"I just don't fucking get it, why won't she just drop out? GEDs are fine, you know?" Chloe retorted, sprawled out on Steph's bed. She had been ranting for the last ten minutes, almost entirely uninterrupted. "I did it, Vic and Kate did it, what's the big deal?"

Steph had been watching quietly from her desk chair, turned towards Chloe. She had had a thoughtful expression on her face throughout most of the rant, rocking the chair as she listened. "Finishing school probably looks better to colleges though, right?"

Chloe made an exasperated sound, shaking her head slightly against the pillow. "Don't look at me, I don't know."

"Did you ever think it's, like, a self-imposed punishment? Survivor's guilt, or something?" she suggested, drumming her fingers on the adjacent desk.

Chloe sighed, pressing the palms of her hands into her eye sockets until she could see phosphenes. "Knowing Max? Probably. That type of shit is right up her alley." And I really wish it fucking wasn't.

Steph was nodding, glancing at her cluttered desk for a second before focusing on Chloe again. "So...what are you going to do?"

"Sit back and be supportive, I guess," Chloe responded dully. She had been on her best behavior the last few days, making sure she arrived at the high school extra early to pick up Max, who continued acting as if nothing was wrong. She'd noticed Marcus hovering a little bit closer than normal once she pulled in, which served as a reminder to not cause trouble, but also irritating her at the same time. "I'd love to just throw a couple of punches, but..."

"Yeah, I don't think getting arrested for beating up a minor looks good on a college app," Steph joked, grinning at her.

"Pff, I've already gotten all the apps sent out. Accepted to most of them, too. They would never know." She glanced back over at the empty bed across the dorm, sheets tossed haphazardly on the cot. "Where's your roommate, by the way? I know I don't stop by often, but don't think I've ever even seen her."

Steph grimaced, glancing over at the bed as well as though it were a multi-headed monster. "You're lucky. She brings her boyfriend up here all the time and...yeah."

"Wait, while you're in the room, even?" Steph nodded, almost green at the thought. Chloe couldn't stop herself from snickering. "Well if you weren't interested in voyeurism before-"

Both of Steph's hands shot up, palms facing Chloe. "Please stop, right there. I don't want to think about it, okay?" Chloe was laughing earnestly now, as Steph waved her hands in front of her. "Seriously, you think it's funny, but it's really just traumatic, okay?"

Chloe bit her cheek, trying not to continue laughing at her. "You take all the fun out of my life," she commented, letting a snicker loose when Steph flipped her the bird. "How's Paige, by the way?"

Steph's face quickly became neutral, composed - as always, it was an impressive mask. "She's fine," she responded calmly, although she started tugging at her beanie subconsciously.

One of Chloe's eyebrows lifted, intrigued as always in Steph's attempts to avoid further conversations. "You're still taking her to Firewalk in June, right?"

Steph frowned a little, crossing her arms as she bounced her leg. "Well, yeah. I bought the tickets."

"Nice. Glad to see you making the first move, Gingrich." Her gloat quickly turned into a yelp as Steph kicked the bed frame, causing the whole bed to shake. "Jesus Christ, these things are death traps."

"Try sleeping on them," Steph retorted, sighing. "You shift a little thinking you're going to get comfortable, but instead you feel like you're about to die."

"You know, I'm fine with a regular bed." Chloe stared up at the ceiling for a little bit, thinking as the shaking gradually lessened. "Since when were you into Firewalk, anyways?" she asked, glancing over at Steph. "Their music is awesome, don't get me wrong, but they never seemed to be your speed."

Steph's face suddenly flushed, and she glanced down at the floor, leg frozen mid-bounce. "It's...it's stupid," she muttered, glancing back up at a slightly bewildered Chloe.

Chloe sat up, crossing her legs in her lap as she turned to give Steph her full attention. "Okay, what is happening?" she asked, brows furrowing. "It's just a band, Steph."

Steph sighed, shaking her head. Her leg had started bouncing nervously again as she stared at the wall next to Chloe. "After you and-and Rachel went to Firewalk, I started listening to them. Ju-just in case..."

It was a mark of their friendship that Chloe didn't start laughing. As it was, she had to chew her lip to keep from smirking. "Dude, you were seriously crushing on her back then, weren't you?"

"I said it was stupid," she muttered again, switching from bouncing her leg to kicking one of the chair legs. "It was a stupid high school crush, I know."

Chloe sighed, clasping her hands on her stomach as she let herself fall back into a laying position."It's not stupid, Steph. I did a lot of stupid shit, too. Especially where Rachel was concerned." She thought for a second before chuckling. "I still do a lot of stupid shit now, thanks to Max. Guess some things never change."

