Chapter 17

His head was heavy and still spinning a bit. Actually, William Price would've loved to stay in bed a few hours more to get rid of the aftermath of the previous night. Maybe it had been a mistake to drink that much during this New-Year-Party, but who could've known that the police would call him at six in the morning because his daughter was in custody?

Being the attorney of the family, Vanessa proposed to get her step-daughter, but she was in way worse shape than her husband so that, in the end, he had the doubtful honor to drive to the police station.

At the moment, he was sitting in the waiting section of the station and tried to stay awake and fight off his nausea.

"Mr. Price," said a police officer to him, eventually. "Please follow me!"

With a thankful nod he followed the policeman. But he wasn't led to his daughter, but into the office of a Lieutenant, where a blond policewoman welcomed him with a wry smirk.

"Will!" she greeted the red-haired man, and offered him a seat.

"Janice!" he returned while sitting down, sighing heavily as some dizziness settled in.

Janice Carlisle and Will had both been best friends and even lovers in highschool. But as life had moved on, Janice had left the province for the big city and eventually pursued a career at the police forces, while Will attended college and met Joyce, his future wife.

Years had passed until they had seen each other again, and this was when Chloe had gotten arrested for the first time. After this, they had reestablished a good friendship which was still going on.

"What has she done now?"

Right on time, Chloe was brought into the office by a policeman and sat down on a chair right beside her father. He had almost expected to be greeted with annoyance and adolescent behavior, but right the contrary was the case. The teenage girl's head was bowed and the short glimpse she had given Will was full of regret and guilt.

"She was involved in a brawl, which she had started. When we got there, we found her totally out of it. She was crying and not responding. At first we thought that she was drunk, since she smelled like a brewery, but her blood showed no traces of alcohol or any other substances."

Hearing the summary of what happened the night before, Will was about to sigh heavily in defeat, but got distracted as Janice said "She already gave us a full statement and I suggest that you read it first before judging her for her doings."

Now being curious of what Janice had hinted to him, Will took the file that was handed to him and read it. He had expected a lot, but that it had been her ex-boyfriend she had beaten up and especially the reason why, he was struggling to hold his composure. Once more, the mid-aged man looked with in shock dilated eyes at his daughter, whose head was still lowered while small droplets were leaving wet spots on her jeans.

Infuriated, he shifted his angry glare back to his friend, hissing "Where is he now?"

"Will," she returned, already signing him to stay put and don't do anything stupid, "he's here, making a statement as well. You and Chloe can gladly press charges against this son of a bitch, but that's it."

But it didn't help. With bitterness he became aware why his daughter's behavior had changed over the last two years and now made the connection to the constant abuse by Eliot Hempden.

Swiftly, he jumped up, his hangover entirely forgotten. "We'll do that, but it's not enough! I want this li'l shit to look into my eyes and tell me what he did to my daughter."

Now Janice got up as well and leaned in, her gaze stern. "And to what use, Will? Chloe already beat the shit outta him. Two broken teeth and a broken nose should be enough for now. It wouldn't help the case if you go all ballistic on this tweep, leave that to the lawyers."

"But…"

William was just about to go another round as his shoulder got softly touched and as he turned his head, he looked into the welled-up, sorrowful eyes of his beloved daughter, but the most heart-warming, stunning moment for him was as she started to speak for the first time after months.

"I-I...I-I'm s-s-sorry!"

All the anger evaporated in an instant as she embraced him. Her tone was low and lacking its former power, but just hearing her once silenced voice again filled him so much with joy that he even couldn't hold back the one or other tear himself.

Chloe was sorry. But sorry for what? That she hadn't said anything beforehand? That she had been abused? That she had taken justice in her own hand? That she had messed up again?

Will didn't know and, actually, he didn't care. His daughter was the most precious thing in his life. Especially, since she was a living memory of his late wife, Joyce.

Janice watched this scene with a warm smile. She didn't have a family of her own and seeing something like this sometimes let her doubt her choices in life. But then again, things led her back here, to Arcadia. Maybe this was a sign to finally settle down. Maybe…

"C'mon, let's go home!" said Will eventually, guiding his daughter with an arm around her shoulder towards the exit. They would definitely press charges against Eliot, but not today. Right now, they needed some time together to set things straight in their life.

