterfly in the vision. It didn't speak, nor did it do anything that seemed familiar to Chloe, but Max could feel it. It made her emotional just thinking about it. She had no idea what any of it meant. It had to mean something important, though.
Now realizing how much time she was stalling, Max began to slowly speak. "It was a vision. I've had them before…but they were never like this."
"Tell us what you saw." Rachel joined in, curious. It was the worst she had ever seen Max, and by the way she nearly attacked Chloe when waking up, it told her that it was more intense than either of them had thought.
Max paused and tried to think, "I was on this beach…and there was a voice…" It was proving to be incredibly difficult to remember what she had seen, which was strange since it had just happened.
Chloe became tense, only growing more confused as she was listening to Max. "What…kind of voice?"
"It sounded like my own, maybe my subconscious." Max shrugged. She didn't really know or care what the strange voice was all about, because the only thing she cared about was the butterfly. It was so close, yet so far away. A reminder of her past.
Chloe and Rachel just looked at each other, trying to read each other's thoughts, but couldn't. Rachel leaned in closer to Max, almost whispering, "And what did it say?"
"Something about my future? I…don't really remember."
The three sat quietly, trying to figure out what it all meant. It was rather mysterious and definitely not something Chloe or Rachel were used to. Sure, they both knew about Max getting nightmares, and random nosebleeds, and occasionally blacked out, but now with added details to her vision, it became even more confusing. Yet, ever since Max showed up, they were slowly becoming acclimated to the strangeness the girl brought with her. Even the events that took place over the past two weeks were unexplainable.
Chloe sat back, thinking out loud, "A beach–"
"–with a creepy voice–" Rachel followed.
"...yeah."
It was no surprise to Max that either of them were stumped on trying to figure it out. They hadn't gone through everything Max did, and they didn't have bizarre superpowers that just showed up one day. Though, it was rather puzzling to Max that her vision involved something not terrible. The only thing that was slightly alarming was the booming voice that appeared out of nowhere, but even that wasn't much.
What could go wrong on a beach? Was the Ferris wheel secretly a death trap?
Max knew any thoughts she had about it were ridiculous but she always seemed to have a deep worry that something bad would happen, even in good times.
Let alone the fact that she was nearly in direct contact with her Chloe, who she still couldn't stop thinking about. She was nearly obsessing over it, feeling certain that it had to be her, because Max was overcome with emotions when it showed up flying around her. Max knew she couldn't mention it now, though, because she figured it would make even less sense to Chloe or Rachel. It was a little too personal to share anyway.
"Damn, what do you think it means?"
Max just looked at Rachel, "I have no idea. Usually…" She hesitated, not wanting to say it but decided nonetheless, "...the visions took place during a storm, and I used to see this huge tornado. It was always so chaotic, so I don't know what it means now."
Max began to fidget with some of the paper money on the ground, calming her nerves. She hoped it wouldn't be too distracting.
Those visions. Max remembered them like they happened yesterday. She thought back to her first one that happened in Mark Jefferson's class, then multiple times throughout the week following. Eventually they made sense, with an actual storm taking place where Max had no choice but to make a terrible, life-altering decision either way. But they were so scary at the time. She had to repeatedly walk up the hill to the lighthouse, each time with something different happening. Max hadn't had a vision like that since October, which she was so glad about, but now they were only getting more bizarre.
"When did these visions start?" Chloe was watching Max from the corner of her eye, seemingly distracted by her fidgeting.
Max's throat burned, tightly constricting her breath, trying to hold everything in. After so much stress, so much anxiety of holding back, tonight seemed to be the night that every secret she had inside her was going to be said. Hell, it was for the better anyway.
"In October."
Chloe looked up at Max, eyes filled with hurt. She didn't want her friend to suffer any more than she needed to. She had watched her over the past two weeks, and that was already getting to her. "Last year? Max I–"
"No." Max quickly shook her head, making both Chloe and Rachel immediately look worried. "Of this year."
Silence filled the room.
Max knew she had to explain fast or else she would be in big trouble, "It all started in Mr. Jefferson's class…" She paused, trying to think about what exactly happened on that day, "I woke up during a lecture about…the daguerreian process…then I went to go to the bathroom, and Nathan was in there, with a gun."
That seemed to have struck a nerve in Chloe, as she vividly remembered being in the darkroom with Nathan threatening to kill her…with a gun. It was pointed right at her head, planning to end her life right then and there. But it never happened. While it was different from the story Max was telling, it didn't matter. Chloe was freaked out.
"Max…what are you talking about." She was practically staring Max down, feeling freaked out. Chloe was always the strong one—even if that wasn't how she really was, it was all a facade anyway—but now that image was crashing down in front of her.
