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Chasing Amber (Through Fields & Marshes)

Summary:

Max Caulfield is presented with two choices on a clifftop; kill her best friend, or kill her entire hometown. Instead, she gambles on creating a third option - save Rachel, intending to stop those outcomes from happening in the first place. But fate doesn't like being circumvented and intervenes to ensure that her action has consequences... Also known as a forced Bay ending with a twist, or if you want a summary that better explains the title:

Victoria Chase cannot stand being second-best to the perfect Rachel Amber. Her number one nemesis and unbeknownst to anyone except her own subconscious, her first crush on another girl. She thought she'd do anything to take Rachel's title, yet on that fateful Monday when Chloe, Rachel's dropout of a friend, gets murdered by Nathan in the bathroom, she's torn between ruthlessly capitalizing on the opportunity, or for once in her life showing a little humanity. Either way, she'll have to go through her hated photography rival Max, and the fake bible-thumper Kate, if she wants to reach the broken shell of Rachel... But why is it that when they should be at their weakest, the people she despises the most seem to be stronger than ever, and worst of all, sticking together?

Notes:

Hello and welcome to my third fic of 2021!

So, if it isn't immediately obvious from the tags, this is going to be my one and only attempt at writing a Bay ending. But I didn't want Max to simply choose to sacrifice Chloe (because she wouldn't... end of discussion!), so I added a twist; it's a forced Bay ending where Chloe dies but Rachel survives. This fic will be about Max and Rachel mourning the loss of Chloe, and eventually growing closer because of it. Add in a supportive Kate and a conflicted Victoria, and hopefully this story won't just be one big depressing mess without our favourite blue-haired punk. Now, I know a fic where Chloe is dead isn't readable for many, myself included, but I hope that my spin on it will at-least make it interesting and unique; I don't think there's been a Max/Rachel/Victoria/Kate polyship before now, since I couldn't find it listed as a relationship tag.

Enjoy! :)

(See the end of the work for more notes.)

Chapter 1: Saving Rachel

Chapter Text

Chasing Amber (Through Fields & Marshes)

 

Chapter 1: Saving Rachel

 

Maxine Caulfield stared morosely at the blue-haired goddess standing in-front of her, as she handed over a butterfly photo and attempted to convince her to do something that she already knew she could not do. "Max, it's time..."

 

I frantically shook my head in disagreement and refused to take my eyes off her. "No! Chloe, I already killed you once. I can't do it again. I won't!"

 

Chloe gently gripped my hands. "You won't be killing me, Max. I was meant to die in that bathroom, it hella sucks but that's just the way it is. We don't really have a choice here, either I die or the entire town gets wiped out. The math isn't on my side."

 

A sob escaped my mouth, though it was inaudible compared to the sound of the storm around us. "Yes I would be killing you, Chloe. Don't try to downplay it. If I go back, I won't just be obliviously standing by as an unknown girl gets shot like the first time, I will be willingly hiding and allowing my best friend to die, when you thought that you were alone and abandoned by everyone. I might as-well be pulling the fucking trigger myself! Do you have any idea how hard it was for me to be apart from you for five years? Imagine what it'll be like for me if that becomes permanent, knowing it's my fault you died, all because I couldn't find another way!"

 

Chloe stared into my eyes, matching my intense gaze with her own to see who would back down first. "I know, but you have to do this. Max, I can't be responsible for killing damn near everyone in Arcadia Bay, even if I hate that shit-pit."

 

I tenderly placed a hand on her cheek. "And I can't be responsible for killing you. Everything I've done this week was to keep you alive and by my side. Why the fuck did I even get these powers in the first place if I was supposed to just let you die? There has to be more to it, Chloe. It doesn't make any sense."

 

She opened her mouth to retort when I remembered something and continued, "Didn't you say that the storm could've been Rachel's revenge?"

 

Chloe was caught off-guard for a moment before she shrugged. "I was being my ususal bitchy self when I said that. I mean, sure, she despised this town and was desperate to escape. But if the storm really is her revenge for what those fuckers did to her, then why would my death at the hands of Nathan be the one thing that stops her? If anything, that would just piss her off even more."

 

I turned to face the gigantic tornado that was almost at the shore and stayed quiet for a few seconds before asking, "If I had met her, do you really think we could've gotten along?"

 

Chloe hummed. "I know she lied to me about Frank, and... Jefferson, but... Yeah. I still think we'd all be hella best friends forever. Why?"

 

I glanced back at her. "You know how I tried to stop your dad from dying? Well, I'm kinda surprised you didn't ask me to do the same for Rachel when we found her in the junk-yard..."

 

Chloe blinked. "I... didn't even think of that, I was too focused on putting a bullet in Nathan's head." Then her eyes went wide. "Are you seriously saying...?"

 

I held her hand and continued watching the tornado. "I am, yeah. As unlikely as it is for this thing to actually be a manifestation of Rachel's revenge, I refuse to even entertain the idea of losing you without seeing if it's true first. It's the only other card I have left to play, so... I'm going to save Rachel. For both of us."

 

Chloe grip tightened in response. "But... what if it works? Everything will be different. I'd still have Rachel in my life. I really loved her back then, you know? And I kinda still do, despite all the shit she did."

 

I nodded at her. "Chloe, she was your angel. You said so yourself. Rachel was there for you when I was the world's worst best friend. I owe her for that and want the chance to thank her in person, even if it means you're less likely to forgive me, especially without this crazy week for us to bond over."

 

Chloe smiled sadly. "If I know myself, she'll probably say she hates you, repeatedly. But that was much easier to say when you weren't here, compared to being able to see your reaction to it in person. So don't let her try to push you away, because I never could stay mad at you for long, Max. And I'm not convinced that saving Rachel will actually solve anything with the storm, but... thank you for offering to try. So, uh... what do you need to do this? A photo?"

 

I groaned. "Yeah. One that I took around the time before Rachel first went missing. The problem is, I'd still be in Seattle and would have to somehow get back down here in time to stop her from being taken. I'm sure there will be a photo I can use in my dorm back at Blackwell."

 

Chloe gestured to the tornado and swore under her breath. "We better get moving then, and cross our fingers we can get there before that fuckin' thing does. My truck should still be parked near the beach, hopefully it's survived the storm so far, otherwise we're screwed."

 

I nodded at that, and began leading the way back down the lighthouse path, holding her hand the entire way to ensure we didn't slip in the water-logged mud. Eventually we'd made it to the bottom and sprinted off in the direction of the nearby beach parking lot. We rounded a bunch of trees and laid eyes on Chloe's truck, sitting there all alone and relatively unharmed.

 

Once we reached the truck, Chloe whooped and patted it on the hood affectionately. "Oh thank fuck you're okay. I know you're on your last legs but we've been through too much for this damn storm to be the thing that finally ends your reign of terror on the high seas of Arcadia."