But sometimes, the best plans fail, because destiny wants it this way. In this case, it came in the form of Eliot, whose face was covered by bruises and bandages, and a broad, tall man with an army haircut - clearly his father - who was leading him towards the exit as well.

"You should put a leash on your crazy daughter!"

He had tried to ignore them, holding on tight to his precious Chloe, but as Will heard the snarky comment from Eliot's father, he couldn't hold back anymore.

"And you should ask yourself what's wrong with your asshole of a son!" he barked back, stepping closer to the bulky man, entirely ignoring the authority he radiated. Chloe, however, flinched, looking with fear at him.

"What did you just call my son, whimp?" was the agitated reply from Mr. Hampden, but though he tried to intimidate his opponent even more, Will held his ground, not even stepping back.

"I called him what he is, jackass: an asshole. He abused my daughter, physically and mentally. And this just tells me that he's a dickless asshole."

"Maybe you should check your sources before blaming the wrong person, because he told me otherwise. He said that your daughter provoked him and wanted to be treated like this. Maybe you should send her to a fuckin' psychiatrist or better a looney bin, where she can hang around her own kind and finally get her head fixed!"

"Then why don't you stick your son in one of those freakin' boot-camps, where they can yell his head straight? Seems like those nut-jobs there are totally your thing."

"I think that the army would be a good treatment for your brat! There she would learn to be a normal person and not just a li'l chickenshit, who can't even defend herself against a limp-dick rapist."

William never wanted to let the situation escalate, but as he heard how this man suggested that it had been Chloe's fault what had happened to her, he couldn't hold back anymore and striked Eliot's father right in the face. And it would've turned into a real fistfight, if the surrounding policemen hadn't dragged them both apart.

"HEY!" intervened Lieutenant Carlisle. "Are you two crazy?! This is a police station, not a boxing ring."

"He's not allowed to say such things about my daughter!" countered Will, one arm already wrapped around his daughter, protectively and pointing with the other at Mr. Hampden.

"Maybe, but that's not a way to solve this. Mr. Hampden," she then addressed Eliot's father, "Mr. Price clearly attacked you. Do you wanna press charges against him?"

For a few moments, he ogled his opponent from head to toe, eventually saying "No, that's not how we handle things in our family. He wants a fight, he'll get it. Not here, not now, but sooner or later we'll clear this like real men."

"I think you should learn to don't handle things like that at all, Mr. Hampden," countered Janice. "Your son clearly shows abusive behaviour and he has to have gotten it from somewhere. In my opinion, he needs help."

"I don't care about your opinion, but if you or those people dare to press charges against my son, you'll learn that nobody messes with me or my family!"

Grabbing his son's wrist harshly, both Hampdens left the station and right away the tense atmosphere unwinded. Only Janice was still a bit infuriated.

"I thought I told you to leave 'em alone, Will? Why the heck did you beat him?"

"Because he blamed my daughter for getting raped and that's…"

"...a dick-move, I know," she completed his sentence. "But still no reason. He could've sued the crap outta ya and can now use this violent behaviour against you."

"So, what am I about to do about this?" he countered, wrapping one arm around his daughter's shoulders. "Chloe's everything I've left from her mother. She's my daughter and if defending her gets me into trouble, then so be it. But, with everything there's left in this world, I don't let a person like this man talk crap about her!"

Still wanting to uphold her position, Janice eventually crossed her arms and said "You still should've taken the moral high-ground and ignored him."

"Maybe," Will eventually replied. "But in such cases it's hard. Maybe you'll understand this once you've got some kids yourself, Janice."

Having said everything that needed to be told, William eventually led his daughter out of the station and towards his car. Once inside, he closed his eyes and released a heavy sigh.

