Chapter 10

December 23rd 2010

Dear Maximilian,

lots has happened since my last entry…

Sorry, I'm getting pretty sloppy with the messages, but it's actually damn hard to put school, family, diary, thinking of how to get back to my reality and an awesome relationship with Rach under one roof, without going totally bonkers.

But, I won't let you hangin' there, buddy! So, let's get started.

Chloe is finally out of the hospital! Took a lot of convincing and pleading to the doctors to let her go, so that she can spend X-Mas at home. Considering the circumstances, she's actually doing really great. Though she still can't talk, she learned sign-language pretty fast and now talks even more than before. (I made you a detailed instruction. You don't have to use, but only have to understand it. It's pretty simple, so don't sweat!)

She also coped well what had happened to her. We all gave her every support and even more. Steph, though also having a tight schedule, she spends almost every free minute with her.

Mom, Will and Chloe finally got their shit together and we're a real family again.

And Rachel… Well, let's say that Chloe has a new friend.

Well – how stupid that may sound – the incident brought us all closer together than ever! We're there for Chloe, and will always be!

Another (rather shitty) topic is, how I should feel about to spend the upcoming holidays at your…our dad's place. I already know that he seems to be an asshole in this reality, but in mine, he was just awesome. So…I simply don't know how to deal with this. We'll see…eventually… Gosh, I'm gonna miss Rachel so much! Would've loved to spend my free days with her instead of my dad in Seattle.

So far, Maximilian.

Maxine, signing off!

A pair of stinging blue eyes was ogling her from head to toe, taking in every curve of her body. In his mind, he was already peeling off every piece of garment that was hiding her soft skin, increasing his arousal even more. The blue checkered button-shirt, gone. The black top…gone. The black bra, which's straps were visible on her shoulders…gone. The black, partially ripped jeans…gone. And also the, to the bra matching black panties, which he had seen as she had crouched…gone as well. He wanted to touch her. Wanted to kiss her. Wanted to lick…

"Nathan!" suddenly chimed Rachel's voice, ripping the young boy out of his vortex of lustful thoughts. Timidly, 15-years-old Nathan Prescott looked into the girl's beautiful green eyes, almost melting in her sheer presence. "Are you even listening?"

"S-sorry!" was the light-brunette boys stuttered reply, his gaze dropping onto the sheet of paper that was lying in front of him.

With a loud sigh, Rachel dropped the pen and brushed some lose strands of blond hair behind her ear with the blue feather ear-piece. "Nathan, why are we doing this here? You know all that stuff already. So…why? It's not like I don't appreciate the money for tutoring you, but…"

"I love you, Rachel!" it suddenly blurted out of him and the now out of embarrassing blushing girl sighed once more and shook her head before packing her stuff.

"Nate, you know that I have a boyfriend…"

"Fuck him!" he spat out furiously. "He's nothing! He can't give you what you deserve!"

Just letting Nathan's rage bounce off of her, Rachel closed her bag and once more turned to him, still being calm. "Max gives me everything I need, and that's neither money nor a high social status. But yes, I'm definitely gonna fuck him, some day!"

Being stunned by Rachel's bold behavior, the young boy stays silent, trying to gulp down his anger towards his opponent.

"Nate," the blonde eventually said reassuringly, touching Nathan's left shoulder. "Maybe instead of imitating your asshole of a father and waving around with your money, you should open your eyes and see who actually tries to give you what you're lookin' for."

"Like who?"

Giving him one last playful wink and a bob with her head towards the seat, which would normally be occupied by Samantha Myers, who was crushing on the slightly brunette boy, Rachel shouldered her bag and left, saying "Happy holidays, Nate!"

'Phew, dodged that bullet!' she told herself, now being on her way to the dorms, where she was about to face another uncomfortable event, before she was finally allowed to enjoy her holidays. Though, without Max, they're already as good as fucked anyway.

A very cold gasp of wind, accompanied by some snowflakes, was hitting Rachel's body as she was opening the school building's main door. Tightening the around her neck wrapped red scarf and zipping close her winter coat, the young girl walked over the, with snow powdered empty campus. Also empty, were the dorms, since it was the day before Christmas and most students had already headed home.

Still, Rachel tried to keep a low profile, glimpsing several times over her shoulder before she knocked at Victoria's door.

Luckily, the dorms stayed quiet, only behind the door she could hear some shuffling before it got opened and the blonde got ogled by Victoria Chase with a chiding glare.

"Finally! Already thought you'd back out of our deal."

"Believe it or not, Vicky," countered Rachel, walking past the other girl and started to peel out of her scarf and coat, "some people might actually have more important stuff to do than posing for your shit. Now, don't leak into your panties and let's get started!"

"Sure," replied the blonde with the pixie-cut and closed the door, only to end up with an SD-Card held under her nose after she had turned around, causing her to give her opponent another suspicious glare. "What's that?"

Glancing deeply at Victoria, Rachel said "If we're doing this, I've got one condition."