"You're right about that," she responded, sounding more positive. They sat in silence for a few moments before Steph started speaking. "Paige asked if I wanted to get dinner Friday night," she blurted, as if trying to get it off her chest.

"No fucking way!" Chloe crowed, sitting up again. Her eyes were wide as she took in Steph's pleased expression. "You said yes, right?"

Steph was gradually turning red, scratching the back of her neck and avoiding eye contact."Well, yeah. But it's just dinner, at the Mexican place down the street. It probably doesn't mean anything."

Chloe made a clicking sound with her tongue, grinning widely. "Is anyone else going to be there?"

Steph finally glanced up at her, starting to look frazzled."N-no, but-"

"Stephanie has a daaaaate," Chloe sang, waving her arms in a victorious fashion.

Steph, meanwhile, sighed dramatically. "The amount of shit you give me makes me doubt our friendship sometimes," she muttered, although she was still smiling to herself.

Chloe waved her foot closer, pointing her toes at Steph. "C'mon, your life would be so boring without me."

"It would definitely be more peaceful," she quipped, finally uncrossing her arms to help shift herself in the chair. "Speaking of peaceful, Victoria messaged me on Facebook the other day, apologizing again."

"She's just trying to be nice," Chloe responded quickly. Probably also wants to be on her best behavior around Kate, if we all run in to each other again. Chloe had resumed her attempts to keep Steph away from Victoria, now well aware that it was not the rich girl that would cause problems. "Vic knows how shitty she used to be, believe me."

Steph nodded absentmindedly, grabbing one of her pens to fiddle with as they spoke. "I just can't get past how...different she is. That's not the Victoria Chase I knew at Blackwell."

"I've told you that. Multiple times," Chloe pointed out, kicking her legs against the bed and trying to ignore how it shook each time she hit it.

Steph shrugged, chuckling. "It's different being in the front row, I guess," she said, leaning back in her seat. "Did you ever get my Facebook message? Before I texted you when I found out about the storm, I mean."

Chloe hesitated for a second, needing to think about the last time she had even been on Facebook. "I don't think I've logged in since before the storm. Max definitely hasn't," she admitted, shaking her head. They had discussed it at one point, but dealing with past-tense texts had been rough enough. They didn't need the reminders of who didn't make it out of the storm.

"I get it, yeah." Steph was quiet, twiddling the pen between her fingers for a minute. "I forget, sometimes. That it's all gone. Arcadia," she added on, as if she needed to clarify.

"Lucky," Chloe muttered. Although the events immediately before the destruction were arguably more traumatic for her now, thinking about the drive through town after the storm abated still made her stomach clench. "It's not something you can forget, if you saw it."

"Dana was texting me yesterday, sounds like she's still pretty torn up." She checked her phone quick, fingers tapping again on the desk. "It's been what, five months?"

"Six," Chloe responded automatically, closing her eyes for a second. She wasn't purposefully counting, but Max seemed to be. God damn masochist, that girl.

Steph must have noticed the physical response to the question, exhaling quietly. "Sorry, I shouldn't have brought it up," she said, apologetic.

Chloe waved her hand, forcing herself to open her eyes. "No, dude, you're fine. Just...it's fine." She turned to look at Steph, who still had a doubtful look on her face. "What's Dana up to these days?" she asked, hoping for a slight distraction from where her mind was trying to take her.

Steph shrugged, shifting in her seat. "She got her GED, like a lot of the other students. Apparently, she's gotten accepted at some big premed schools."

Chloe frowned, confused. "We're talking about the same Dana, right? Dana Ward?"

Steph nodded. "Yep, surprised me too. Wants to be an EMT, after what happened," she added, shaking her head. "She didn't go into detail with me, not that I blame her, but sounds like she had a rough go during the storm."

And I thought Max wanting to finish high school was rough. She couldn't imagine constantly seeing people in life-or-death situations, especially after the trauma of an apocalyptic-sized tornado. "Talk about self-induced punishment."

"Yeah. Not an easy job, that's for sure. She's not looking forward to all the schooling, but, you know, gotta do it." Steph's phone buzzed, and she glanced at it quickly before shaking her head, ignoring whatever was on the screen. "Has Max heard back from any of her college choices?"

Chloe shrugged, grabbing one of Steph's pillows to give her hands something to do. "She got a couple of rejects - the one place in Rhode Island stung a little bit, I think." Max hadn't said she was disappointed, but it had been plain on her face how much she wanted in to that program. "She got accepted to UW, but she's holding off on either the one in New York, or one of the LA ones."