 

Chloe quickly jumped inside and I did the same, though I was unable to hide my giggling.

 

She rolled her eyes at me and started the truck. "What's so funny, Caulfield?"

 

I wiped a stray tear from my eye. "Nothing, it's just hard to imagine you caring so much about a shitty truck. I bet you even named it, didn't you?"

 

Chloe backed out of the parking lot and huffed. "Hey! This shitty truck holds a lot of memories. I found it in the junk-yard the same day I met Rachel, actually. I even fixed it up myself. And for your information, her name is Anne Bonny, but I just call her Bonny."

 

I snorted at that. "You mean like the famous pirate?"

 

Chloe smirked. "Well, duh. The license plate when I found it actually had that name on it, for some reason. I changed the plate when I restored it, but it seemed fitting to keep the name. And I only ever shared that with Rachel, now you too, so if you tell anyone, I'll have to kill ya."

 

I chuckled. "Don't worry, your punk cred is safe with me. I won't let the secret get out that you're still a pirate nerd at heart."

 

We spent the rest of the drive in dreadful silence as we drove back through the heart of town, going as fast as possible while dodging around countless fallen trees and other obstacles along the way. It was a miracle that we hadn't come across any dead bodies, at-least not on the path we'd taken, though there were still many people wandering around in the road with slight injuries from flying debris who seemed to keep materializing out of thin air. It's lucky that Chloe's truck had good brakes, if nothing else, otherwise we'd have probably driven into some of them by accident.

 

Thankfully, we made it to the Blackwell parking lot mostly untouched, with the exception of a large tree branch that hit the wind-shield hard enough to leave a huge crack right as we pulled in.

 

Chloe turned off the engine and flipped her middle finger up at the tornado out the window. "You'll have to do better than that, you fucker!"

 

I whacked her on the arm. "Please don't taunt the giant tornado, Chloe. If I have to stop you from dying one more time before I can go back to save Rachel, I'm gonna be hella pissed."

 

Chloe raised an eyebrow at me as she climbed out of the truck. "Dude, you're gonna fit right in with Rachel. You're already using her vocabulary."

 

I frowned as we began our jog across campus. "Huh? I thought that was your word?"

 

Chloe shook her head. "Nope. I learned it from Rachel first. And I guess you learned it from me. Now here you are about to save her. It's all coming full circle."

 

Both the main courtyard and the dorm courtyard were completely deserted, it seemed we were the only ones around. At-least we were able to get inside and reach my dorm room without being interrupted.

 

As soon as we entered my room, I dived to the floor and reached under the bed to pull out a box that contained all my older photos from my time in Seattle. Well, the ones that I didn't throw away before I came back to Arcadia. I flipped the box over, spilling the photos into a pile on the ground.

 

Chloe knelt down next to me, not sure what she was looking for, and pointed up at my photo wall. "What about those?"

 

I didn't bother looking up as I just said, "Nah. Those were all taken here in the Bay after I returned. Whatever we're looking for should be somewhere in this pile. Luckily I put dates on the back of all my photos. So, when was the last time you remember actually seeing Rachel?"

 

Chloe furrowed her brow in thought. "April 22nd, like I put on her missing person poster. But if you mean a specific time then... Uh, I remember she was supposed to be sleeping over at mine that night. But she got a text around... 10pm and said that she needed to go. I don't know who it was from, and now that I have more context, she was definitely avoiding the question when I asked her what it was about. The last thing I remember is the back of her head as she climbed out of my window while I was shouting at her for ditching me. The next day, she'd just vanished into thin air. So you can bet your ass I blamed myself. I thought she'd left Arcadia without me and after what I said to her, I couldn't blame her even if she did."

 

I took a break from sorting through the photos to give her a hug. "I'm sorry, Chloe. But if this works, then at-least you'll have a chance to apologize to her, I guess."

 

Chloe reluctantly pulled away and wiped her nose on her sleeve. "Yeah... I- Thanks, Max."

 

I nodded at that, and together we returned to finding a needle in a haystack that would give me enough time to save Rachel.

 

A few minutes later, Chloe picked one up and hummed as she turned it over. "What about this one? It's the right date, and was taken at 4pm according to what you wrote down."

 

I took it from her and glanced at the photo of a wet Max sitting on the front steps of my old Seattle high school and looking incredibly upset, immediately wincing at the unpleasant memory it brought back.

 

Chloe must've seen the expression on my face because she asked, "I assume you also wrote 'fuck this day' on the back for a reason, huh?"

 

I grunted in agreement. "I took this photo right after a group of bullies ambushed me in the bathroom and shoved my head in a toilet, all because high school would be over soon and they thought it'd make a great leaving present for me, as if we weren't almost adults and should've outgrown that shit by then. So yeah. Fuck that day and fuck those cunts."

 

Chloe whistled at that. "Damn, look at you breaking out the big guns. Sorry, Max. If I was there, they wouldn't be able to walk again for doing that to you."

 

I sighed. "Well, I didn't have you to protect me in Seattle like you did when we were kids, so everyone just walked all over me. It was a really hard time for me in Seattle, Chloe."

 

Chloe gestured back to the pile of photos. "We could always find something else for you to jump through, if you don't want to be wandering around covered in toilet water."

 

I shook my head. "No, this one will give me enough time to get back to Arcadia. I'll be okay." Then I mumbled under my breath, "The things we do for the ones we love..."

 

Chloe wasn't meant to, but she very clearly heard it. "Did you just say what I think you just said?"

 

I froze at that, but for once, the instinct to rewind it away never came, and since I was about to do something that could backfire, I decided to finally admit what I could never say to her when we were younger.

 

Turning to face her, I forced myself to make eye contact. "Chloe, I want you to know right now that no matter what happens after I do this, I love you. I always have, I've just been too chickenshit to say it until now. And I understand that saving Rachel probably means I'll become a third wheel. But if I must sacrifice that love to keep your ass alive, so be it. You know I'd do anything for you."

 

Chloe jaw dropped open and she just stared at me with wide eyes as her face flushed beet-red.

 

It took a moment for her brain to reboot, and she swallowed thickly until she found her voice. "Shit, Max. I-" She trailed off as she seemingly got lost in my eyes, before she exhaled and started up again. "Fuck it. I love you too, Max. I wanted so desperately to tell you right before my dad died, but since I already knew you'd be moving to Seattle, I didn't want to complicate things at the last minute, and I knew how easily you got overwhelmed even on a normal day without that mushy shit hanging over you. So I stayed quiet, and then dad died and I lost you. I've often wondered how things could've turned out if I had just told you how I felt back then and I'm not going to repeat that same mistake twice."

