Suddenly, Max and I found ourselves back in the Dark Room. "Oh fuck… Why are we here again? What just happened?" I asked, trying to free myself from the straps that felt even tighter now, making me feel really scared. I felt blood on the side of my head.
"I-It might have skipped you, Aiden. I thought we fixed everything," Max said, sounding even more frightened than I was. Jefferson heard us and came over. Why was he here? He should be in jail, not with us!
"Wow, it feels like you two are back in my classroom, still daydreaming," Jefferson remarked. "Maybe you should snap one of your famous selfies to show the change from the old Max to the new Max." Just then, Max's nose began to bleed. "Hey, your nose is bleeding," he said, reaching out to touch her face.
"DON'T TOUCH HER!" I yelled at him, my voice full of anger. He turned away from Max and faced me. "How could I forget you, Aiden Price? You wouldn't be here if you weren't so attached to Max. I need you to witness her transformation from innocent to... corrupted," he said with a chilling tone.
"Eat shit and die!" I shouted back, spitting at him as I glared. "I see you're pretty brave. Too bad you warned Victoria Chase about Nathan. She started snooping around and asking questions she shouldn't have. She got what she deserved," he replied coldly.
I felt a heavy weight in my chest when he revealed that he had killed Victoria Chase. "You son of a bitch… I'm going to rip your head off and shit down your fucking neck!" I shouted, shaking with anger.
"Shut the fuck up! I have some things to take care of," he said as he turned away from us. He headed to his desk to grab something, and my heart started pounding when I realized what was coming. "What should we do? Oh God..." Max exclaimed, panicking and trying to break free.
"I'll think of something, Max. I won't let him hurt you," I reassured her, determined to protect the girl I loved. Jefferson returned with a syringe in his hand. "I'm really sorry you have to see this, Max. I promise this last dose won't hurt," he said, pulling my head back to inject me with the needle.
Max cried out, "No! Please!" and her voice was filled with sadness. I glanced at her and noticed tears streaming down her face. Was she really going to be the last thing I saw before it all ended? "Max… Don't look… I love you so much… Just save yourself…" I managed to say, fighting back my own tears.
"PLEASE! DON'T DO THIS!" Max yelled, desperately trying to save me. Just as Jefferson was about to inject me with that needle, we heard the bunker door creak open. "What?" he exclaimed, turning to see who was there. He dashed toward the door, his tripod clutched tightly in his hands.
Max and I were shocked to see David walk in. Just then, Jefferson swung his tripod at David's head, knocking him out cold. "No, David! No!" Max shouted, and we quickly realized we needed to rewind to warn him. So, we did just that.
As Jefferson was about to jab me with a needle again, he heard the door creak open. "What?" he said, rushing over and grabbing his tripod. Max shouted, "David! Watch out!" "Jefferson can hear you! Careful, he's got a fucking gun!" I shouted to David.
"How?! How did you two know that!?" Jefferson shouted.
David entered with his gun drawn, and when Jefferson swung at him, the gun went off. "No gun. No balls," Jefferson sneered. "Jefferson! It's over!" David yelled back, his voice full of determination.
"You can't stop me!" Jefferson yelled as he dashed toward the shelf where the music player was. Max quickly warned David, "He's got a gun over there!" David rushed to disarm Jefferson but tragically got shot in the process. Max and I quickly rewound time to prevent that from happening.
"You can't stop me!" Jefferson yelled, sprinting toward the shelf with his gun. I noticed the cable from one of the umbrella lights under my foot. I quickly freed my left foot and kicked the cord, causing the light to topple over. This distraction gave David the chance to land a solid punch on Jefferson, knocking off his glasses and sending him crashing to the ground.
David rushed over to Max and me, quickly working to free us from our bindings. "Oh no, Max, Aiden! Are you both alright? Can you move?" he asked as he finished untying us. I got up from the chair, feeling a little dizzy from all the abuse I had endured from Jefferson.
"Yes... thank you, David... Thank you," Max replied, standing up and rubbing her sore wrists. She glanced at me with tears in her eyes and ran over, wrapping her arms around my neck tightly. "Oh God, Max..." I said, returning her embrace. I could feel her crying against my chest, and she was trembling a bit.
"David, thank you so much," I told him while I held Max close. She was clinging to me tightly, and I could feel her body was tense with fear. "It's alright, Max. I'm right here," I reassured her, giving her a gentle kiss on the head.
"He was about to..." she said softly, still trembling. I cupped her tear-streaked face to make her look at me. "I'm safe now. Everything is okay," I assured her while I wiped her cheeks. She leaned in and kissed me, and I kissed her back. We shared that moment for a few seconds before pulling away. "Let's wrap up this son of a bitch first," David said, going over to Jefferson. "I got it," I told him, letting go of Max to deal with this bastard myself.
Jefferson was starting to wake up, so I hit him hard in the face, and he went out cold. While that happened, Max grabbed her bag and put on her hoodie before coming over to me. I felt a little dizzy and needed to sit down for a moment.
"Are you okay?" Max asked as she joined me on the couch, rubbing my back. I glanced at her and replied, "Yeah... I'm fine. Just a little dizzy." I realized the drugs Jefferson had given me were still affecting me. Plus, I remember Jefferson hitting me in the head with that fucking tripod.
"What's happening, Max?" I asked, glancing at her. "Jefferson destroyed my journal, Aiden. We can only save Chloe in one way. I snapped a picture with Warren outside the Vortex Club party," she whispered.