Steph had a thoughtful expression again, crossing her legs. "So, she doesn't want to stay anywhere near here, does she?"

Chloe smirked in response. "Nope. I think she likes the idea of living in a big city. Bigger than Seattle, I mean."

Steph nodded, eyebrows lifting. "You're following her still, right? Gonna move together, wherever she goes?"

She couldn't help but laugh at the thought of doing anything else. Why do people not take me seriously when I say I'm staying with her? "Well, duh. I'm not letting her get away."

"That's a little stalkerish," Steph teased.

"Says the girl who's been obsessing over her crush for months." Chloe was suddenly attacked by a pen, bouncing off of her arm and hitting the wall beside her. With her jacket still on, it didn't particularly hurt, but the intention was there. "Okay, that was unnecessary."

"Given the amount of shit you've given me, it's perfectly justified." Steph's phone buzzed again, and she groaned, picking it back up. "Fuck, I have to respond to this, sorry."

"Everything okay?" Chloe asked slowly, watching Steph carefully.

She shrugged, mouthing the words she was typing out. She tossed her phone back onto the desk once she was done, crossing her arms tightly across her chest. "Yeah, just my parents."

"Meaning..."

Another shrug, although Steph had started chewing on her lip. "They want to know if I'm coming back to their place for the summer, or if I'm going to try to stay up here."

"Which are you thinking?"

Had Chloe not been paying attention, she would have missed the smallest of smiles as Steph started talking. "Well, I have some contacts here, and can probably keep myself busy with shows over the summer. I can probably sublet a room, a couple of the girls on this floor got an apartment leased starting in May, but not all of them are staying here for the summer."

Chloe coughed pointedly, raising her eyebrows. "And where do Paige's parents live?"

"Doesn't matter." Chloe stared at her for a second, smirking, before Steph groaned, shoulders slumping in defeat. "They live about an hour north."

"Mhm."

Steph muttered curse words to herself for a minute. "Is there some magical moment you are waiting for to stop giving me crap about Paige?"

Chloe felt her smirk growing wider. "Probably about the time that the two of you are having-"

There was a knock on the door, followed by a questioning "Steph?". Steph's reaction was instantaneous, sitting upright in the chair and facing the door with rapt attention.

"Yeah, I'm here, come in," Steph responded, her voice pitched slightly higher than usual. Chloe couldn't help but glance between her and the door, confused and intrigued.

The door creaked open and a girl about their age leaned in. Chloe's initial impression was of a taller Brooke Scott, sans dyed hair and looking a lot friendlier. "Oh, sorry, I didn't know you had a guest," the girl apologized, glancing between Steph and Chloe quickly.

Steph waved her hand slightly more than was necessary. "It's fine, this is my friend Chloe. Chloe, this is Paige."

Chloe had to fight to keep herself from making inappropriate comments and gestures, and nodded in the girl's direction instead. Paige, meanwhile, was looking at her with wide eyes, somewhere between surprised and relieved. "Oh, oh, you're Chloe."

Chloe chuckled, glancing over at Steph, who's cheeks were most definitely pink. "Jesus, Gingrich, talk about me much?"

Paige was the one to respond, pushing the door open more so she could slip in to the room. "Sorry, it's just...she mentioned a while ago that she went to Blackwell, and I had asked her about that storm, so..." Paige trailed off, noticing both Chloe and Steph's expressions turn neutral as the conversation steered into dark waters. "I- sorry, I shouldn't have..."

The room was full of awkward silence for a solid minute before Chloe finally cleared her throat. "Well, I'm flattered that I'm so popular, at least," she responded dryly as she swung her legs off the side of the bed. "I'll let you two do...whatever, 'kay?"

"Oh, you don't have to leave on my account," Paige said quickly, although she stepped away from the door to avoid blocking Chloe's exit path.

Chloe shrugged, stretching as she got off the bed. "I have to go get my girlfriend anyways, don't want to be late."

Steph snapped her fingers, seemingly pulled out of whatever trance she had been in for the past few minutes. "Oh yeah, did you want me to creep on that Landon kid, or-"

"Just leave it, for now," Chloe said quickly. As much as she'd love dirt on the guy, and appreciated Steph's offer of Facebook stakling, she didn't want Max finding out about it. Not yet, anyways. "It's, uh, nice finally meeting you," she said awkwardly as she passed Paige.

"Yeah, y-you too," she responded, glancing from Chloe back to Steph again with a slightly puzzled look on her face. Ha, probably doesn't know that Steph talks about her all the time. Chloe chewed on her lip until she was in the stairwell before she allowed herself to laugh, grinning all the way back to her car.