 

Now it was my turn to stare at her in disbelief. "Crap. Really? You're... not just saying that to make me feel better before I do this?"

 

Chloe bit her lip in hesitation before she scooted forward and pressed her lips against mine. It lasted only a second, but felt like an eternity of bliss to me.

 

When Chloe pulled away, she was grinning. "Does that convince you enough to kiss me back? Or do I have to dare you to do it like I did last time?"

 

I was still slightly stunned from her kissing me in the first place, but when she went to open her mouth, presumably to follow through with her dare, I surged forward and captured her mouth with mine once more before she could say anything.

 

This time it was longer, more passionate, filled with years of unspoken feelings and regrets.

 

Until we were rudely interrupted by one of the benches from the courtyard outside flying into my window, causing us to jump apart in shock as it shattered.

 

I grumbled to myself in annoyance. "Fuck, I didn't realize the storm had gotten so close." Then I failed to hold back a tear as I said, "Chloe, if we're doing this, it needs to be now. I'm sorry."

 

Chloe just wiped the tear off my face and looked me in the eye as she vowed, "Whatever reality we end up in after this, even if you don't get to confess your love for me again, just remember that I'll always be your Partner in Time. I love you, Max Caulfield."

 

I hugged her as tightly as I could. "And I'll always be your Partner in Crime. I love you too, Chloe Price."

 

She pulled away first and tapped a finger on the photo in my hands. "You've got this, Super Max. Go save my angel. I'll see you on the other side."

 

I nodded and gave her one more kiss for good luck, then wiped the tears from my eyes before staring down at the picture that should hopefully give me the head start I needed to save Rachel.

 

The last thing I heard before everything went white was Chloe mirroring the last words I'd said to her before her life went to shit. "Just remember: We'll always be Max and Chloe, even when we're apart."

 

It felt like minutes had passed before the white void finally receeded from my vision and I blinked my eyes back into focus as my senses slowly adjusted to the 6 month younger body of myself that I was now inhabiting.

 

It didn't take long for me to realize my vision was more watery than I expected, and at first I attibuted it to me crying over having to leave Chloe behind, until I remembered that I'd been in the middle of sobbing when I took the photo that I just jumped through.

 

After hastily wiping my eyes again, I stood up from the front steps outside my old Seattle high school and became acutely aware of just how wet my entire upper torso was.

 

I wrinkled my nose in disgust at the feeling of my shirt sticking to my body and set off in a sprint down the street towards my Seattle home. Luckily it was only a few blocks away from the school so it didn't take long for me to arrive.

 

Only when I reached the front door did I notice that I hadn't come across the white photographic boundary like I had done every other time I'd jumped through a photo, though I didn't pay the thought much attention because if there had been a border then my plan would've probably failed before it even began.

 

After unlocking the door, I headed inside only to find the house empty, and it took me a few seconds to remember that Mom and Dad were both working late tonight, which actually worked in my favour. I quickly pulled my phone out of my jeans and set it on the kitchen counter for now, sighing in relief when it lit up. The toilet water hadn't extended that far down so it'd managed to survive.

 

Now, first thing's first... I didn't want to spend another second in these wet clothes and I needed to get out of them right-the-fuck-now, so I rushed upstairs to my bedroom and pulled a random set of fresh clothes out of my wardrobe – along with my thickest hoodie, of-course – before getting changed and discarding the wet clothes in the laundry basket.

 

I would've much preferred a shower too, but time was of the essence. Instead, I grabbed a pen and a wad of sticky-notes from my desk; peeling one off before scribbling down a note for my parents that said 'FYI, I'm having an unplanned sleepover at Kristen's tonight. Sorry for the short notice! I'll be back in the morning for school though. Love you! ~xomaxo'.

 

Then I stuck it to the outside of my door before walking over to my bedside drawer and withdrawing enough of my 'emergency' pocket money for a bus ride to and from Arcadia Bay, along with an old flip-knife that my Dad had given me for my 16th birthday. I'm not sure why he thought it'd make a good present, I guess he just wanted me to have a way to protect myself or something, but it's been sitting in my drawer untouched all this time. Well,. until now, at-least.

 

Once I'd pocketed everything, I went back downstairs and picked up my phone from the kitchen counter before going back outside and locking the door behind me.

 

I shot a quick text to Kristen asking if it was okay to sleep over at her house tonight 'because I'd had a really shitty day and needed the company', which was most certainly true, then I began the long walk towards the nearest greyhound station with a bus bound for Arcadia Bay while texting back and forth with Kristen about the 'toilet incident'.

 

Needless to say, the four hour bus ride was uneventful and boring. However, with each passing minute I became increasingly aware of time slowly creeping up on me. I wasn't sure how long I'd be able to remain in the past before I had to succumb to the rubber-band effect and be flung back into the future.

 

When I exited the bus in the center of Arcadia, it was already almost 9pm due to horrendous traffic, and now that I was finally able to focus on doing the task at hand, it was a little easier to keep myself anchored in this timeline. I only had an hour or so left, hopefully.

 

With that in mind, I set off in the direction of Chloe's house, which was luckily just a five minute walk from here. Ah, the perks of living in a small town...

 

Unfortunately, it was late enough at night for the streetlights to turn on, so I had to stick to the dark shadows once I reached Cedar Ave which was a lot more stressful than I'd expected it to be. I mean, I'd grown up on these streets, and I wasn't exactly afraid of the dark; but all the shit I'd been through in the previous timeline seemed to have made my guard stay up at all times now.

 

By the time I settled across the street from Chloe's house, I was in the middle of chastising myself for worrying about being ambushed by Jefferson in the past, which was when I remembered that the whole point of coming here was to stop Rachel from being grabbed by him in the first place. The thought of being so close to Jefferson again made my anxiety spike, but I didn't have long to dwell on it before I heard a commotion coming from across the street.

 

I peeked out from my hiding spot and finally laid eyes on the mysterious Rachel Amber for the first time, as she hastily climbed out of Chloe's bedroom window. The house was partially shrouded in darkness so it was hard to fully make out all her features, but I knew it was her.

 

Especially when Chloe angrily yelled, "Fuck you, Rachel!" and slammed the window shut behind her. That gave it away for sure.

 

I only managed to catch a glimpse of Chloe's blue hair for a split-second before she stomped out of view, so I turned my attention back to the silhouette of Rachel who was now storming down the street at an unexpectedly fast pace. With no choice but to follow her, I reluctantly left my hiding spot and gave chase, sticking to the shadows as best as I could.

 

A few streets later, and it became clear that she was heading in the direction of Blackwell Academy. That was when I also noticed another figure stalking behind her too, on her side of the street. I wasn't sure how long he'd been following, but he didn't seem to have spotted me, and I only saw him because he made the mistake of walking under a streetlight in his haste to catch up to Rachel... which briefly lit up his face, making it unmistakably obvious that it was Jefferson himself who was tailing her.