"Do you know where he is?" I inquired. "Not yet. I need to try calling him, but I have no signal," she replied. "Let's go look for him," I suggested, feeling my dizziness fade.
We approached Jefferson's desk, and I grabbed his car keys. I noticed Chloe's bullet necklace lying there. There was no fucking way I was leaving it behind. I picked it up and handed it to Max, who took it without a second thought.
"Let's get out of here," I said, grabbing her hand. She held on tight as we tried to escape the Dark Room. "Wait a minute, you two," he called, making us come back to him.
"Are you alright, David?" I asked, keeping Max close. "Look at this place… it feels like a nightmare," David said, crossing his arms. He really had no clue how bad it was.
"Jefferson almost killed me… I'm so relieved you made it before he could… he would have killed Max too…" I said, my heart pounding. She tightened her grip on my hand. "I'm really happy I did. I always had a feeling about that guy," David said.
"We never figured it out... until it was too late," Max said, his voice shaky. "You both shouldn't have to doubt your teacher," David said, sounding more relaxed now.
"He was anything but a teacher. All he wanted was to lecture. Should've known it was part of his sick plans," I said, still feeling sick from not catching on that Jefferson was a sick fuck. "I'll never forgive myself for what happened to Kate. It feels like I pushed her off that roof," David admitted, sounding truly remorseful about Kate's fate.
"Don't blame yourself... It was Nathan and Jefferson who put her in that situation," Max said, tears in her eyes. "I always knew Nathan Prescott was dangerous. I just took too long to deal with him," David responded.
"He already did, David. They had a strange father-son relationship. He killed Rachel, and Jefferson used him as a scapegoat," I explained to him. "That pervert was doing all this right under my nose. I could have stopped him and Jefferson if I hadn't been so foolish," David said.
"I told Principal Wells that Nathan had a gun and almost used it. He didn't believe me... I should have spoken up more," Max added. I remember her saying this to Chloe and me when we first got back together. It feels like ages since that moment.
"We all make choices we wish we could change. I have to say, I'm really impressed by you two and Chloe for your investigation. I had all these fancy gadgets, but you three had each other," he said. Just hearing Chloe's name and knowing Jefferson was responsible for her death made it hard to breathe.
I wondered how David would react if we told him what happened to her. Just thinking about it made my stomach hurt. "We had a rough beginning, David… It wasn't easy," I said, recalling all the tough times Chloe and I faced when we were just sixteen. I regret being dick to him, even if I thought he deserved it back then.
David admitted, "I won't make excuses for what I did. I wanted to be a good soldier, but I failed. I wanted to be a good father to Chloe and a great uncle to you, Aiden, but I couldn't."
"When Joyce kicked me out, I had nothing," David said, and it made me feel even worse. I started to understand that David wasn't a bad person; he was just trying to protect his family. He seemed tough and didn't show his feelings easily, probably because he served in the military.
If he didn't care about Chloe and me, he wouldn't care at all. I realize now that he's not Uncle William, and that's perfectly fine. He's not supposed to be. Aunt Joyce seemed happier after Uncle William passed away, and maybe that's what really matters.
"I really regret what happened, David. That wasn't my intention at all," Max admitted with a heavy heart. "I feel the same way. We need to let Aunt Joyce know we were wrong about you. I understand why she cares for you now," I replied, sharing his feelings of guilt.
"I don't want to blame my service, but coming back from war is tough. Many people don't understand or even think about it, except for Joyce. She's the one who brought hope back into my life," he explained.
Max felt emotional as he said, "You really saved us. Chloe would be so proud of you." I put my arm around her waist, my heart feeling heavy. "I just want her to be safe with her mom. I told Joyce I'd visit a family counselor, and I'll begin by saying sorry to Chloe. I don't think she'll ever call me dad, but maybe she'll stop calling me 'step-douche.' So, where is Chloe?" he asked, looking for her.
I stared at Max, tears welling up in my eyes. I couldn't stop them from streaming down my cheeks. As many times as we've lied to him. I remember that he had lost a friend in the military. I couldn't bear to tell him that… I couldn't. Max couldn't do it either.
Max sniffled as she explained, "David, um... she was really stressed, so she went to her room to, you know, calm down before we got here." I could see she was uncomfortable saying that, and honestly, I felt the same way but couldn't bring myself to admit it.
"Y-Yeah... she's fine. I was thinking about doing it too," I replied, feeling a wave of guilt wash over me. David looked relieved, but I wasn't. I felt like shit for not being honest with him about Chloe. He deserved to know what really happened.
"Oh, thank god. For once, I'm glad you and Chloe are stoners," David laughed in relief. "David... we need to step outside for some fresh air. I have to use my phone," Max said to him.
"Absolutely. You two can go. You both are brave soldiers. Max, I'm happy that Aiden and Chloe have a loyal friend in you. Aiden, it's great that Chloe has such an great cousin like you," he told us. At this moment, Max and I share a bond that goes beyond friendship. It's clear to everyone. I thought he might mention Jodie… but he values his pride.
David walked over to Jefferson's computer and said, "You two have seen enough of this room." I glanced at the needles, recalling the sharp sting of one piercing my neck. Max trembled beside me, clearly upset.
I noticed the photos Jefferson had taken of her, and Max whispered, "I want to burn all of these pictures, Aiden," unable to face them. I replied, "I feel the same way... I can't forget how you screamed when he drugged you," haunted by the memory of her cries.
'Goddammit… I feel like I'm gonna vomit just from looking at that fucking chair,' I thought, feeling the straps holding me down. I know Max had the same feelings as I did. We needed to leave before we had a panic attack.