"Girls! Time for dinner!"
Max frowned, glancing at her phone after hearing her mother's voice from downstairs. She had been adamantly rejecting Chloe's attempts to distract her ("Max, it's Friday night, live a little!") in lieu of working on homework after getting home from school. "Is Dad even home yet?" she commented, looking up at Chloe with furrowed brows. "It's not even five."
Chloe was frowning as well, reluctantly getting up from the bed to move over to the window. She pushed the blinds aside with one hand, peering out towards the street. "His car's in the driveway, so yeah, he's home." She shrugged, offering a hand to help Max up off of the bed. "Food eats regardless of time, right?"
Max shrugged as well, grabbing the offered hand. She was still looking puzzled, gazing almost longingly at her homework. "I mean, not that I don't want an early dinner or anything, but it's like, two hours early."
"Max, stop thinking so much," Chloe scolded, snickering until Max yanked her hand away in response. "Aww."
Max was already out the door, although Chloe thought she saw a smirk on her face before she walked out. "That's what you get," Max muttered, and Chloe couldn't help but laugh. Chloe was just coming around the corner of the stairs when she heard Max talking from the ground floor. "Uh, what are you guys doing?"
Chloe skipped a couple of steps, landing precariously next to Max. Ryan and Vanessa were both standing at the base of the steps, between them and the obviously empty dining table. Both of them had odd, expectant looks on their faces. "This doesn't look like dinner," Chloe observed, feeling rather betrayed.
"Max, you have mail," Vanessa commented, a strange look on her face as she pulled a large white envelope from behind her back.
Max reached for the envelope, examining it for a moment before noticing the slit on the top of it. "Mom, did you open it already?" Max said, frowning.
Chloe snorted, leaning against the wall as she crossed her arms. "That's a federal crime, Mrs. C." Ryan chuckled, and Vanessa smirked slightly, waving a dismissive hand in Chloe's direction. Both of their primary focuses continued to be the large envelope in Max's hands.
Max was rolling her eyes as she pulled a stack of pages out, setting them on top of the envelope as the frown on her face quickly turned into disbelief. "Holy shit, it's from Parsons."
That got Chloe to stand up straight. She walked closer to hover supportively near Max, not certain if she wanted to read over her shoulder or not. "That's the New York one, right?" she asked, her foot subconsciously tapping on the ground. If she doesn't get in…
"Yes." Max was quiet for a minute, eyes darting from line to line. There was no change in emotions, just a slight widening of her eyes as read on. "I got in," she said, quiet enough that Chloe almost missed it.
Evidently, Vanessa and Ryan did miss it, as Ryan cleared his throat, glancing at Vanessa quickly. "You what?" He had a grin on his face though - they had definitely peeked.
"I got in," she repeated, louder. There was a smile spreading across Max's face, but it didn't quite meet her eyes.
Chloe's jaw dropped slightly, and she glanced over at Ryan and Vanessa. She didn't miss the joy and excitement on the elder Caulfields' faces, nor the slight disappointment. "New York, huh? That's a long drive," Ryan joked as he wrapped an arm around his wife's shoulders.
Max nodded, eyes still transfixed to the paperwork. "I know. That sucks, but it's a good school, you know?" Max's face started falling as she read on, mouthing the words.
"What's up?" Chloe asked, anxious. I swear, if they accepted her and then put some fucking weird condition on it-
Max shook her head, waving the papers in her hand. "It's…they're giving me a scholarship. For photography."
"No shit? Sorry," Chloe tossed out quickly, glancing at the parents, who were too busy watching Max to care. Both of them looked rather surprised at the news - evidently, they hadn't been thorough with their sneak peek.
Max's eyes were now fixed on the floor, and if Chloe knew anything, that confused look on Max's face was her attempting to do math in her head. "I think that...that almost covers tuition. Not room and board, maybe, but…"
"No fucking way," Chloe muttered, snagging the paper away from Max, who seemed almost frozen in place. Sure enough, Max wasn't lying, and her math was probably correct. "Dude, that is a lot of zeroes on there." She passed the paper to Ryan, who glanced over it with an astounded look on his face. He and Vanessa both had slightly warmer looks on their face now - full rides made for happy parents, after all. "Max, this is fu- fricking awesome!"