"Oh please…" already scoffed the arrogant girl, but the stern glimpse and seriousness that got radiated by Rachel's green eyes instantly told her that this was not negotiable. "Fiiiine, name it!"

"This little session here stays between us! This means that you won't tell anybody about this and that I'll keep the photos. Hence, you're gonna use my SD-Card and will hand it to me right after we're done! No laptops. No hard drives. Got it?"

"But…" Victoria tried to counter, but got cut off right away.

"Not. Negotiable! Take it or leave it."

Shifting her gaze between Rachel's stern eyes and the memory device in front of her nose, Victoria eventually annoyingly sighed "Fiiine…" and took over the card, only to replace it with the one that had already been in her expansive camera.

Actually, Victoria's entire photo-equipment was state-of-the-art and worth a fortune. Set-lights, sturdy tripod, digital camera with huge display, high-end photo-printer… The rich girl could easily open up her own studio with all that stuff.

Rachel envied her for this, though she'd never admit it. As a DA, her dad was sort-of well loaded, but the young 16-year-old had sworn to herself to never accept any money from him anymore. Rent and living expenses were directly transferred to her mom, and if she wanted something, she had to buy it from her allowance or work for it.

Having settled the conditions, Rachel nodded in satisfaction, put her bag on the comfortable white couch and started to undress. Piece by piece of her garments fell on the sofa, until only her bra and panties were covering her being.

"I thought I said nude, not half-dressed," just mentioned Victoria dryly, while she was still fumbling with her camera. "And throw your stuff somewhere in that corner or it'll ruin the setting!"

Sighing in annoyance, Rachel grabbed her stuff and threw it a few feet away, letting her bra and panties following, right away.

"Satisfied?" she added, causing the other girl to look past her cam, directly at her. But instead of replying anything, she just kept on staring at her model with a frown. The naked blonde followed her sight, which led to her crotch, and then shifted it back at Victoria, giving her an agitated glare while resting her hands on her hips.

Immediately, the pixie-blonde focused back on her camera again, yet couldn't suppress a snarky comment.

"And I thought you had style, Amber."

But Rachel wasn't someone who gave a thing about what others thought about her or her style, especially when it came from someone like Victoria Chase.

"Well, I'm not a real city-kid and like some bush in my garden. Besides…" She then closed in on Victoria, making the arrogant girl feel uncomfortable as she – naked as she was – leaned closer and whispered in her ear. "…you should do somethin' about all those bad lookin' pimples down there, Vicky!"

With a giggle, she then walked back to the couch and slumped down on it, watching with amusement how Victoria gnawed on that big bone she had thrown at her. Maybe the rich girl had never taken a close peak on another woman's private section under the shower after swimming, but Rachel already had. Why? She didn't really know. Maybe, just out of curiosity. Maybe, because she like seeing other girls. But whatever the reason might be, right now it had already worked in her favor.

Timidly and flustered, Victoria peeked over her cam, asking "You ready?"

"Just say the word, Icky-Vicky!" replied Rachel, basking in the fact, that her being and behavior made the other girl feel uneasy.

"Just…just do your thing and I'll take the shots."

And so, this secret photo-session began.

Rachel posed, using every bit of furniture she could find in Victoria's room, while the other girl set the lights and camera to perfectly frame her.

Now it was Victoria, who envied Rachel. Her body. The talent of posing perfectly. Her easygoing way to deal with this situation. How she could easily put the audience under her spell. Of course, she would never admit that.

And Rachel? Well, she was just enjoying herself. Posing like a model, acting…it was just her thing, and witnessing Victoria being intimidated the sweet icing on the cupcake. And in some way she asked herself, if she was arousing the other girl, evident by these intense blushes while she had tried some rather lewd poses in order to provoke her. Nobody would see those pictures anyway…except maybe Max… So, why care?

Eventually, the photo shooting came to an end and Victoria started to flip through and analyze the fruits of her work on the display of her camera.

The pictures were just amazing, and the young photographer would've just loved to look at them on a bigger screen, yet was forced to just use the tiny display.

"Damn! Those are really good!" it suddenly chimed behind her as Rachel – now already wearing her undergarments again - was looking over her shoulder.

"Thanks!" was Victoria's plain yet serious meant reply as she gave the other girl a faint glimpse over her shoulder.

Together, those two watched the bunch of photos, which were purely artistic, not smutty or pornographic. Rachel couldn't actually do anything else than admiring Victoria's good eye and talent. How she had played with light and shadow. How she had managed to hide the lewd details in all but one picture, though Rachel had provoked it, so that more than just one picture should've been eventually PG-18. But now it seemed like, Victoria had been very serious about this session, leaving a slight pale taste on her mouth as they had reached the last picture.

"Okay, Vicky," said Rachel as she backed a step away, "I hate to admit it, but you got hella talent."

Swiftly, Victoria now turned around and looked at her with suspicion and crossed arms, not trusting the peace. But Rachel just kept smirking at her and eventually reached out her hand.

"Card, please!"

