Two weeks later, Max wanted to go back to Arcadia Bay.

"You're just going to torture yourself. You don't need to do this," Chloe had pleaded, wanting Max to stay in Seattle, where she wasn't being constantly reminded about the storm. Max was headstrong though, and refused to listen to Chloe's wishes. She wanted to see David, and Kate, and maybe even Victoria, but Chloe was certain she just wanted to remind herself of what they left behind. So, as much as she hated the idea, Chloe gassed up her truck and tried to mentally prepare herself to drive back into that damn town.

Max had a nightmare right before they were scheduled to drive down. Most nights she made it through without a peep, but they still popped up randomly. This time, Chloe had to shake her awake, and Max had cried herself back to sleep. It utterly broke Chloe's heart, knowing she couldn't do anything about it except hold on to Max and hope one day the nightmares stopped.

Max actually seemed somewhat happy as they got closer to Arcadia Bay. She had been texting Kate the whole drive, but was otherwise quiet. Kate's family had survived the storm as well, and they had been helping David out at the Blackwell shelter.

Once they hit the city limits, however, there was a definite mood change in the truck. The roads had been cleared, but the buildings were in various states of disaster. Some looked barely touched, while others were leveled. Chloe felt a little nauseous as they drove closer to Blackwell, trying to avoid looking at the damage. Her heart clenched as they drove past the Two Whales, the windows blown out and no lights inside. She kept breathing deeply through her nose, trying to keep herself together.

Max was completely silent, looking out the windows with wide eyes. She had to understand now that she made the wrong choice, how Chloe wasn't worth all of this destruction. Chloe hated the thought, but she couldn't keep it out of her head.

Blackwell had quite a few cars in the parking lot, but it was no longer full. David had mentioned that a lot of people had moved in with family out of town, or had headed towards Portland. The people who didn't have the option of leaving were the ones still at Blackwell.

Like David before, the site of Blackwell sent an odd mix of emotions through Chloe. Both the disgust of the pretentiousness of it, but also a sense of familiarity. The statue of Mr. Blackwell himself had been knocked over, and a couple of windows had been boarded up, but it was otherwise in one piece.

Chloe climbed out of the truck, and had gotten around to the front of it when she realized Max was still sitting in the cab. She walked around to the passenger door, opening it. "Max, you alright in there?" Max stared straight ahead, not seeming to notice her. Chloe reached out, gently grabbing her hand. Max jumped a little bit at the sensation, looking down at Chloe. "You can do this, okay? You're the strongest person I know." She knew what was going through Max's mind, and although Chloe would have been happy to get back in the truck and drive away, she knew Max wouldn't forgive her for that any time soon.

Slowly, Max climbed out of the truck, never letting go of Chloe's hand. She was distinctly aware this was the first time out in public that they were walking around, holding hands. It felt natural, like they had done this forever, and Chloe decided right there and then that anyone who wanted to judge them could go fuck themselves.

As they got closer to the front of the building, David stepped out of the front door, holding it open. "Hey girls!" He seemed genuinely excited to see them, even if his eyes froze for a second on their joined hands. Max was gripping Chloe's hand so tightly that even if she wanted to try to let go, she wasn't sure she'd be able to escape.

"How was the drive?" David asked as they walked through the front door.

"Long and insufferable," Chloe replied. To her surprise, David's eyes crinkled as he smiled at her. "Wow, missed me that much, David?"

He cleared his throat. "Maybe a little." He let them wander the entry hall, glancing at the stations set up in the school. A row of labeled tables ran along the hallway leading to the cafeteria, some for clothing and other supplies, a few for volunteering opportunities. Chloe could see one for missing persons; she made sure to keep Max as far away from that one as she could. The binder for it seemed pretty thick.

Walking into the cafeteria was, for a moment, normal. Most of the tables were full of people, some eating and others just chatting. There didn't seem to be a solemn atmosphere though; life was moving on for these people.

"Max!" A girl moved from around one of the nearby serving tables, and Chloe recognized her pretty quickly. She had never met Kate before, but she had heard enough about her to guess this was her. David excused himself back to his station as Kate came closer.

Kate quickly gave Max a hug, which she returned one handed - she was still refusing to let go of Chloe's hand. As Kate pulled away, Chloe noticed her glance quickly down at their hands, just like David did. Despite the cross dangling around her neck and assumptions Chloe was making about it, Kate seemed even happier than before. "And you must be Chloe!" She didn't try to hug Chloe, which she was fine with. "Max has told me so much about you."

"All sexy things, I hope," Chloe remarked, and she was pleased to see a little redness appearing on Max's cheeks. Max gave her a vehement look, but Kate didn't seem to mind, and actually smiled more.