 

Now that I was in a race against time, I ran ahead up the street as carefully as I could to avoid being seen by either of them. I quickly scanned the area and saw an alleyway around the corner of the street Rachel was on, which if my memory was right, served as a shortcut to Blackwell. I assumed that Rachel would be taking it, and that was probably also where Jefferson would make his move, since the alleyway was pitch-black and hidden from prying eyes. A perfect place for an ambush.

 

There was only one more row of houses leading up to the alleyway, and Jefferson was gaining on her with alarming speed, so I had no choice but to act now and hope for the best.

 

I reached into my pocket and grabbed hold of the flip-knife just in-case, while I waited for Rachel to walk around the corner. Once came into view, I sprinted across the road and slammed into her; the force knocked us both into a low hedge that bordered the front garden of a nearby house and we tumbled over the top, landing with a thud on the other side.

 

Before Rachel could cry out, I managed to cover her mouth with my hand and hissed into her ear, "Shh! Stay down, I'm not going to hurt you."

 

She struggled in my grip for a moment before reluctantly complying, though I still didn't remove my hand.

 

I heard footsteps that no doubt belonged to Jefferson on the other side of the hedge and pulled the flip-knife out of my pocket, then I held my breath as he suddenly stopped in his tracks.

 

I strained to listen as he muttered to himself, "Where the fuck did she go? She was right there. Damn it!" before he sped off towards the alleyway, probably assuming that she'd simply gone inside already.

 

When the sound of his footsteps vanished, I pulled my hand away from Rachel's mouth and was very glad that the garden we were in wasn't lit up, because she instantly turned around and squinted at my face in the darkness. Luckily, I was smart enough to also keep my hood up so she wasn't able to make out any identifying features.

 

Under her intense scrutiny, it took me a few seconds to find my voice. "So, do you have any idea who that voice belongs to?"

 

I watched as she frowned at me. "No, I don't think so. The hedge muffled the voice and, well, I was too busy worrying about you to focus on that anyway."

 

I sighed. "Okay, well that was the voice of Mark Jefferson."

 

Rachel shook her head. "That's impossible. I was... uh, texting him just a minute ago."

 

I actually facepalmed at that. "Of-couse. Jefferson lured you into a trap, like he-" I quickly shook that thought away and continued, "Okay, listen to me. I just saved your fucking life, Rachel Amber."

 

She spotted the knife in my hand and leaned away from me in confusion. "What do you mean? He wouldn't hurt me, you don't know him like I do. And how do you know my name? Who even are you?"

 

I snorted and made a show of putting the knife away so she knew it wasn't intended for her. "I know a lot more than you think, Rachel, and I really don't have time to explain any of this to you. Just know that I am a friend, and please believe me when I tell you to stay far away from Jefferson because I won't be around to save your life a second time. Also, for fuck sake, stop whatever it is that you're doing with Frank Bowers. Chloe Price deserves better than that, you know she's been fucked over before."

 

Rachel slowly pulled herself to her feet and crossed her arms. "How the hell do you know about Frank? Or Chloe, for that matter?"

 

I rolled my eyes at her. "Like I said, think of me as a friend. And speaking of Chloe, you should probably get back to her, instead of going to do whatever it is you thought you were before I saved your damn life."

 

After a moment of silence, she huffed. "Fine! Do I at-least get to know your name, since you seem to know mine?"

 

I chuckled at that. "One day, perhaps. But not tonight. Now get going already, before Jefferson comes back. Also, I have some advice for you; it'll be best if you come clean to Chloe about Frank and Jefferson, and grovel at her feet for forgiveness. Just don't tell her about what happened here, or about me, because you know how overprotective she can get."

 

Rachel grunted at that before hanging her head. "...Yeah, you can say that again."

 

I climbed over the hedge and glanced around the street. Seeing no sign of Jefferson, I gestured for Rachel to do the same, before whispering, "It's been a pleasure to finally meet you, Rachel Amber."

 

She just scoffed and turned on her heel before speed-walking away, back the way she came, without even giving me a backwards glance. Not that I could really blame her.

 

I waited a few more seconds before sneaking back into the shadows across the street and tailing her, just to be sure, and surprisingly, Rachel seemed to follow my advice. Thankfully, she made it all the way back to Chloe's street without running into Jefferson again, so my services were no longer required.

 

I watched as she climbed up to the roof outside Chloe's window and sat there nervously for a few seconds before knocking on it. At that point, I decided to give them some privacy and walked away.

 

A couple of streets over, I finally came to a stop and pulled out the pen along with one of the sticky-notes that I'd brought with me, before writing, 'Hello Max. You're probably wondering where you are. Don't panic, but you're in Arcadia Bay. You're not crazy, I promise, but I'm a future Max who's writing you this message. I needed to borrow your body for a few hours, that's all. I can't say anything else about it, but I brought enough money for you to take a bus back to Seattle, and Kristen was kind enough to let you sleep over at her house tonight. Just don't tell her about this, for obvious reasons! This will never happen to you again, so it's best if you forget about it. Also, since you're in Arcadia, you'll probably have the urge to finally visit Chloe. I feel horrible for saying this, but whatever you do, please do NOT do that!!! It will mess up a lot of things if you do. I'm really sorry. ~xofuturemaxo'.

 

Then the last thing I did was stick the note to my forehead with a guilty giggle, before I finally let go; allowing the strands of time to grab hold and pull me back into my new future timeline...

Chapter 2: The Price Of Amber

Summary:

Max's return to her new future timeline doesn't quite go as planned.

Max's glorified butterfly babysitter locks away her toys so that she can't destroy its sandcastle.

Trading Chloe for Rachel is apparently the best outcome Max will ever get.

Max's heart shatters into a million tiny pieces.

Notes:

Hey everyone! Happy April Fools Day, I guess? Don't worry, this is a real update. The only sadistic prank about this new chapter is the cosmic joke that constantly demands Chloe's life, so there was really no better time to post it. Sorry!

Also, since I forgot to mention it back when I first posted this fic, I plan for there to be multiple POVs, and I'm going to switch between them for almost every new chapter, so some will probably be shorter in length than others. And to make it clear who's view you're reading from, the first sentence/paragraph of each chapter is going to be written in third-person. I've already gone back to update the first chapter accordingly. With that out of the way, I'll let you get to reading the chapter, not that I expect anyone to enjoy it, but, well...