Of course it had been a mistake to get physical, but what would've been the alternative? Ignoring him? Giving him the feeling that he'd been right? Disappointing his daughter once more? It was nothing more than a moral dilemma, which's consequences were unforeseeable. Though, one thing was for sure, Will would never leave his daughter standing in the rain ever again!

"D-d-dad?" chimed Chloe's voice, bringing the mid-aged man back from his thoughts and let him shift his full attention towards his daughter, who signed I fucked up pretty bad last night. Can we go to Rachel before I get my shit? I owe her and her mom a huge apology.

Giving her a warm smile, Will nodded in agreement, because if Chloe wanted to apologize for her doings and therefore taking responsibility, he knew that she had already learned a lesson and he would definitely support it.

Though his mind literally screamed to get back to sleep, his aching body fought victoriously against it. Even without taking a peek at his phone's clock, Max knew that it was way too early to wake up. So, he turned around in order to get back to the realm of morpheus, but the pain that went through his sore back let him groan and was the last bit to prevent him from slumbering. Plus, that he now became aware of his full bladder.

Reluctantly, Max opened his eyes and let his gaze rest at the ceiling for a moment before scanning his surroundings.

He still was in Steph's room, having fallen asleep on the couch while watching the second 'The Lord of the Rings' movie. And if he remembered correctly, he had been leaning against the brunette's shoulder.

'Is it embarrassing for a boy to fall asleep like that?' asked Maxine herself internally. 'It felt nice, though. Kinda reminded me about all those movie nights with Chloe, back when we'd been tweens. I never managed to stay awake longer than her.'

Speaking of Steph: the nerdy girl was still in bed, wrapped in her blanket and in deep slumber. Which meant that somewhen last night she must've silently went to bed and tugged him in. Max watched her for a while. Watched how calm she was and took in every detail of her beautiful…

'No, Max, stop thinking like that! She's your best friend and on top your step-sister's girlfriend. Let alone that she likes girls.'

Shaking his head, Max tried to clear his mind from these thoughts and eventually focused on getting up and towards the toilets. Getting there silently enough to don't wake up Steph wasn't the problem, he also had to be very cautious to don't run into other inhabitants, since he still was in the girl's section of the dormitories. Luckily, it was New Year, so either everybody was still asleep from a long night or at home during the holidays.

As he came back, Steph was still sleeping, yet she had turned on her back uncovering the upper half of her body, which was only cladded with a very transparent black bra.

Max froze and gulped hard as he kept on staring at his best friend's literally bare breasts. They were definitely different from Rachel's. Smaller and somewhat pointier.

'Dammit, Max, stop staring and keep your shit! It's just rude and creepy to take advantage of this situation.'

Taking another deep breath, Max eventually averted his gaze and went back to the couch, trying to distract himself by playing a game on his phone.

Time went by, minute for minute. Soon, the phone's battery got low and so the young boy took one of the comics that were piled up on a small table beside the sofa and kept on reading until his eyes got heavy again and he dozed off. Only a big, loud yawn let him wake up again. It was Steph, who was sitting upright in her bed, yawning and stretching.

There were only rare moments you could see the nerdy girl without her beanie, this being one of them while the other ones were PE and swimming.

Her now entirely free brown hair was scruffy and her exhausted demeanor made clear that this wasn't a good morning.

"Gosh, please remind me next time to go soft on the drinks," she said with a groan, holding her head with both hands while peeking at Max, who also looked very drowsy from his last visit to dreamland. "Shit, guess I'm not the only one who had a rough night."

"Your couch sucks!" he groaned, stretching his limbs, too. Which, however, only induced a chuckle by Steph.

"I know. And normally I would've invited you to cramp up in my bed, but...you're so fast asleep that I couldn't wake you up."

"Pft," he scoffed in return, before becoming aware again that Steph was only scarcely dressed. "B-but maybe it was for the best, y-y'know."

Frowning upon the boy's words, Steph eventually looked down on herself and gasped. "Fuck, I totally forgot that I was wearing this," she spoke and covered her breasts with her hands. "Did you peek?"

It was a trick question, evident by this sheepish grin. No matter the answer, she wouldn't be mad at all.