"You guys are so cute," Kate said, and Chloe mentally tallied one more for the shipping team. "It's four hours from Seattle right? You guys must be hungry. Go ahead and grab something, the Chases have been donating plenty of food, so no worries."

"The Chases? As in, Victoria Chase?" Max asked.

Kate nodded. "She came into the hospital while I was still in - I was suppose to be discharged the day of the storm, but everything got delayed. She's-" Kate dropped her voice down a little. "She's hasn't been as abrasive since the storm. Whatever happened to her with J-Jefferson definitely changed her."

Max's hand clenched at the sound of Jefferson's name, and Chloe winched a little. Kate had no idea that Max had gone through the same hell as her and Victoria. But that was Max's story to tell, if she ever did.

"And-and how are you, Kate?" Max asked, her tone slightly higher than usual. Chloe was certain her best friend would be waking her up in the middle of the night after a day like today.

Kate gave a small smile. "I'm managing. We've been able to help a lot of families coming through here. Most of the people have left already, but some just don't have anywhere to go. I've been keeping myself busy with whatever needs to be done." She pointed back over to the serving tables, where two other girls waved back. "My sisters have been helping too, it's nice to get to hang out with them so much."

"I bet, Kate." Max kept up a casual conversation as they went and grabbed some food, only letting go of Chloe's hand once she needed both to balance her plate. Kate joined them at one of the few empty tables, and Chloe was aware of people staring at them. She wasn't sure if it was curiousity or recognizition, but either way it made her uncomfortable and a little agitated. She shoveled food into her mouth to try to drown them out. No need for a spaz moment to make the day any worse.

Looking around further, Chloe saw a couple of people she recognized - Dana Ward was waving at them from across the room, and she could see Brooke Scott in another corner, dozing off. Most of the people, though, were faces she recognized from having been in the Two Whales so much, but not enough that she knew their names.

Chloe found herself zoning out, letting Max talk for the two of them. At some point, Max's hand found it's way back to Chloe's under the table, and Chloe held on to it like the world depended on it.

After literal hours, Chloe finally had enough and dragged Max away to get some sleep. Kate had given them both hugs before wishing them a goodnight. Chloe and Max held hands as they walked over to the dorms - Kate had mentioned that the dorms were not being used, due to the personal items inside, so they would be able to crash in Max's old room.

There was a strange silence as Chloe closed the door to Max's dorm. She had not been inside it before, and it was weird to see what a happier Max had decorated her room with. The real Max was holding her arms around herself, as though trying to keep herself together. It hurt Chloe to watch her put herself through this.

"Max, are you okay?" Chloe asked quietly, gently grabbing her upper arms to try to get Max to look up at her. She did look up, with her eyes red and teeth clenched into her bottom lip. "Don't start doing that shit, it's not your fault-"

Before she knew it, Max was kissing her.

For a moment Chloe forgot how to exist, but where her brain failed her body stepped in. One of her hands snuck up to grab a handful of Max's hair, and the other made its way to her waist, pulling her closer.

You need to stop this, she thought to herself, but between the warmth and the satisfied monster in her chest, Chloe couldn't. How could she have ever thought that this wasn't right? Max fucking Caulfield, the one person in her life that she had always leaned on, the one person who would go to the literal ends of the earth for her, and Chloe would do the same for her in a heartbeat.

Over the blood pounding in her ears, she could hear Max say her name, and she never knew that she needed to hear her best friend say her name like that - with longing, desperation, desire.

But she needed to stop this.

With a groan, Chloe released Max, gently pushing her away. Max looked back at her, confused and looking a little hurt. "Max, you're not in a good headspace right now," she stated.

There was a little pout spreading on her face. "Chloe, I- I want this," she stammered, frustration in her voice.

"I know. And I'd be a fucking liar if I said I didn't want it, too." This seemed to appease Max a little, and her pout disappeared as her eyes widened. Chloe reached a hand out, brushing a stray lock of hair behind Max's ear. That monster in her chest was still aching for more, but she couldn't let herself budge, no matter how much those blue eyes tempted her. "Let's sleep, alright? I'll still be here when you wake up."

"You better be," Max muttered. She waited impatiently for Chloe to make herself comfortable on the small dorm bed before crawling in, snuggling close like they normally did. "Thank you," she said quietly.

Chloe looked down at her, a little confused. "For what? For not wanting to kiss you while you're emotionally vulnerable?"

Max shook her head, propping herself back up to look Chloe in the eyes. "For staying. With me." Her words came out quietly, almost a whisper, as if she was afraid to say it out loud.

Chloe carefully lifted a hand, resting it against Max's cheek. "You're stuck with me, Caulfield," she promised before lifting her head to give Max a kiss on the forehead. "Now, sleep."

She could feel Max smiling as they fell asleep.