Enjoy! :)

(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)

Chapter Text

Chasing Amber (Through Fields & Marshes)

 

Chapter 2: The Price Of Amber

 

So, there Max was, wading through the whiteness towards an uncertain future; one with both Chloe and Rachel, if she'd done things correctly. However, the journey was a little more unpleasant for her than she'd expected it to be. Sure, travelling between timelines was never fun, but this felt... different somehow, and it was lasting much longer than usual. To begin with, she was content to simply chalk it up to reality struggling to rewrite itself after she saved Rachel, because if she really was linked to the tornado then it sure-as-hell would've be a big change to make.

 

But then all of a sudden I felt myself being violently flipped around to face another direction within the whiteness, and before I could comprehend what was happening, I found myself being forcefully ejected into what I at first assumed was my new future timeline. Though by 'forcefully ejected', I mean it was like I literally got thrown out of the whiteness, and the landing certainly wasn't pretty. In-fact, it was less a landing, and more of a straight-up collision with a solid wall. My arm took the brunt of the impact and I grunted at the unexpected pain while slowly blinking my eyes back into focus. It turns out, the wall I ran into was a tiled wall. A very familiar tiled wall...

 

As the rest of my senses returned, I spun around in disbelief and gasped at the sight of the Blackwell bathroom in-front of me. How the hell did I get back here? I've always been taken all the way to the future, back to what would be my present time. But this? If this incident did still happen on schedule despite me still saving Rachel, then this would be five days before the time I was supposed to arrive. I should've skipped past it. This didn't make any sense.

 

I glanced around the room to take in as much as I could, and soon spotted one of my Polaroids on the floor. I almost passed out once I realized it was the very same butterfly photo that had started my previous week of hell. Now I was even more confused, because I knew for a fact that I never jumped through this photo in the first place, so how did I get spat out of it? I barely understood how my powers worked as it is, but this just didn't seem like something that would happen naturally.

 

As if it was waiting for me to reach that conclusion, I detected a flicker of blue in my peripheral vision and turned to see that blue fucking butterfly perched on the metal bucket, seemingly staring at me.

 

I glared back at it and asked aloud, "Did you do this?"

 

The butterfly flapped it's wings once. Whether that was a 'yes', or it's attempt at shrugging, I wasn't sure. But either way, I wasn't playing it's bullshit game.

 

At this point, Nathan walked inside and my mind was made up – I had already saved Chloe once in this bathroom, not to mention the few other times throughout the previous week, so I'll be damned if I'm not going to save her again.

 

I was distinctly aware of the butterfly still sitting there on the bucket, watching me all smug-like. I couldn't see it's expession, of-course, but I felt it. And it was pissing me off.

 

Right on cue, Chloe walked through the door next. I instantly put my hand out to freeze time so I had more time to think things through. The world flickered into it's ghostly form for a split-second before colours abruptly bled into my vision and a strong jolt of pain lanced through my skull.

 

It was all I could do not to cry out from the pain as the freeze dropped and I braced my hands against the stall to steady myself.

 

By the time I'd blinked the spots out of my eyes, Chloe had already turned aggressive towards Nathan. Time was running out, so I attempted a rewind instead.

 

This time, my power didn't even activate at all. I could feel it flowing through and around my fingertips, but everytime I tried to grab onto it, it was like it jumped just out of reach. No matter how hard I pushed, I couldn't rewind.

 

Panic was starting to set in now, and in desperation I turned to the butterfly still sat on the bucket, only to see that it was... glowing? I always wondered where my powers came from, and as I watched the butterfly pulsate hues of blue, I knew. I just knew. It gave me them, and now it was actively blocking me from using them.

 

My voice came out in a strangled whisper. "Why? Why me? Why are you doing this?"

 

The butterfly stilled for a moment before pulsating once again, causing the world around me to freeze, right as Nathan began to pull out his gun. "The answer to those questions is simply something you cannot comprehend."

 

I balled my hands into fists and stepped closer to the butterfly, mildly slightly surprised that I was able to move since I wasnt the one freezing everything, and then shouted in frustration, my voice echoing strangely in the silent void. "I don't care! Just fucking tell me! Why did I get these powers to save my best friend, only for her to have to die anyway?!"

 

The butterfly slowly flapped its wings a few times in contemplation before I finally got an answer. "Very well. To put in in terms you might understand, think of me as a painter, and this universe you live in is my canvas. The power you wield – my power – was granted to one of you mere mortals during what you call your 'dawn of time', so that they could ensure the survival of your own kind while I focused on other things. I am a creator, after-all, and being a babysitter is not meant to be part of my job description. The power has certain contingencies built into it because of that reason which I'm sure you noticed by now; like how it can automatically protect you from outside forces that would otherwise mean certain death for you. In-fact, the only way you can die now is from what you would call 'natural causes', like old age. But I didn't forsee your mortal species having such ridiculously short lifespans, and so I turned my attention away just long enough for that first mortal to die before I could take my power away from them. What happened next, was something I never expected or intended; instead of simply vanishing, the power passed down to another human, and when they died, it passed down again, and again. Since then, I have been unable to completely reclaim the power, only limit the usage of it, which I do when the wielder starts abusing it. You see, you were never supposed to have my power, and you certainly weren't 'chosen' to use it because I have no input on which of you mortals the power is passed down to. It's entirely random except that it seems to only transfer to those going through some sort of intense emotional trauma, such as yours. I have no idea why. However, this universe does have rules that must be followed and there are some things that simply cannot be changed without causing irreversible damage to not just your tiny world, but the universe itself, and almost every new wielder attempts to cross those lines to fix the event that allowed them to receive the power in the first place... In other words, babysitting you power-abusing humans is now my only job, at-least until your species evolves to become much more responsible or I can figure out a way to actually take back my power, so thanks for that. I could've been creating something much more magnificent right now but no, I have to ensure you mortals don't accidentally destroy your own world and take my sandbox universe along with it. You should honestly consider yourselves lucky that you have me watching over you and not one of the others, because some of them would've wiped your world and rebuilt it from scratch by now. Not me, though. I made a promise to not abandon any of my creations, but the longer I'm stuck babysitting you, the more I wish I hadn't-"

 

I could feel the tears falling before my brain had even fully absorbed all those world-shattering revelations, though there was only one thing that I really cared about at the moment and so I eventually interrupted with, "Wait. So you're saying... I can't save her? You won't let me? But... what about Rachel, I thought she caused the storm? If not, then does she still have to die too?"