"Chloe, I–" Max sat up, only noticing her hands were beginning to shake, "I saw you get shot in the bathroom by Nathan Prescott."
Arguably the worst day of Max's life. And it not only happened once, it happened multiple times. There was the first initial time that gave her powers, then the second and third while Max was trying to break the glass to the fire alarm. Then the fourth time, which was the last time Max was going to see Chloe again, that was if she wasn't planning on going to her funeral then.
"What?" Chloe nearly fell back in shock from Max being so scarily accurate. "Are you just making this shit up or–"
"No, obviously not!" Max was starting to get frustrated and stood up, leaving Chloe and Rachel sitting on the floor. She began to pace around the room, trying to formulate her thoughts into cohesive sentences. She never planned on having this conversation in this way, but nothing in her life ever went according to plan. Max was now by Chloe's desk, leaning back on the chair with her arms crossed, "After you got shot I was somehow able to rewind time and I kept getting these insane visions of a storm and–"
Rachel quickly cut Max off, "You can…rewind time?"
Her voice carried across the room, but had an air of sympathy to it. There was always something about Rachel that Max thought was…different. She knew it from the second she met the girl in person, with the feeling only becoming more intense as time went on. That same day, Rachel had talked to Max about holding back secrets, and she could feel it then. Max wasn't quite sure what it was specifically, whether Rachel was connected to her powers, or if she had some of her own. But the fact that everything around her kept getting triggered by Rachel being present in her life was making for a complicated situation.
"I know it sounds so fucking insane." Max just shook her head, looking at the floor, "You probably don't believe me but–"
"Max, was your whole trip here a lie?" Chloe leaned back on her hands, only seeming to focus on one thing. She didn't even care that Max just admitted she had superpowers, but it wasn't all that surprising. She was upset about her best friend supposedly lying to her, and rightfully so.
"Not all of it." Max walked back over to the two who were still sitting around the Monopoly board, "I'm not lying now, am I? Everything that's happened these past few weeks was real, Chloe."
Chloe anxiously stood up, now to be face to face with Max, "You know, I always thought it seemed too good to be true when my best friend showed up at the lighthouse after abandoning me for five years, like nothing even happened. I should've known."
She was visibly hurt and it bothered Max to see her like that. She never meant to hurt Chloe any more than she already did, but there was no easy way for her to explain the situation. She tried for weeks to say something, but no words ever came out. As much as it was hurting Chloe, it was hurting Max just as bad.
"Chloe, it's not like that!"
Chloe stood her guard, only becoming more defensive, "Then why, Max? Why did you come back here?" She raised her arms, quickly storming into Max's space.
"Because I–I–" Max started to cry, feeling a slow trickle of tears run down her face. She was feeling too overwhelmed with everything and couldn't take it anymore. She just had a great two weeks with her best friend, who was still alive, and this was how she was treating her?
Max knelt back down on the ground, flustered and trying to stop herself from making a bigger scene. Chloe was still standing angrily, and Rachel watched the whole thing, not looking too happy with how Chloe was acting. She knew Chloe needed to be a better friend to Max, and how she was treating her wasn't okay. Sure, Rachel had moments like this with Chloe, but seeing it happen in front of her own two eyes was almost the epiphany she needed.
"Max, tell us exactly what happened in October." Rachel reached over to Max to try and console her, not knowing if it was crossing the line, but needed to comfort her somehow. The girl was so upset, and it was really bringing down the energy in the room. It was supposed to be a fun game night.
Max was reluctant to answer, with her hands covering her face, trying to conceal her frustration. The words she wanted to say were begging to be released. All the build up and stress and hidden secrets were about to be unleashed for everyone to know.
"I had to choose between Arcadia Bay being destroyed by the storm, or you, Chloe."
Rachel looked up at Chloe, who seemed to look only more horrified as the conversation went on. Max still wasn't giving enough information to what she was saying, and Chloe couldn't handle her friend being like that for one more second. She bent down on her knees, putting her hand on Max's shoulder.
"...and what did you choose?"
Chloe whispered as gently as she could, holding back any feeling she had. She wanted to rage so hard on Max, hurting everyone in her path, destroying every relationship she had built up and then blame it on someone else. But this time, Chloe chose not to go down that route. Something changed in her, even Rachel noticed.
Max waited several excruciatingly long moments before deciding to say out loud her horrible mistake. One that would affect her the rest of her life, even if the person she chose to sacrifice was alive and sitting in front of her at that very moment.
"I chose to save the Bay, Chloe."