"I, uh...I…"

"You really peeped?!" she exclaimed, catching Max off guard. "Dude, I thought you had a girlfriend?!"

"I-I-I…" he stuttered in panic. "I was takin' a leak and when I came back, you were lying there and…"

Suddenly, Steph burst out in laughter, falling back on the bed. "Dude, y-your face...ha-ha-ha...you should've seen your face. Ha-ha! All 'Oh my god, I'm so fucked'."

"Hardy-har-har," returned Max poutingly, crossing his arms. But got calmed down as his friend slumped down beside him on the sofa and embraced him into a short hug.

"Hey, I'm just messing with ya! I actually don't give a shit that you see me naked."

"But why?" he asked in return, looking at the brunette with a frown. "I-isn't that kinda against your privacy?"

"Good golly, Max. It's just my flat tits and a bush. And I honestly don't care if you jerk off to 'em. Besides,..." She then got up again, putting on some sweatpants and a t-shirt. "...it's all Chloe's fault. If she wouldn't have fucked up, she would've been the only one to see this. Now excuse me for a moment, nature calls."

Befuddled, he watched how Steph put on some sweatshirt and sweatpants and left him alone for a moment, giving Maxine time to think.

'This reality is so strange. Steph, Rachel...I never met them before, but they're so awesome, which let me ask myself, how Chloe could end up so...wasted? But here, everything's different, yet crazy. Rachel, my girlfriend. Steph, Chloe's girlfriend. It looks like the cards had been mixed anew and I've a chance to make everything right. The only catch: I have to do it as a boy. Good dog, I just hope that I'm not fucking it up again.'

The door lock clicked and Steph sauntered back in, throwing her curled up underwear on the bed. "Actually, I hate to wear that stuff. I just got it for Chloe, 'cause she's kinda into this stuff. Wish I would've known how full of shit she is before I got this crap."

Hearing how Steph was talking herself into rage again, Maxine realized that this better world she was recently living in was about to crumble to dust again. Yes, Chloe messed up, but she also showed signs of remorse; that she regretted what she had done. And then there was Rachel, who obviously got into big trouble with her mom, her only anchor that seemed to keep her a bit sane when Max wasn't around.

'I have to set things right again! Chloe needs Steph and Rachel needs her mom. In this mad world we all need each other, like an emotional equilibrium that holds us together. I saw the other reality, where, though I kept in touch with Chloe, she was doomed to die as well as Rachel. And I...I was just an asshole who even got involved with the Vortex Club rather than with my best friend. No, I can't let that happen, not again! I got a second chance and I'm gonna use it! I'll keep us together! And all it takes is a bit of meddling…'

"Y'know," Max eventually said, trying to calm down Steph. "Maybe Chloe feels sorry about what she did."

But sadly, it didn't have the desired effect. "So? Even if she's sorry, it doesn't undo what she did. She literally fucked us all over."

"But isn't everyone allowed to make a mistake?" returned Max, but Steph just got started.

"One mistake? ONE mistake?! Max, you know as well as me that this was just one of a shit-pile of mistakes."

"And still you started to date her."

Steph froze for a moment, letting her friend's words sink in until she released all this within boiling anger with a deep sigh.

"I always knew that there was more to her than this bad rep. So, I gave her a chance. But after last night…"

"Tell ya what," Max then said with an encouraging smile. "Let's make a deal! How about we talk to Chloe? If she's really that full of shit, you can boot her and I'll even support you. But if she's really sorry…"

"...I'll give her another chance and will kiss your ass for stopping me from makin' a huge mistake."

Chuckling, Max returned "I'll remind you about that asskissing later."

"You wish!" snickered Steph in reply, which made clear that the once bad mood had entirely vanished.

'Okay, Max, one down, one more to go!'

"Um, Steph," he then said after the joy had abated a bit. "I wanna check how Rachel's doing. I'm a bit worried about her since she doesn't answer our calls. And her mom definitely deserves a big apology."

"You bet she does," concurred the brunette girl and then added with a wink "Alright, let's dress up and head out. Though, this time I wouldn't mind if you wait outside until I'm done."