Huffing out in annoyance once more, the blonde with the pixie-cut handed over Rachel's SD-Card, feeling a bit sad that she wasn't allowed to keep the pictures, because truth be told: Rachel was an awesome and very sexy model, she'd love to work with some more… But she would never tell her that.

"Thank you!" she spoke over-politely, adding as she packed the card away and to put on the rest of her garments, "'t was fun! Hope you're gonna hold your part of the deal and talk to Mr. Keaton right after the holidays."

Still being conspicuous, Victoria just shrugged and returned "Sure!" while following every one of Rachel's movements with her glare.

But Rachel wasn't satisfied with that answer and closed in on the other girl, her politeness entirely gone. "We had a deal! I help you out, gettin' the gist of nude-photography for your essay and you give me back my position as the lead-actress. So, don't you dare fucking me over!"

"I won't!" snipped Victoria back, "Because I'm sticking to what I promised, though you already altered the deal by keeping the pictures to yourself!"

This comment, however, only induced a scoff by Rachel. "You really thought that I'd trust you with those pictures? Wake up, Victoria, and take a look in the mirror! Happy holidays, Icky-Vicky!"

Dumbfounded, Victoria watched how Rachel closed shut the door, leaving her eventually alone. Her head was actually spinning out of confusion. Yes, she disliked Rachel. But her rival was right, it had actually been fun to work with her.

Shaking her head to get rid of those thoughts, the slim blonde took her camera again and turned it on. After a few touches on the screen, Rachel's pictures appeared again. Swiftly, she flicked through them once more and stopped at the one, which showed more than it should have.

A strong heat flashed through the young photographer's body, making her feel things that she actually didn't want to feel, which caused her to switch off the camera and pull out the emergency backup SD-Card that had been stuck in the second slot of her expensive camera.

For a few minutes she looked at the small memory-device between her fingers, thinking about what to do with it, until she decided to put it in her camera bag for the time being.

The cozy warmth of a fire, burning in the fireplace. The mixed scent of gingerbread and incense cones in the air. A Christmas tree plus decoration.

Yes, Maxine loved Christmas, no matter in what reality. And it was even more awesome when you add three very much loved people, a slumber party and a parent-free house into the mix.

"Pizza's here!" exclaimed Steph as she walked into the kitchen with a stack of pizza-boxes. The saucy brunette, who wore some comfy grey sweatpants and a sweater, put them on the counter and gave Max, who was preparing some snacks, a friendly bump with her shoulder.

Max followed her with his gaze as she was swaying back onto the couch, where Chloe was sitting and playing a videogame. The moment the nerdy girl slumped down beside her girlfriend and put a big kiss on her cheek, painted a warm smirk on the young boy's face.

Chloe and Steph – beside Rachel and his parents, being Max's most important persons in his life – were still together and recovering from the events, two months ago.

Steph hadn't changed that much. She was still the nerdy super-student of Blackwell and Chloe's girlfriend, though sometimes it seemed that there was some sort of coldness between them, that he couldn't put a finger on. Max knew that Steph loved his step-sister over everything, albeit what had happened to her. So, why these awkward moments?

Chloe, however, was an entire different case. She had changed in a way. Yes, she was strong and unbroken as always, attending therapy, learning sign language in record-time, trying to stay up-to-date with school-stuff, though she had been suspended. She even had found comfort and distraction by repairing the old truck her dad had given her. And to underline her rebellious, punky side she had decided to keep the shaved part of her head, where the scar from the surgery was clearly visible, short and wore now a one-sided undercut style.

But besides the upsides, she sometimes also seemed absent, staring into empty space or just avoided other persons from one moment to another…even Steph. No, Chloe wasn't alright. But she was fighting and everybody gave her as much support as possible.

Deep inside, Max just hoped that this evening would give Chloe some additional strength to fight this inner darkness that the incident had brought upon her.

"So, what have you planned for tonight, Max?" asked Steph out of a sudden as she glimpsed at the young boy over the headrest of the sofa, rendering him dumbfounded as he didn't know what she meant.

"Uh…well, I thought, we have a nice evening and…"

But Chloe got what her girlfriend was onto about and paused her game with a huff, only to put the controller aside, stretch her arms over her head and form a ring with the thumb and the finger of her one hand and repeatedly sticking the finger of the other hand in and out.

"Subtle, Chloe…" commented Steph, which induced Chloe to nonchalantly shrug before she continued her game. "But yeah, that's what I meant."

Once again, Max was overthrown. Yes, he wanted to have sex with Rachel someday, but until now, they had just gone so far as to kiss each other and touch their bodies on decent places, his girlfriend's behind being the farthest as he had dared to go.

"I-I don't know… We…uh…we haven't talked about sex, yet. Why? Did she say something?" he answered, scratching the back of his neck while blushing.

"No, not exactly. But she did mention that this would be the first night you two are spending together and she was…well…kinda excited about it?" said Steph in reply. "And you know that there's more to sex than just talking and stickin' your penis into a vagina, right?"