Barely audible, Max spoke from underneath her hands with her voice filled with hurt. She could understand why Chloe was so upset previously. She planned for it. Everything was just too much at the moment. Unexpectedly, Max could feel Chloe wrap her arms around her.
"Max, I had no idea…" Chloe rested her head on Max's back, not letting go of her, "After everything you've been through…you don't deserve me as your friend."
Max looked up from hiding under her hands, only to see how close the two were, huddled around her. She didn't realize how much support she had in the moment, but it was overwhelming. Even after all she had gone through, Chloe was still there for her, providing her with the comfort she so desperately needed. Though, Max's sudden movement made Chloe sit up, now looking face to face at her friend.
"Chloe, don't say that. We're always here for each other, no matter what."
The two shared another hug before Chloe backed away to give Max room to breathe. She couldn't imagine what Max had gone through, but at the same time, couldn't resist asking more.
Chloe looked down at Max sympathetically, watching her with the utmost care. "So…what happened to me? Since you saved the Bay?" She hesitated asking, not wanting Max to get more upset thinking about it.
"I…" Max was still looking down, playing with the bracelets on her arm. Both Rachel and Chloe were sitting close to Max, giving her all the time and space to speak when she wanted, without rush. "I let you get shot in the bathroom." The words stung as Max said them, leaving a trail of sadness and pain.
Chloe almost expected that kind of answer. She knew it had to have been bad if Max was getting so upset about it…and had been hiding it this long from her.
Rachel placed her hand on Chloe's arm, trying to comfort her from the news, "I'm afraid to even ask…" She leaned in to get closer to the conversation, "But where was I in all of this, Max?"
Max shook her head. "Rachel…you really don't want to know…"
That was an entirely different conversation, one that needed more…special attention. Max was sure it was going to happen soon, though, since it felt so good to finally say what she wanted to after all this time. She knew deep down that Rachel would be curious, but never planned on her being present when Max had this conversation. It was supposed to be with just Chloe, and while Max didn't necessarily mind, she would have to be extremely cautious in how she addressed the situation to Rachel.
Rachel just looked up at Chloe, not really knowing what to say. She assumed it was probably bad.
"I've been trying to tell you, Chloe, for weeks about what happened in October, but I…I just couldn't. It's been too horrible to think about." Max looked across the room at Chloe's bed, reminding her, "Those nightmares I get…you've seen me…they're so terrible. The darkroom…you dying over and over again…"
Chloe was absolutely horrified. The entire time Max spent with her, she was hiding so much hurt from her. "I can't even imagine, Max." It was all she could say.
The three sat in silence for a moment, each trying to process different information that was just said. For Chloe, she felt lied to. Betrayed, even. And for Rachel, she was too confused to question further. Max wasn't telling her anything, and it was worrying. Let alone the confession of her having freaky superpowers, it was a lot to take in. And while it wasn't the most ideal time to tell them about her past, Max did start to feel more relieved as the night went on. Maybe it all was meant to be.
"Is that what you were trying to tell me that one night…when we were in the backyard?"
Max recalled the moment, nodding. "Yeah. It was."
"And that's why you've been avoiding talking about Seattle, isn't it?" Everything was starting to make more sense for Chloe, and even Rachel, too, since she had been asking about it earlier.
Max just hummed in response. Earlier in the week when she had called her dad and told him about staying in Arcadia Bay, she had to maneuver around her secrets to not tell Chloe. Then with Rachel asking her about Seattle seemingly out of the blue that same day, the pressure was so real for Max to come up with some sort of lie. But now, it was so much easier that everybody knew about her past.
"There's still more I need to tell you." She stretched her arms out, tired of sitting on the hard floor.
"Well," Chloe looked down at Max, now resting gently by her side, "I guess you better start talking."
Max sighed, before starting, "I ended up using my rewind powers to keep saving you, Chloe. First from the bathroom…then the train…" Max shook her head. "It doesn't matter. It's just…the entire time we hung out the only thing you talked about was 'Rachel this, Rachel that.'"
Max faintly laughed, only knowing that Rachel was becoming slightly uncomfortable with the information. She watched her face change as soon as she said her name. There was so much going on inside of Rachel's mind, a combination of fear and being put on the spot, but she was on edge, not quite knowing where Max was going to take it.
"You had hung these 'Missing Persons' posters all over Blackwell and Arcadia Bay." Max just grinned to herself, remembering the boxes upon boxes she had found, all filled with the posters. "Chloe, you had like thousands of them."
At the time it was frightening and confusing, but looking back at everything Max knew now and being in the same room as Rachel Amber–now alive and sitting mere inches away–she couldn't help but find the slight humor in the situation. And she wasn't lying. There were probably thousands of posters hung around the town.