 

The butterfly stayed silent for an excrutiatingly long time before making a noise that sounded a lot like a sigh. "The girl you know as Chloe cannot be saved. The week you experienced – along with the storm – was meant to show you what happens when you try to circumvent the rule of fate, and I can't allow you to repeat it all over again, it's too dangerous and would only land you right back here anyway. So no, the one you call Rachel did not cause the storm, however... she is certainly an anomaly. Despite me ensuring that this scenario played out exactly the same, your attempt to save the girl worked. It shouldn't have, especially without causing some other catastrophe of it's own afterwards, but she seems to have survived and escaped the cosmic consequences. Not even I understand how, but I'm certainly intrigued, so I suggest you take solace in the fact that you at-least managed to save one out of two, and it's quite literally the best outcome you will get out of this. Besides, if I learned anything from watching you and the one known as Chloe during that week, she'd gladly trade places with the one she called her angel. I can see how much this Chloe means to you, since I've had to witness things like this enough times to understand the intricacies of human emotions by now, so I sympathize and apologize, truly I do, but I'm keeping your – my – power locked until this event is over. Once it is, you'll be free to use it again should you need it, though I'll still be watching to make sure you don't attempt to change this outcome again. Farewell Maxine Caulfield, I hope we never have to speak like this again."

 

My glassy eyes followed the butterfly as it rose from the bucket, before gracefully fluttering through the frozen time-space and towards the open window, as my numb brain struggled to comprehend the one thing I desperately refused accept. I'd failed Chloe. I wasn't allowed to use my powers. I couldn't save her. Rachel surviving in her place was barely a consolation prize to me. I wanted Chloe, not her!

 

Just as the butterfly vanished from sight, the freeze it held in place dropped along with it, startling me back to the harsh reality I was seconds away from facing.

 

When I heard Chloe's panicked voice, I reflexively attempted to rewind again, but it still wouldn't work. So I closed my eyes and came to a decision. If my best friend wasn't allowed to survive this encounter, so be it. Powers or not, this time I wasn't just going to stand by and watch it happen. Chloe deserved better.

 

Right on cue, Nathan hissed, "Nobody would ever even miss your punk-ass, would they?!"

 

I took a deep breath and stepped around the corner before channelling my inner-Chloe, then growled with as much conviction as possible, "That's where you're hella wrong, asshole!-"

 

I only got halfway through my lame declaration before the sound of my voice reached their ears, and a look of recognition flashed on Chloe's face as she muttered in disbelief, "Max?!"

 

Nathan jerked in surprise at the unexpected noise, intending to turn in my direction, but the gun in his hand went off before he could.

 

As I watched Chloe collapse to the cold, dirty bathroom floor just like last time, in what felt like slow motion, I knew that this was it, and I didn't care what happened next; I simply saw red and charged at Nathan while he was still distracted with staring down at what he'd just done to Chloe.

 

Now, I'm not a fighter. In-fact, I've never been in a real physical fight before in my entire life, but right now in this moment? I was acting on pure instinct and more than a little bit of repressed rage at the unfairness of everything Chloe and I had been through in the previous timeline. So when my shoulder slammed into him with enough force to both knock him backwards into the sinks and also make him drop the gun in his hand, I was far from finished. I wanted – no, needed – him to feel even a small fraction of the pain I felt, and for the first time ever, I curled my hand into a fist, raised it, and struck. And struck. And struck... By the time his brain realized he needed to raise his hands to defend himself, his face already resembled a pulped tomato, and my hand was slick with blood. With his face now protected, my fist automatically moved its attention to the rest of his body, and I began blindly hitting any part of him that I could reach. Some might say I deserved this chance for payback, others might say I lost control and went overboard. In my eyes, both would be right. The only thing that caused me to come to my senses was the sound of Chloe's raspy voice pleading for me to stop.

 

And so I did. Nathan instantly slid down the wall and curled up into a ball under one of the sinks, sobbing incoherently. I quickly kicked the gun across the room just to be safe, and finally turned my back on him so that I could focus on Chloe. My best friend and the girl I loved the most in the entire fucking world, was laid on the ground with her blood quickly pooling underneath, filling in the lines in the tiled floor like they were a maze of aqueducts flowing with liquid for the first time.

 

I pulled my gaze away from the sickening sight and dropped to the ground next to her, the knees of my jeans immediately soaking up just a tiny amount of her blood. I roughly yanked my hoodie over my head and tried to press it against the wound in her stomach. I already knew it didn't matter, but I was still going to try. I held it in place with my already bloodied hand, while my clean one reached to stroke a thumb over her cheek as I got lost in the blue oceans of her eyes, which even now I could see were beginning to lose their spark of life.

 

Chloe tried to say something but it was incomprehensible.

 

I shook my head at her and blinked away the tears that were threatening to obscure my vision. "Chloe, don't speak. Just listen. I'm here now, you're not alone. You never were. I may have abandoned you when you needed me most, and I was too chickenshit to reconnect for years, but I never stopped thinking about you. I love you Chloe. Please, please don't leave me. Not now. I need you."

 

In typical Chloe fashion, she forced herself to speak anyway, her voice barely a garbled whisper. "I know, Max... I know. I forgive you, and... I love you too." She winced in pain for a moment before opening her mouth again. "I can feel myself fading away... I'm sorry First Mate, I think our ship is in yours hands now. Take good care of her... Captain."

 

Before I could even blubber out a response to that, she grunted and used the last of her energy to simulataneously raise her head along with one of her arms, the latter finding purchase on the back of my neck, pulling me closer to her. I knew what she wanted to do, and I let it happen.

 

Chloe kissed me. It was light and unfocused, gone was the passion and life like the one she gave me at the end of the last timeline. This was a kiss goodbye. I hated it with every fiber of my being, but I still poured every ounce of love into it that I could. It wasn't enough to convey how much she meant to me – nothing was – but it was the best either of us could do.

 

When she finally pulled away, she gave me a sad smile that would haunt my dreams forever, right before muttering, "And Max Caulfield? Don't you forget about me..."

 

As her head fell back to the floor, my eyes never left hers. The only thing I could manage to say in return was, "Never."

 

Our eyes remained connected until the ocean of blue in her eyes faded to a dull and stormy grey.

 

Then her body went limp and lifeless.

 

The blood-curdling scream of hearbreak that echoed throughout Blackwell Academy at that precise moment will be reverberating off its walls for eternity.

 

Chloe Price was already dead before David Madsen could even kick in the door with his gun drawn.

 

Though when he finally did arrive and saw exactly who was on the floor, I'll give him credit for being able to keep himself collected long enough to handcuff what was left of Nathan, confiscate his gun, and relay several messages into his radio before his legs fell out from under him right next to me.

 

I was vaguely aware of him attempting CPR on Chloe while crying and muttering to himself. I knew on some level I should've felt sorry for him, but right now I just felt... empty. Devoid of life, happiness, everything. I was nothing without Chloe, and now she was gone. While David was busy, another member of his security team came in and after laying a sympathetic hand on his shoulder, went over to Nathan and yanked him to his feet before dragging him out the door, assumedly to wait outside for the actual police to arrive.

 

Things kinda became blurry for a while after that, until I suddenly became aware of a group of paramedics being in the room with us, and one of them was gently trying to coax me into letting go of my iron grip on Chloe's jacket so that they could get her onto a stretcher.