Of course, Maxine knew that there was way more to sex than talking and coitus. But since she also hadn't been involved in any sexual relationship in her reality as well, the young photographer inside a boy's body lacked the same experience. Honestly, Maxine somehow wished now that she and Warren would've had at least a one-night-stand. But on a second thought, she was also glad that she hadn't done it, because she always wanted her first time to be special, which also meant having it with a special person…like Rachel.

The doorbell chimed and luckily interrupted this uncomfortable conversation. But this wasn't the only upside since Max knew who had just arrived. Hastily, the teenage boy went for the main door and opened it, revealing a with white snow powdered Rachel, who didn't waste any time and pulled her boyfriend in for a long kiss.

"Gu-uys!" yelled Steph from the living room, "Getcha tongues outta each other and close the freakin' door!"

With a giggle, Rachel pulled away and finally stepped inside.

"How was your tutoring?" asked Max and closed the entrance while the blonde was busy undressing her thick winter garments.

"As always," she replied with a shrug. "Y'know Nate. Always edgy and trying to hump my leg. Though this time I told him to finally back off and try his luck with Samantha Myers."

Nathan Prescott. Maxine had made her first real acquaintance with this psycho in her reality right after he had almost killed Chloe and was about to get physical with her in order to make her shut up about this incident. But she had also learned that his violent and aggressive behavior mostly originated from fear and mistrust. In some way, she had pitied him, but could also never forgive him that he was responsible for Chloe's and Rachel's demise. Short: Maxine hated his guts!

"Hey," Rachel then spoke soothingly, putting one hand on Max's shoulder as she realized his tensed up demeanor. "I know you can't stand him. But he really tries to be better, and…I also decided to not tutoring him anymore, 'cause I'd rather spend this time with you and shit on that money."

Just being glad about this development, Max hugged his girlfriend once more as a sign of gratitude and love, before both walked into the living room. There, Rachel got immediately greeted by Steph and Chloe, who both embraced her as well.

"You guys set up dinner while I'm gonna change into some comfy stuff!" she announced and walked upstairs to Max's room.

"And I'm gonna take a piss," added Steph a few seconds later, following Rachel and left Max alone with the task of setting the location since Chloe was still busy with her videogame.

With a sigh, he prepared some blankets, put the pizzas, snacks and some drinks on the couch table and then slumped down beside his step-sister, watching her play while waiting for the other two girls to return. Surprisingly, Chloe paused her game out of a sudden and turned towards Max as she used sign-language to communicate.

Max, I need your help!

Aghast, the young boy stared at his older step-sibling. Chloe and asking for help? That was something entirely new…even for Maxine.

"O-okay. What is it?"

Y'know…since this shit happened, I and Steph haven't spent one night together and…

She paused for a moment, huffing out some air.

Gosh, I haven't even done it to myself yet, because everythin' feels so strange when I touch my pussy. And what if this happens with Steph? What if she shit-cans me?

Was this the coldness Max hadn't been able to put a finger on? Was this the reason Chloe and Steph sometimes acted so strange? Nonetheless, Max had to help the both of them, because he knew that they both loved each other and that this deep bond shouldn't be destroyed by something that a messed-up psycho had done.

"Well, have you talked with Steph about it?"

The drop of the young blonde's gaze and the shaking of her head was everything needed to answer the question in merely a second.

I'm afraid, Max. What if she takes it the wrong way?

Chloe and being afraid? That was rare and only happened when it was about something or someone very important, underlining how precious the relationship with Steph was for Max's step-sister.

"Honestly, if you don't talk with her about it, you'll never know."

Sadly, Max couldn't give her a more proper answer as the person in question and Rachel were audibly coming downstairs again and entered the living room a few seconds later.

With a heavy sigh of exhaustion, Rachel let the trekking backpack, which she had picked up at home after school, glide down from her shoulders and opened it in order to retrieve some comfortable clothes, containing of some tight grey sweatpants, a band-shirt and a thin hoodie.

She had just stripped of her pullover and t-shirt as the door behind her got opened and then right away closed and locked again.

Taken aback, Rachel spun around, only to see Steph standing there, timidly gazing at her feet.

"Rach," said Steph with a, to the other girl unknown shyness, "can I talk to you for a sec?"

Though the brunette lesbian tried to keep her sight focused somewhere else, Rachel still realized the partially excited glares Steph was throwing at her, only by her bra covered, chest.

"Sure! 'sup, Steph?" she eventually replied with a smirk, putting on her band shirt before she then undressed her jeans. Rachel never minded if somebody was seeing her body and somehow she even enjoyed it that someone was admiring it.

Getting rid of those lewd thoughts that were already forming in her head by taking a deep breather, Steph focused and said "It's about Chloe. Has she talked with you about…us?"

Rachel had just pulled up her sweatpants as she sat down on Max's bed and patted the space beside her, signing Steph to sit down, which she did right away.

"She wasn't very specific, just mentioned between the lines that something was off."

