Max:
When Max woke up, her body felt tired and sore. She felt as if she ran a marathon.
Which was pretty strange. She didn't do much the day before. Hell, after some studying, she went to bed early.
She sat up, groaning from the stiffness in her joints. She fought a vague wave a nausea successfully.
She peaked at her polaroids taped up neatly on the wall. Neatly, except for one. It somehow became slightly crooked.
She sat on her knees and leaned forward to fix the photograph. The picture was one of her and Chloe from July. They had gone to see one of Chloe's favorite bands. They took the photo outside of the arena, it was one of her favorites. In fact, next to that was a photo of her and Chloe with the bassist. The bassist's long ginger hair reminded her of her hair in her dream.
Ugh, she was not ready for school. Even on a Thursday.
At that moment of laziness, her adopted sister barged in. "Maximillion!"
"Morning Chloe," the brunette replied with a tired smile.
"Do you even set an alarm? C'mon lazy ass, you're late!"
Max rolled her eyes. "Is there time to get a shower?"
"Probably. If you hurry."
"Yeah, I'll do that. Mom make pancakes?"
"Yep, you better hurry."
"I'll be out in a few. Don't eat my pancakes!"
"I won't. Only if you promise not to play with your tits again. That shit was hella awkward to walk in on."
Chloe left the room before Max could ask her what the hell she meant. Needless to say, she was very confused. Maybe Chloe just had a really bizarre dream. She's famous for those.
Nearly ten minutes later, Max stumbled her way out of the shower. Thankfully, washing her hair stopped it from looking like a rat's nest. She wiggled herself into some clothes. A white souvenir t-shirt with an artist's portrayal of the Space Needle, a grey hoodie, unzipped, jeans and grey converse. She finally sat her skinny butt at the table to eat some of her Mom's pancakes. Sure, they weren't Joyce's, but they were still pancakes.
"Sleeping beauty awakes!" her mother exclaims before setting a plate in front of Max. Her stomach growled in anticipation.
She shoved heaping mouthfuls of pancakes into her piehole. She didn't care how messy it looked.
"Someone's hungry," her mother smirked.
"I'd say. Good thing I didn't steal any." Chloe laughed at the thought before stealing the seat beside her.
Max smiled at Chloe. She's come a long way since the accident. Nearly six years ago, Chloe's parents, Joyce and William were involved in a car accident. They were both killed instantly.
Aaron Price was the only other living relative of William. Legally, he was supposed to take custody of Chloe. Luckily, and a little thanks to Chloe's rebellious nature, Ryan and Vanessa were able to convince Aaron to sign over rights to Chloe. Vanessa and Ryan have been her "parents" ever since. Legally, that makes Max and Chloe sisters.
It took a long time for Chloe to heal. Fortunately, it seems she has come out for the better. Although, they all miss Joyce and William.
Max couldn't imagine life without Chloe.
"Max? Maaaaaxxxxx?"
Max blinked several times. She had been spacing out probably a little too much.
"Is something wrong, Max?" Vanessa spoke up. "You seem to be spacing out a lot lately."
"I'm fine, I promise. Where's dad?"
Vanessa and Chloe gave each other a look. The same thought seemed to occur to them because they both nodded.
"Am I missing something?" Max asked, perplexed.
"I told you yesterday that your father is taking extra hours at his job. His shift starts a little earlier. If you actually wake up earlier, lazy bones, then maybe you can see him. Don't you remember me telling you that?"
Max furrowed her eyebrows. "No, I don't."
"Well, gotta go," Chloe declared. She shoved her phone in her pocket and stood suddenly. She grabbed Max's wrist to half carry her out.
"What's the rush?" Max asked, hurridly.
Chloe was practically dragging her out the door. Max barely had time to readjust the shoulder bag holding her trusty camera before stumbling her way outside. Chloe stopped her before she could fall.
Max was able to get a good look at Chloe in the sun. Sure, the morning sun was warm. She didn't think it called for a white tank top, ripped jeans, (like seriously ripped), and boots. No beanie today. Strange.
"Who are you all dressed up for?"
Chloe scoffed. "You think this is dressing up?"
"I can practically see your thighs!"
Chloe rolled her eyes. But, she gave in. "We're walking to school with Rachel, okay?"
Ah, so that was her angle. Chloe has been crushing on Rachel since three years ago when she moved to Seattle. Max was pretty sure the day she arrived was the day Chloe decided she was a lesbian. Chloe had been pining for her ever since.
Not that Max could blame her. If she were into chicks, as Chloe would say, she would definitely crush on Rachel. Who wouldn't?
Chloe and Max were already good friends with Rachel. They didn't hang out all the time, but when they did they had fun. The only thing was, Rachel never walked with them to school. Why would she do that now?
Although, it dawned on her why Chloe decided to be such a smartass in recent years. Maybe to impress Rachel?
"Why?" Max. Asking all the important questions.