Max was still frozen, and Chloe could almost hear her brain whirring. What math is she trying to do, now? "I need a minute," she muttered before bolting up the stairs quicker than Chloe thought was humanly possible.
The three of them watched her go before glancing at each other, all shrugging. "Probably just excited," Chloe said loudly. Ryan and Vanessa were too busy reading through the paperwork to notice as Chloe slipped up the staircase as well, heading automatically to Max's room.
Max was sitting on her bed with the lights off, facing away from the door. She didn't turn to look at Chloe as she walked in, quietly closing the door behind her. "I got in," she said quietly, almost sadly. Paired with her slumped shoulders, it made for a very glum image.
Chloe was decidedly confused by the emotional rollercoaster Max was on. "Well, yeah. That's what you wanted, right?"
She gave a half-hearted shrug, almost unnoticeable in the darkness. "I-I guess."
Chloe sat down next to her, resting a hand on her knee. Most of Max's face was lost in shadow, but she had her eyes closed. "Max? What's really going on?"
Max sighed, hands flailing for a second, as if she was trying to catch the words she wanted to say out of the air. "It just...it doesn't feel real. Like it's all going to be whipped out from under me if I'm-"
"Stop that. You got in because you are a badass, Max Caulfield." There was still a doubtful look on her face, and Chloe shook her knee. "I've been telling you for years that you have what it takes to do this photography thing. Parsons apparently agrees with me."
Max leaned over to rest her head on Chloe's shoulder. She could feel the muscles in Max's cheek moving into what she hoped was a smile. "I think you're obligated to tell me that," she responded, a hopeful tone in her voice.
"Just stating the facts, babe," she shot back, sighing.
Max was quiet for a minute, thinking. "We're going to New York," she finally said, sounding more cheery.
Chloe nodded, turning her head to give the top of Max's a kiss. "If that's that you want, yes."
Max exhaled heavily, her body finally relaxing into Chloe's shoulder. "That's terrifying to think about. Just...just leaving, and heading out there."
Chloe couldn't help but smile at that thought, tossing all their shit into the back of Jeff and driving cross-country. "Relax, I've got everything figured out."
There was another little exhale, almost a laugh. "Oh really?"
"Well, I'll start by buying a mattress, so we can just sleep in the car," she responded, only half-joking. "I mean, have you seen how flat the backseat is when you put it down? Perfect spot to have an air mattress."
Max sat up, a definite smile on her face as she pushed Chloe's shoulder. "Wow, that's a bit much."
Chloe had to fight to keep her face neutral, or at least somewhat confused. "What? I'm serious. Who needs a dorm room, or an apartment even, when you have an air mattress in a car?"
Max laughed before leaning against her shoulder again. "Har har." Her hand moved to intertwine with Chloe's, sighing in relief. "I'm glad you're coming with."
"Where else would I want to go, hippie?" she said faintly, honestly. It was an oddly persistent thought that there was nothing else out there without Max, not really. "And who else is going to put up with your stubborn ass?" she joked, trying to keep herself from turning sappy.
Max looked up, a little smirk having appeared on her face. "I could say the same thing about you."
That got a chuckle out of Chloe. "Yeah, you could," she agreed, resting her head against Max's before sighing. "As much as I hate to ruin the moment, I think your parents are still standing awkwardly in the hall."
The noise Max made was somewhere between a gasp and a laugh as she sat up. "Shit, you're right. It's gonna be so awkward going back down there." The tone in her voice registered as almost a plead for Chloe to come up with an excuse to allow her to continue hide upstairs.
"Dude, you're talking about going to college on the opposite side of the country, I think they understand some stupid behavior right about now."
Max's eyebrows went up, and Chloe could tell she was biting her lip to keep from smiling. "'Stupid behavior?'" Her voice was dripping in feigned distress, even if there was a partial laugh mixed in.
Chloe laughed, shaking her head. "Don't start with me, Caulfield. I can see the smile in your eyes."
"There're no lights on," she countered, crossing her arms. "You can't see shit."
"I can see that you're adorable, and that we need to get back downstairs before your parents think we're having celebratory sex or something."
She had expected to get smacked for the comment, and Max did not disappoint her. "Chloe!"
"Just stating the facts."