"Off?" Steph scoffed, before it broke the entire problem out of her. "Totally fucked would be a better description. Since this fucked incident, Chloe seems so fragile that I don't even dare to touch her. Don't get me wrong, I love her like crazy, but…"

Suddenly, her heated speech stopped and turned into some sort of melancholy.

"I don't wanna hurt her, y'know. I just don't know how to handle this and am afraid that I could fuck this up. I never felt something like this for another person and losing her would just…"

Steph didn't need to complete the sentence as she got take by Rachel into a tight embrace.

"Don't worry," she returned with soothing confidence, "Chloe loves you. I bet she just needs some time to get back into groove."

"So, you say I should wait until she comes around?"

"No," was Rachel's answer as she broke the hug, putting on a toothy grin. "I'd say we tease her a bit tonight to spark the fire. And then let's see what happens."

As soon as the two couples were back together, they started the movie and ate while watching. Rachel was cuddling close to Max, while Steph did the same with Chloe.

The movie they'd chosen was actually trash, so it wasn't surprising that the hard-tried seriousness of the story was often accompanied by cynical comments and a lot of laughter. But all good things tend to have an ending, and so did the movie.

During the break, snacks and drinks were refilled and full bladders emptied until everybody was back in his or her place.

"Game time!" announced Rachel joyfully and pulled out a stack of cards.

Already familiar with the blonde's games, and not very fond of them, Chloe just groaned and rolled with her eyes. Yet, her girlfriend and Max didn't complain at all. On the contrary, Steph even gave her a slight bump, saying "C'mon, grumpy cat, it'll be fun!" after she had received a mischievous wink by Rachel.

Eventually, Chloe complied and everyone listened as Rachel explained the rules.

"Okay, girls, the rules are pretty simple. I bet you all know Truth or Dare. But in this variation, we all pick a card. The highest card wins, the lowest card is the loser. The loser then has to decide what it's gonna be, truth or dare, while the winner asks the question or gives the task. Got it?"

Do we really have to play this shit? asked Chloe, once more rolling with her eyes. Rachel's simple answer was a toothy grin and the pile of cards under the strawberry-blonde's nose, who eventually picked a card with a sigh, Steph and Max following her.

"Okay, guys, on the count of three. One…two…three!" announced Rachel and everybody turned around the drawn play card.

"Damn!" muttered Max as he had just a two of spades and Steph was the winner with the king of hearts.

"Okay, um… Do we keep this PG-13 or do we do the mature kinky version?" she asked, earning a deep blush by Max, a groan by Chloe and a slight timidly spoken "Your choice!" by Rachel.

Most people, who meet and talked with Steph would think that the nerdy girl was kind of reserved and disciplined beyond everything. And though this was true, she had the tendency to loosen up pretty much among people she really liked. Plus, that her sexual activities had been reduced to a minimum, because of the late stress. So, her restrains to keep the game 'kids-friendly' were almost zero.

"Truth or dare, Max?" she simply said at first and received an insecure spoken "Uh…truth…I guess."

"Okay. Max…" Steph began the question, filling the air with anticipation as everybody was awaiting the question. "What do you like most? Short hair or long hair?"

Huffing out some air out of relieve, Max took his time to think about the question, even glimpsing a few times at Rachel as he tried to find out if his answer would snub her, but decided that it wouldn't.

"Short!" he answered. "Like really short. I dunno why, but…uh…I-I kinda like it."

Immediately, Steph's and Chloe's gaze shifted towards Rachel, trying to figure out the blonde's reaction upon this confession. However, the self-conscious girl simply smiled and they already knew that something was going on in her head. But what exactly, would remain a secret.

"Alright, next round!" she called out and right away the pile of cards made its round among the four friends.

"Ugh, I just suck at such games!" groaned Max as he had once more the lowest card. But this time, Chloe was the winner and again, Max chose 'truth'.

Always being the mischievous one, Chloe couldn't get around asking a question that would be embarrassing for her step-brother. Especially, in front of her girlfriend.

Dude, you still got that teddy bear, which's button eye you swallowed as a kid?

'Maximilian did that too?' asked Maxine herself, always wondering how much parallels there were between her reality and Maximilian's. 'Sadly, I haven't found Captain, yet. Guess, Maximilian wasn't the type to keep a cuddly friend at his side.'

"Uhh, no. He's somewhere up at the attic…I guess."

"Aww! I would've loved to meet your cuddly friend from your childhood!" said Rachel to everyone's surprise, which caused Steph to add "Well, he got you now, Rach. Bet he can't wait to cuddle you tonight!"

Max just blushed, and this time, Rachel joined in, both giving each other timid glimpses, while, silently, the next round began, with Chloe being the loser and Rachel the winner. And again 'truth' was the chosen option.

"Okay, Chlo, here's a hard one. If you'd never met Steph, who would you've hooked up with instead?"

Chloe immediately froze. She expected a lot of stupid questions, but this one was just mean. Who would she have hooked up instead? A question she could easily answer, but what would Steph say to this? Thankfully, her girlfriend was very tolerant and intelligent, and threw in with a soft smile and tender touch to her reassuring reply. "Chloe, no matter what you say, it's just a game and I'll still love you!"