Chloe gave her an exasperated look. Max suddenly felt like an idiot, and she wasn't sure why.
"Do you not remember me telling you yesterday she broke up with Frank the other day?"
"Uh, no. You never said that."
Chloe mumbled something under her breath. Max felt embarrassed, but for the life of her, she could not remember anything like what Chloe mentioned. She was sure if something like that happened she would remember.
So, she apparently broke it off with Frank. Frank was okay, in Max's opinion. He was definitely into drugs, and he could have a temper, but he was typically an okay guy. Rachel and Frank had been together for the last few months. Max wondered why they broke it off.
"Since apparently you don't remember, Rachel and Frank mutually broke it off. Before we went home yesterday, we talked to her about walking to school."
Max understood. Chloe would be using this opportunity to get closer to Rachel. The walk to school from the Caulfield house was only about 10 minutes. Rachel lived only a few houses down the block. She's on the way, they wouldn't be pressed for time.
Chloe sped in front of her with her long ass legs. Max had to practically jog to keep up with Chloe. Jeez, hopefully it'll work out the stiffness in her legs.
Chloe suddenly stopped in front of Rachel's house. Max's rush nearly caused her to plow straight into Chloe. Fortunately, she was able to stop just in time.
After taking several breaths, Chloe knocked on Rachel's door. Sure enough, Rachel opened the door to greet them. She dressed in an outfit a little more accustomed to the warm September day. She wore a light blue sleeveless shirt over a black tank top, white jean shorts and even black and pink Chuck Taylor's. Her usual blue earrings hung down. Max chuckled at Chloe staring at the new Chuck Taylor's.
"Hello, ladies," Rachel greeted them politely.
"Get some new kicks?" Chloe asked. Her voice was ever so slightly hoarse.
"Yep! You like 'em?" Max swore Rachel looked at Chloe a beat longer than her.
After both girls admitted they appreciated Rachel's choice in footwear, the girl in question moved past them. "C'mon, slowpokes, before we're late."
Chloe for some inexplicable reason nudged Max on the shoulder before following. Max gave her a questioning look before following her two friends.
They had walked a small distance before Rachel broke the silence. "I'm glad you're not staring at me today, Max."
"What do you mean?"
"I could have sworn every time I looked at you yesterday, you blushed and looked away."
That's weird. Max had no memory of even talking to Rachel the day before. In fact, the last time she remembered seeing Rachel was in her dream. Only, this version of Rachel was much younger. Max quickly dismissed this thought.
"Now that you mention it," Chloe cut in, "I don't remember you taking any photos yesterday."
"Now that," Rachel voiced, "is hella strange."
Max rolled her eyes. It's not like she took photos every second of every day. She wanted to divert the conversation away from her. She decided the best way to do that was to slightly embarrass her sister.
"Jeez, gang up on the photographer. You two would make a great couple the way you join forces."
That did the trick. Chloe looked bashful while Rachel gave Chloe a look Max couldn't recognize. It was almost as if she was considering her.
Before Chloe could retaliate, Max had already climbed two or three steps to their school. "Well, looks like we're here! See you guys later!"
Max retrieved her earphones from inside her pocket and plugged them in her ears. Turning her music on high, she sped to her photography class. Don't want to be late for Mr. Jefferson's class.
Max was not one of the early students to class. Upon approaching the door to the classroom, Max hesitently removed her ear buds. Immediately, she was greeted by whispers of the other students. Not to mention the jeers from rival student and queen bee, Victoria Chase.
For some reason Max could never figure out, Victoria has always detested Max.
Max tried her best to ignore the bully, but she couldn't help listen to more of her insults towards the way she dresses and her photography style.
Would she ever stop?
Her teacher, Mr. Mark Jefferson, gave her a bemused expression. "Max Caulfield. Glad to see you remember what time this class is."
Max's cheeks brightened from the statement. It didn't help that a majority of the other students snickered, adding to the humiliation. Although, she had absolutely no clue what he was talking about. She didn't know what to say to help whatever she got herself into.
"Have nothing to say?"
He didn't seem angry, or irritated. But still, it seemed like he wanted an answer.
"I'm, uh, sorry, Mr. Jefferson. I'll do better."
"You're lucky you're one of the most brilliant photography students we have here. Like I said, yesterday, I'll let you off with a warning, but don't let it happen again."
"I won't."
She would be more embarrassed if she had an idea what he meant. She quietly slid into her seat beside her table mate, Kate. She took a couple of deep breaths, trying to calm herself down before any anxiety attack could happen.
"You feeling okay, Max?"
That would be Kate. Kate is a very sweet girl, around Max's age. They've been table mates since the beginning of the year. Max really liked Kate, and was thinking about inviting her over to hang out with her sometime.
"I'm okay, Kate," she smiled warmly at the blonde girl. "I'm just confused."
"Hopefully not as much as you were yesterday."
"What do you mean?"
"You don't remember yesterday? You showed up to class a good 15 minutes late. Said you couldn't find the class or your locker. Are you sure you're feeling all right?"