Chloe and Rachel just looked at each other, both nervous at Max's unseriousness at the situation and the fact that Chloe had been working on mock-up posters a few weeks ago. She wouldn't admit it, but it was becoming disturbing.
Max continued, "So we ended up going on this adventure, trying to find Rachel…and…and we did end up finding her but…"
"...Max…" Rachel stopped the girl in her tracks, looking at her in such a way that it started to become intimidating. She was going to find out what happened to her, one way or another. "Where did you find me?"
Tension was growing in the room for both Rachel and Chloe, but Max didn't feel anything. It was all old news to her at this point. And it didn't matter anyways, Rachel was alive and well, playing Monopoly with them both, without a worry to be had. There wasn't any reason for either of them to get so worked up.
"You were buried in the junkyard."
Rachel froze as panic was starting to grow, "I–I was dead?!"
Max simply nodded, while the two were freaking out beside her.
"How? How did I die?"
Max laughed again, now starting to break a sweat at disclosing so much information in such short notice. She definitely wasn't prepared for it, but what made everything worse was that a nearly identical situation had just happened weeks ago. "Nathan Prescott overdosed you, and Mark Jefferson…buried you? I…I guess I didn't really look at the details…"
Everyone in the room was stunned, not only at hearing what Max was saying, but because everything that she said was nearly spot on. Not only did it all make sense, but everyone was quickly realizing that Max just saved them all.
Chloe glanced over at Rachel, who seemed distressed and looked horribly overwhelmed. "Rachel, you were just in the hospital for an overdose…"
"...holy shit…" Rachel was stunned, too shocked to even say anything.
"Max, you're a goddamn hero."
"I don't feel like one, Chloe." Max continued, now with tears welling up in her eyes for the second time that night. "Do you know what's it's like to sacrifice your best fucking friend to a storm? Do you even know what I went through to get here? I'm not a hero."
"I–I can't even begin to imagine what all of it was like." Chloe just looked down at the Monopoly board, now all messed up from all the sudden movement. The game was never going to get finished anyway. "But why did you come back to this timeline? Isn't everything you just said going to happen eventually?"
Max shook her head, "No," She paused, trying to answer Chloe the best she could with the little amount of emotional strength she had left for the night. "I came back not only for you, Chloe, but to try and save Rachel from dying. Maybe I fucked up…made too many wrong choices…"
"Max…" Rachel almost wanted to cry, interrupting Max from her self-depreciation. Everything was becoming too much for her. She had never experienced someone saying that they went through great lengths just to save her. To help her. It was astonishing, nearly leaving her speechless.
"You didn't deserve to be killed like that, buried in the fucking junkyard by a psychopath. You deserved a better life, even if I barely knew anything about you." Max watched as Rachel just began to sob, with Chloe sitting next to her, trying to comfort her the best that she could while she was feeling so overwhelmed about the new information. "I just…couldn't handle seeing Chloe be so upset over you, and I really wanted you both to be happy...even if I went through absolute hell to get here."
Emotions were running high. Nobody knew what to say, and frankly, not much needed to be said.
Neither Chloe nor Rachel would have guessed that the conversation was going to head in this direction, where Max was being so brutally honest about her intentions. It was already crazy enough when she mentioned that she was having visions, and even worse when she revealed that she had some kind of rewind power, but nothing would compare to the actual reason Max came back. Whether she knew it or not, Max singlehandedly strengthened her bond between Chloe and Rachel to such a level that was unforeseen by anyone else. The immense weight off her shoulders felt amazing, giving her a long awaited break she had been wishing for, for weeks.
Agonizing over every detail, every story, every lie. It was finally over, and now, they could all start to rebuild their lives. If and when any of them chose to do so. It was a second chance, given by Max herself, that everyone understood to not take for granted.
"I seriously cannot believe you did all of that…for us."
"I had to, Rachel. I couldn't even begin to live a normal life after going through all of that. I just couldn't do it."
The three shared a group hug, all sitting awkwardly around the Monopoly board, pieces now scattered across the floor. It was an intense night, one filled with plenty of tears, and leaving everyone with something to think about.
Max wasn't sure what was going to come next, whether that included the worries of the possible tornado in the future, or maybe some unforeseen event that would take place in the meantime, but neither did Chloe or Rachel. Nevertheless, even if there was a lot of rebuilding to do and more explanations to be given, the three realized that there was a lot more at stake in their lives than they had ever imagined. Arcadia Bay wasn't just some hickhole, filled with pretentious hipsters and underpaid residents, it had a deeper significance. One that stuck onto anyone who lived there, or ever dared to leave.