Taken aback by this commitment of love, Chloe's lips began to tremble as she mouthed with them I love you, too! before she leaned in and kissed the brunette passionately.

Rachel watched this romantic moment with a wide smile, before she cleared her throat to get the two lovers' attention again.

Sorry! signed Chloe and then answered, I think I'd make a threesome with you and Max.

"Wow!" was Rachel's answer, and somehow she didn't even mind this idea. But she wouldn't tell her friends that. Instead, she joined in with Steph's snickering and added "Good answer, Chloe!" causing the mute girl to make an overacted bow.

Max, however, remained silent and stunned. All those answers and allusions actually let his head spin. Three girls and one boy… The perfect mixture to cause a total emotional chaos in the poor boy's head. It was even so much, that he hadn't realized how he just lost another round. Only Rachel's friendly voice was actually be able to pull him back into the here-and-now.

"Max?"

"Y-yeah?"

"You're on!"

"Again?!" he complained, mumbling a faint "Truth." as the young wanted to pout. But a sweet kiss and a tender stroke over his cheek was everything needed to swoosh away those dark clouds.

"You know what they say: bad luck in games means good luck in love…or something like that." she added, which lightened up Max's mood in an instant. Which was much needed upon the next question by his girlfriend.

"Okay, Max. Fuck, kill, marry. And the people of choice would be me, Chloe and Steph."

"Ohh, good one, Rach!" cheered Steph while she was holding her stomach as she couldn't hold back her laughter. Of course, Max's good mood was gone again, but he also wouldn't back out on this. No, he would go all-in!

"Well," he answered confidently towards a shit-eating grinning Rachel, "I'd kill you for asking this stupid question. I'd fuck Steph, because she's cute. And I'd marry Chloe, because we're practically bonded since we first met each other."

'Boom! Mic-drop!' thought Maxine as she was looking at the entirely stunned demeanors of Steph and Chloe. Just Rachel was the only, who actually kept on laughing.

"That…that was a good one! Gosh, I love ya!" the blonde said and kissed the young boy again. Even after she had stopped with her laughter, the three other teenagers were still staring at her. "What?!" she just replied with a shrug. "It all made sense. Killing me for this question? Totally legit. Fucking Steph? Oh yeah, she's hot! And marrying Chloe? Geez, I'd give everything to walk her down the aisle with that grumpy face of 'Oh my god, I'm fucked'!" After having calmed down enough, she then continued "And besides, it's just a game. And we'll spice it up a bit by making the next rounds dares only!"

Was Rachel crazy? Probably not. But definitely insanely eccentric. She could always motivate people or cheer them up, had lots of ideas and creativity, yet as soon as something wasn't going her way, she would let you feel it. A real force of nature, how Sara had called her. Everybody knew that she was like that, so they played along as long as the game was still fun.

Now it was Steph's turn and Chloe was the one who had to think about a dare.

I dare you…to go to the glass door and show your insanely cute, naked butt to the world!

"Yes, ma'am!" confirmed Stephanie, got up and pressed her naked behind against the cold glass of the backyard door. "You want some too?" she then exclaimed in addition, turning her bare backside towards her friends. Chloe and Rachel were whistling, but Max just tried to stay calm and not to get aroused.

'Geez, being the rooster in the hen house is hard as hell. Never thought that such sleepovers can get that…out of control. I better take a break and splash some water into my face before my head explodes.'

"I'm gonna take number one. Be back in a jiff!" the young boy said and went to the guest toilet downstairs after Steph had taken her seat again and Rachel wanted to let the stack of cards go another round.

What the fuck?! signed Chloe with a frown, exchanging a glimpse with Steph, who however just shrugged. But what got her attention even more, was when Rachel pulled four cards out of the stack, looked at them and then handed them out, earning her a pair of suspicious glimpses, which she just answered with a wry smirk and a wink.

Not a minute later, Max returned and they continued the game.

"You gotta be fucking shitting me!" he cursed as he had the lowest card for the felt umpteenth time.

"Well, looks like you're at my mercy again," completed Rachel the disaster with a mischievous undertone.

Yes, the other two girls were aware that Max's girlfriend had cheated to provoke this situation, yet they were also aware that she had done it with a reason, which got even more evident as she revealed her task for Max.

"I dare you to touch my boobs!"

The young boy's jaw dropped to the ground. He literally had awaited everything that would've put him into an embarrassing position, but not such a so much wanted opportunity. And the whole situation got even stranger as Steph began an encouraging chant – which Chloe supported by slapping her thigh in the rhythm – and Rachel presented her chest even more.

"Max! Max! Max!..."

His trembling hands were all sweaty as the young boy slowly raised them. And though it was very much evident that he wanted to make contact, Rachel got impatient, grabbed his hands and pressed them onto her two mounts, which got underlined by Chloe's and Steph's cheerful applauds and whistles.