"Yeah," Max felt herself lying. "I, uh, think I hit my head when I fell out of my bed yesterday. I'm totally fine now."
If Kate didn't believe her, she didn't show it. Max wasn't exactly sure why she felt the need to lie, but until she found out why people kept inferring Max added strange the day before, she would continue to lie. Sound confusing? Cause Max is sure confused.
As far as yesterday was concerned, she remembers it being a typical Wednesday. Nothing abormal happened. She doesn't remember being late to any of her classes or hearing any of Chloe's life-shattering news. She remembers getting up for the day, school like usual, then going home and doing some homework. She remembers studying for her Friday Literature test before passing out at around 9:30. She remembers having a really strange dream before waking up this morning. That's it.
The way everyone was acting, Max couldn't help but shake the feeling that she missed a whole day. Which is preposterous. How could she just skip a whole day? Maybe Kate would have the answers…
"Hey, Kate?"
"Hmm?"
"You say I acted different yesterday?"
"Yeah, actually. Not completely different, because you still seemed spacy and you made obscure references, but it was like you forgot everything. And, once you got here, you just sketched and wrote in your notebook the entire time."
Max shot her a curious look but Kate just shrugged. Kate turned to Mr. Jefferson. He started to lecture about Twilight photography. Max listened to him say that twilight is the "magic hour" before she decided to tune him out.
If there are drawings and writings in my notebook, she thought to herself, then everyone must be telling the truth. I missed an entire day.
Cautiously, perhaps slightly over-dramatically, she opened her notebook. After flipping several pages, she found what she dreaded. Covering at least 7 pages was unfamiliar writing. Writing that was most definitely not hers. Drawings that she did not illustrate. Chemical formulas she had no knowledge of even existing.
She freaked out. Rapidly turning pages like her life depended on it, she bit her tongue to stifle a shriek from escaping her throat.
She closed her eyes and tried to breathe. Maybe she was having another bizarre dream. Dog, let's hope so.
She slowly turned one more page. It seemed to be the last page this stranger wrote in. The page was devoid of any drawings or equations. It simply bore three words in big bold letters:
"Who are you?"
Several hours later, Max sat at a table and waited for Chloe and Rachel to bring her lunch. Luckily, they all had period 1 lunch together, and Chloe usually insisted she bring Max lunch. Max just assumed Rachel would be eating with them now that her and Frank were no longer an item.
Max was on her phone. It no longer surprised her that she missed an entire day. When she opened her journal app, she discovered that today was somehow Friday. The only question is, "How?"
She had been trying to figure out how a stranger wrote in her notebook. How could that have happened when Kate says she wrote all of that? It didn't make any sense. Unless…
"Hey guys," Max greeted her friends as they sat at the table. "Can I ask you guys something?"
"Sure." They each slid into the benches across from Max. Chloe handed Max her food. Max couldn't care less about food right now.
"What was I like yesterday?"
Chloe seemed a little taken aback, but after sharing a look with Rachel, Chloe dug in. "You were weird yesterday. It was like you had total amnesia."
"You didn't know who I was or where any of your classes were," Rachel added.
"It was like you were staring at everything too. Like you've never lived in Seattle before. It was hella strange."
"Wowser," Max muttered.
"Yeah," Rachel voiced. "It was like you were in some sort of trance. You also wore that jacket of yours zipped up. I've never seen you do that either."
"Did you hit your head or something yesterday?"
"Yeah," Max lied. "I think yesterday I rolled out of bed."
Chloe smirked. "Was this before or after I walked in on you fondling your boobs?"
Max blushed a deep scarlet before managing to squeak out the word "before".
Rachel and Chloe then continued to talk as if Max wasn't there. Not that Max minded. She had some things to figure out.
According to literally everyone, she missed an entire day. She has no memory of Thursday. Not even a hint. Apparently though, she was in school. She had assignments from yesterday due tomorrow. Kate even told her she was in class and apparently wrote that 'message' in her notebook.
It was like someone took control of her body yesterday. Just like her dream. Instead, in her dream, she was in someone else's body. A guy's body.
What if-? No, that's crazy. The idea is just absolutely insane!
But it's the only one that makes sense.
What if her dream wasn't a dream? What if she switched bodies with someone else?
It was late. Max had brought her photography notebook home with her. She flipped through the intruder's notes. The formulas, the drawings, his message.
She couldn't make any sense of it. Did they really switch bodies? If so, why did it happen?
"Who are you?" she whispered.
She took a selfie then. It was the only thing she could think of that could calm the adrenaline coursing through her.
She felt tired now. Winded. Like she hadn't slept in days.
But she had an idea. If her theory was correct, and they switched bodies, they could do it again. This guy needed to know who she was. The last thing she needed was some random guy ruining her life. What was his name again? William? Warrick? Warren?
With a black marker, she wrote on her forearm:
My name is Max Caulfield.
Phone password: 081114
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