 

After taking a second to blink myself back somewhat into reality, I very reluctantly complied and shuffled backwards.

 

Once Chloe's body had been taken away, Officer Anderson Berry quickly walked through the door with a solemn look on his face as he approached me and offered a hand for me to take.

 

I just stared up at him in confusion.

 

Berry winced, no doubt at the dead look in my eyes. "Sorry, Max. I'm going to have to escort you back to your dorm room so you can get some clean clothes." Then he gestured awkwardly to my blood-stained hoodie, along with the jeans and jane doe shirt. "We, uh... need those for evidence."

 

I slowly blinked twice, then allowed him to pull me unsteadily to my feet. "Oh."

 

I'm not a big fan of physical contact, but it's a good thing that Berry had the foresight to hook an arm around my back and under my shoulders, because as soon as he opened the bathroom door and we stepped out, I almost collapsed back to the floor upon hearing the collective gasp and mutterings coming from the crowd standing around in the hallway, which was quite possibly the entire student body and several of the teachers. If I had been capable of paying more attention, I would've noticed that he wasn't among them.

 

Berry managed to keep me upright and slowly walked me towards the front entrance, as he barked orders at one of the other officers to move everyone back from the crime scene... Chloe's crime scene.

 

My mind went blank again at that, and only returned once we reached the stairwell going up to the girls floor. Berry gently cleared his throat to get my attention back, and seemed relieved that he wouldn't have to carry me up them. I couldn't exactly blame him, I was a bloody mess right now. Pun not intended.

 

Since everyone else was still over in the main building, thankfully, the dorms were empty.

 

Berry didn't know where my room was, so now it was my turn to lead him down towards the end of the hall.

 

It took me far longer than it should've done to fish the room key out of my bag and unlock the door.

 

As soon as he closed it behind us, I started stripping out of my clothes. I didn't want to feel Chloe's already-congealed blood sticking to my body for even one second more. I only realized my usual self-consciousness was nowhere to be found and that my need to get out of these clothes right the fuck now was far stronger than my anxiety, when Berry coughed unexpectedly and turned away.

 

He spoke over his shoulder. "Max, I probably should've asked this sooner but I just wanted to get you out of that situation as fast as possible... Uh, would you be more comfortable if I had a female officer come and do this?"

 

I snorted at that, then glanced at myself in the mirror, glad to see that there was at-least no blood on my bra and panties before I started shrugging those off too. "Normally I'd say yes, but this is so fucking far from normal that I really don't care. Besides, I've known you since I was a child, Berry. So did... Chloe."

 

Berry winced again at that, but nodded to himself, then pulled an evidence bag out of his pocket and held it open for me to place all my bloody clothes inside while he kept his eyes closed. I included the underwear too, just to be sure.

 

I hopped over to my wardrobe stark naked and pulled out a fresh set of clothes along with a towel from one of the drawers before wrapping it around myself, just as Berry asked, "Are you dressed? Can I turn around yet?"

 

I simply shrugged, then realized he still had his back to me and couldn't see it. "No, but yes. I think I'm going to be spending the next six hours in the shower. Or for however long Blackwell's crappy water pressure can keep going."

 

Berry finally turned around, albeit cautiously, and as soon as he saw me wearing nothing but a thin towel, turned his gaze onto my plant Lisa instead. "That's... understandable. Oh, and before I forget, we're going to need you to come down to the station tomorrow to give a witness statement, standard procedure, you know. I'll come by in the morning to give you a ride. It's... the least I can do."

 

I wasn't particularly interested in re-hashing what I just had to experience, but nodded all the same. My unexpected response however was blunt and effective. "Chloe deserves more than your least, Andy."

 

He flinched at the bite I added to the casual use of his name, then turned back to face me. "I know she-"

 

That was as far as he got before the look on my face made him go silent.

 

I adjusted the towel slightly so I could cross my arms, then pointedly asked, "I've heard the rumor that you work for the Prescott's on the side... So, are you going to let Nathan off the hook like everyone always does? Just sweep this all under the rug and ignore the fact that Joyce now lost not only William, but her daughter too? And that I lost my childhood best friend and c-crush that I hadn't even seen for five fucking years before watching her get murdered today? Huh?!"

 

Berry looked like he'd been slapped. In-fact, I could feel that same rage that caused me to go ham on Nathan starting to boil over again and if he had stayed silent for a single second longer I might've walked over and actually slapped the poor guy.

 

Luckily for both of us, he abruptly looked up and met my steely gaze with his own before he spat out a, "Fuck no."

 

Then he blinked and re-composed himself before continuing, "You're right to question my... loyalty, Max. Everyone knows the APBD is corrupt, even I'm not that blind. No doubt Sean Prescott will try to spin things in Nathan's favor and get him out of this, especially after the state you left him in-" His mouth twitched into a smirk for a split-second before he managed to hide it and kept speaking. "But as of this moment whatever debts I owed to them just got thrown off the lighthouse cliff, because there's one unspoken rule in this town as far as everyone except the Prescotts and their puppets are concerned – You don't fuck with the Price family and get away with it, ever – they've been the beating heart of this town for as long as I can remember. So no, I'm not going to let Nathan weasel out of this one. I'd much rather go to bat for you and the Price's any day than for those slimy Prescott bastards. He's going to pay for this, even if I have to stake my entire career on it. You have my word. Now try to get some sleep tonight and I'll see you in the morning. Goodbye, Max."

 

He swiftly turned and walked back out into the hall, closing the door behind him before I could even say thank you.

 

Now that I was alone, I felt all my thoughts and emotions coalescing in the back of my head, threatening to explode, but I managed to force it all back down long enough to grab my shower supplies and a fresh change of clothes before trudging out of my room so that I could go wash what remained of Chloe's blood off my body.

 

And only once I was in the shower room did I notice a dull pain in my hand – the one I'd used to beat Nathan to a pulp with – thankfully it didn't seem broken. The knuckles were badly bruised though, so that was going to be annoying for a while. The paramedics must've been too preoccupied with Chloe to notice I was injured. Oh well. At-least now I knew how Warren felt after he did the same thing to Nathan in the original timeline... Hella fucking worth it, even if he is also technically a victim thanks to... him.

 

I shuddered and completely turned my brain off after that, spending the next half an hour hour zoned out under the scalding-hot water, just scrubbing relentlessly at my skin until it was red-raw all over and I couldn't take any more. Even after I'd stepped out and dried myself off, I didn't feel clean. I could still feel Chloe's blood sticking to my body, even-though there was no traces of it left. I don't think I'll ever forget that feeling.