But Max and Rachel didn't pay any attention to it as they were captured into their own perfect world. Blue eyes locked with green ones, they both shut out everything that wasn't in their small, private bubble.

For Rachel, this moment was everything she had longed for in over a week now. Her plan had worked out perfectly. Since they started this relationship, the blonde had realized how diffident Max had been, regarding taking the intimacy any step further. So, she always had to come up with the one or other plot to force him to his luck. Besides that she loved to play these little games to get the young boy out of his comfort zone from time-to-time.

In his turn, Max felt entirely petrified. Yes, Maxine knew how her own breasts had felt, yet this was entirely different. Even being younger than her 18-year-old female body, Rachel's mounts were already slight bigger and felt firmer. All-in-all, Max became more and more aroused, which caused his cheeks to turn redder and his pants to become tighter in a certain spot.

Chloe and Steph, however, watched this somehow awkward scene with bewilderment, until Max's step-sister softly poked her girlfriend in the side, signing her that it was time to call it a night.

"Well, guys," the brunette then spoke louder than necessary, in order to get the other couples attention, "it's been an awesome evening. But I'm pretty much done for tonight, so…"

"Have a good night, you two!" responded Rachel and swiftly got up to give her two friends a warm hug, plus Steph an extra reassuring smile.

Max, still remaining in his spot, said "G'night!" as well and followed with his gaze how his step-sister and his best friend went upstairs, before he shifted his attention back to Rachel, who was now closing in on him with a seductive smile.

"So, Mr. Caulfield, you liked what just had in your hands?"

Shyly, Max nodded, averting his gaze from his girlfriend. He then heard some rustling of clothes and as he raised his sight once more, the young teenager realized that Rachel had taken off her shirt and was now standing in front of him with a bare chest.

Once more, his jaw dropped, his breathing stopped and his heart just made several attempts to burst out of his throat.

"You like 'em?" cooed Rachel with a honeyed voice, once more placing the entirely petrified boys hand on her mounts.

Max now felt every detail. The warmth, the shape, every little bump. His arousal now reached unknown heights, which was even for Maxine a new experience. Panic was about to emerge from within, especially upon the thought that they were still in the living room, where everyone could catch them in the act.

"R-Rach… Wh-what if someone…?"

Right away – and before he could kill the mood – the blonde put her finger on Max's mouth to silence him and then said "Chloe and Steph are upstairs and probably busy as well. And your mom and Will won't be back until after midnight. Believe me, I know those fancy attorney Christmas shindigs from my dad. Soo…"

Her eyes burning with desire, Rachel shifted her seat onto Max's lap, flung her arms around his neck and kissed him passionately. Soon, her lips began to draw a mischievous smirk and she whiffed playfully "Is that a stick in your pants or are you enjoying what we're doing?"

Gasping a faint "Shit!" Max tried to squirm away from his girlfriend, who, however, held him in place.

"Don't you dare, Mr. Caulfield!" she spoke and started to move her hips in rhythmical moves.

Max didn't know what to do anymore. Rachel had taken over control and it was obvious that she wouldn't stop. But did he want it to stop anyway?

Mentally, Max took a step back and watched. Watched how Rachel leaned back and moaned silently in pleasure while, once more, presenting her bare breasts in front of him. Watched every detail of her stunning beautiful body. Additionally, he imagined how it would be if she'd be entirely nude. How it would be if he'd be nude, as well.

"Oh Max!" Rachel groaned as she let her lips once more collide with her boyfriend's, ripping the brunette boy out of his stupor.

'Wowser, this is so hot! Gosh, I've never been that horny before!' thought Maxine and finally regained control over her male body and began to let her hands roam over the blonde's perfect skin, while replying her humps by moving the hips as well.

Rachel's breathing – at first just being slightly labored – increased with every passing second and every grind, making her moan even louder so that she was forced to bury her face in Max's shoulder as her climax hit her hard. Pressing her closer, Max couldn't hold back anymore, too, not caring that he was making a mess in his pants.

Slowly, the movements stopped until both teenagers remained tightly entangled, their bodies heaving heavily upon the fresh exhaustion.

"That was…incredible!" Rachel panted, snuggling her head even more into her boyfriend's shoulder, who, in return, answered "I love you, Rach!"

Again, Rachel backed away a bit, her stunning green eyes transfixed on her loved one's blushed face, and then let another intense kiss follow.

"I love you, Max! And…uh…sorry that I made a mess in your pants!"

"Guess, yours aren't in a better shape." he mentioned with a scoff, causing both of them to look at their crotches, which both had a clearly visible wet stain.

"Fuck!" cursed the young girl, but let a timid giggle follow right away. "We better go and get ourselves cleaned before your folks come home."

"Wait! Didn't you just say that they wouldn't be home before midnight?!"

But Rachel simply shrugged with a mischievous smirk, put on her shirt and made her way to Max's room to change clothes, leaving the young, bewildered boy behind. Rachel Amber was still a mystery, a real force of nature: unpredictable and wild.

'I better get myself cleaned up before I don't get this icky stuff out of my hairs anymore.' thought Maxine as she decided to stop figuring out his girlfriend and headed towards her next destination being the bathroom.

After a shower, cleaning is shorts from the white spots and brushing his teeth, Max went back to his room, only a towel covering his lower section. Rachel was already waiting for him with her pajamas in her hands, ogling his appearance with a another smirk and planted a kiss on his cheek before she continued her way to the bathroom to make herself ready for the night as well.

Still being befuddled from what had happened before, Max put on his pajamas and climbed into his bed, already welcoming its comfortable warmth. Minutes passed, during which he was recalling those last amazing hours…this more than perfect evening.

Eventually, Rachel returned. Freshened up and now wearing a slight pink shirt with some red-black checkered pajama pants. Already having another smile on her lips, she crawled into Max's bed as well and then cuddled herself close to her boyfriend under the blanket, one arm draped over his chest.

"It was an awesome evening," she eventually mentioned, her eyes closed as she simply enjoyed the closeness to her beloved Max, who responded with a half-whiffed "Yeah!"

Then, silence occurred. In the dimly light of Max's room they could hear the wind outside, blowing snowflakes against the window. The afar bark of a dog. The soft breathings of each other.

"I just hope that Chloe and Steph found their groove again," mentioned Rachel with a sleepy voice out of a sudden.

For Max it was clear that Steph must had talked to Rachel, her best friend, about their relationship problems as well, like Chloe had done with him.

Once again, he replied with a "Yeah," and then added, "Those two have been through some tough shit and need the break. But I know Chloe. She's smart and brave, and probably just needed a slight push into the right direction."

'I'm such an asshole!' thought Chloe to herself as she was lying in the darkness of her room, staring at the ceiling with an angry glare while Steph was slumbering right beside her. For hours she was now already lying awake in her bed, pondering about what had went wrong.

'I'm a fuckin' coward. That's what's wrong!"

Right after she and Steph had agreed to give Max and Rachel some space, they both had decided to go to bed and maybe finally to have sex again.

The desire had been there! But after she had made herself ready for the night and it then was Steph's turn, nearly a billion negative thoughts had rushed through the young blonde's mind, so that, in panic, she had decided to pretend that she was asleep. She had heard Steph, whispering her name. She had heard her sighing deeply in frustration. And had heard these quiet sniffs. And still she hadn't been able to overcome her trauma or at least to take Max's advice and talk about it. Chloe was sure that, one day, she would lose her beloved Steph because of that and this fact was keeping her awake as it was making her almost insane.

Some more time passed. Chloe heard how the main door downstairs got opened and the laughter and chatter of her dad and Vanessa sounded through the room. They obviously were totally wasted…or at least Vanessa was, since Will had been declared to driving duty.

"Whoa, easy, darlin'!" chimed Will's amused voice, accompanied by the footsteps on the wooden stairs and her step-mom's constant giggles.

'Yep, totally wasted!'

Then, the footsteps stopped and some indistinct whispering could be heard. Someone stepped close to Chloe's room door and after a few seconds moved on to Max's room.

"The coast is clear!" whisper-yelled Vanessa with a heavy voice, once again, snickering repeatedly as she and Will finally went into their bedroom and shut close the door.

'Oh gosh, she's so wasted.'

It didn't take long that the snickering turned into wild moans, which caused Chloe to cover her face and huff into her hands.

'You gotta be fucking shitting me!'

It wasn't the first time she heard those lewd sounds, and mostly they simply annoyed her. But tonight they were almost unbearable and she couldn't wait that they would already end, which happened after some time.

Then, it was quiet again and only the sounds of a snowy winter-night reached the young teenager's ear. She felt edgy, her body tickling and her mind about to get short-circuited. She had to do something. She had to chill. She had to release an inner pressure that was driving her crazy.

Smoking Weed? Not when Steph was around.

Drinking? No booze available.

Hurting herself? Not her style.

Only one thing came into her mind that could help her to release this summed up pressure. She had to do it! She had to overcome this nonsensical fear of intimate contact…now or never!

Gulping down this unwanted reluctance, Chloe shuffled close to Steph and started to kiss the back of her neck and let her hand roam around her girlfriend's body, right away avoiding any layer of fabric.

With a soft groan, Steph slowly woke up, at first trying to squirm away from the given affections. But as soon as her mind had booted up enough, she realized what was going on and turned towards her beloved girlfriend, giving her a drowsy, yet love-struck smile before she returned said affections with passion.

It didn't take long for their clothes to be scattered around the bed. And even though Chloe's reaction to the first intimate contact was a wince and welled-up eyes, Steph immediately was there for her and helped her poor traumatized girlfriend to pass this threshold. They took their time. No matter if it would take all night. But eventually, they both managed to climb this high mountain of self-doubt and despair, finally releasing all their worries and fears in one big, much needed, blow. So that, in the end, both lovers spilled tears of joy, and were able to fall asleep, arm-in-arm and finally united again.