Notes:

FYI, I'm still not back from my hiatus yet, at-least not fully, anyway. And if this is the first time you're hearing about it and want details, you can read the 'Author's Update' chapter I posted a month ago to my 'Final Timeline - Before The Storm' fic. The only reason I'm even writing for this one now is because it's the darkest of the three I currently have going, which coincides perfectly with my currently non-existant mental health (as if it's ever not non-existant lol), so it feels a little easier to jump back in with this rather than the other two. As a result, this fic could become even more depressing than I had originally planned... It'll still have a four-way happy ending etc, or as close to one as you can get without Chloe, but the journey to that point may be a bit darker. I might edit the tags in future if neccessary, but I'm not a fan of that because it kinda spoils the intended surprise and shock value if you know what's coming. Besides, I think/hope that most LIS fanfic readers have a pretty thick skin at this point when it comes to in-universe traumatic events, thanks to years of dealing with our ever-present 'PLISD' (Post-Life-Is-Strange-Depression) bullshit.

Anyways, the next chapter will come once I'm happy enough to release it, so I'll see ya'll whenever that is! :)

Chapter 3: Youth

Summary:

Rachel Amber picked the worst possible day to feel like shit.

Rachel Amber is confronted by a psycho hipster from photography class.

Rachel Amber gets shocked in more ways than one.

Notes:

Hey guys! Here's one of those shorter chapters I mentioned the possibility of happening (sorry). I wouldn't say I'm completely happy with it either, but I decided to release it anyway because my writing feels way too rusty right now to competently improve on it any further without seeming like all I'm doing is unnecessarily padding it. I mean, lets not forget how I somehow managed to write almost 200k words into just one week of plot in 'Pricefield - Time Warriors'. I'm already starting to feel some deja-vu here, so hopefully I don't end up accidentally replicating half of what I already wrote in that (because there's only so much you can deviate from a week of events that's canonically set in stone). Please let me know if it starts to sound a little too familiar, lol.

Enjoy! :)

(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)

Chapter Text

Chasing Amber (Through Fields & Marshes)

 

Chapter 3: Youth

 

Rachel Amber moaned out from the comfortable pile of pillows and blankets that she was currently snuggled underneath. She hadn't moved from her bed even once so far today, and despite it being almost 4:30pm she was still incredibly reluctant to leave it. But her bladder gave her no choice, so as much as the rest of her body protested, she forced herself to roll out of the warm cocoon, clumsily landing with a thud on the floor next to her bed.

 

I winced at the momentary shock of pain before I slowly extricated myself out from the tangled mess of blankets that had decided to follow me on my journey to the ground.

 

Once I was free, I pulled myself up into a sitting position and stayed there until my head stopped pounding just long enough for me to then climb to my feet.

 

I glanced into the mirror that hung over my dresser and groaned at the literal zombie staring back at me. I'd been sleeping for most of the day if the harsh glare of the sun shining right through my window meant anything, and yet I still felt as if I'd gotten none at all. I looked like total shit, and for a split-second my need to appear flawlessly perfect demanded that I spend the next fifteen minutes putting on makeup just to hide that fact from everyone else while I took a quick trip to the bathroom. That is, until a wave of exhaustion overcame me, instead causing my desire to jump back into bed as soon as possible to be the more preferrable option.

 

So rather than sitting down at my dresser, I shuffled over to the door and promptly stepped out.

 

As I made my way down the hall from the far end where my dorm was the only one currently occupied, I tried to mask my obvious imperfections by exuding a false-confidence that clearly said 'Yeah I look like shit, so fucking what?', since I was expecting the main dorm hallway to be full of other students by now.

 

Apparently it wasn't neccessary though, as the hall turned out to be strangely empty when I shouldered open the side door connecting the two corridors. But I was way too tired to pay it any mind and simply ambled down towards where the bathroom was.

 

I only managed to get halfway there though, when a mousy-looking girl came around the corner opposite the bathroom, where the showers were located. Clearly they'd just finished up a very early evening shower, if the still-wet mop was any indication. My eyes only spared them a single glance before I decided to ignore them and kept on walking to my destination before I ended up pissing myself.

 

Unfortunately for my full bladder and exhausted body though, this girl seemed to freeze in her tracks upon noticing me and I saw her eyes go wide in my peripheral vision. Next thing I know, she's stormed right up to me and shoved me, hard, in the chest. It took all of my energy not to fall on my ass as I stumbled backwards several paces from the sheer force of it. How is a tiny thing like her so strong?!

 

I was about to ask what the hell her problem was when she beat me to it and suddenly screamed in my face, "Where the FUCK were you?!"

 

My head was still feeling more than a little foggy so it took me a hot minute to even recognize the girl's face – her name was Max, I think – we shared photography classes together, and she was usually the shy hipster type rather than the total psycho she was acting like right now – but that's pretty much all I really knew about her.

 

In my daze, I must've taken too long to answer because she attempted to shove me a second time, though I was able to stand my ground against it, as she shouted, "Well? Why weren't you with her?!"

 

The way her voice suddenly cracked at the end made my anxiety start to spike it's way through my otherwise sleepy brain so I finally huffed out. "Woah, what the fuck is your problem? Not that it's any of your business, but I felt like utter crap this morning and decided to skip the day. I've literally only just gotten out of bed. Why?"

 

Max seemed to gape at me for a moment before growling, "Are you shitting me? The one time you should've been with her, and you decide to take a nap instead?!"

 

I was way too tired to deal with whatever this was diplomatically and just fired back with, "Okay seriously, who the fuck is this mysterious 'her' you keep talking about? Do you mean... Chloe? Did something happen?"

 

Max's face changed from furious to devasted in an instant, and right then I knew what she was going to say next, even before she'd uttered the words, "I... Uh, she- Chloe's d-dead..."

 

I stepped backwards away from her in shock, my back hitting up against the wall. "No... That's hella bullshit, you're lying. She can't be dead. I spoke to her just this morning!"

 

Max's arms hugged around her own waist and fresh tears began to leak from her eyes as she mumbled, "I was there... Nathan just s-shot her in the bathroom."

 

Upon hearing that, my legs fell out from under me and I slid down the wall, landing on the floor with a thump as my brain tried and failed to process the possibility of Chloe being... dead.

 

I was completely speechless as I stared blankly at the opposite wall for what felt like forever, and I wasn't even aware of the tears falling down my own face until they started obscuring my vision.

 

Eventually I gasped out, as if this random girl would have any idea what I was talking about, "I knew I should've gone with her, even if I was feeling like utter shit... but she said she could handle Nathan herself. Damn it, why the fuck didn't I go with her?"

 

Max sniffled, "Because I'm guessing neither of you expected Nathan to have a gun on him? Besides, Chloe can usually take care of herself... if he didn't have it, we both know she'd have easily kicked his fucking ass."

 

I snorted to myself. "Damn right she would." Then I blinked and glanced over at her with a frown before adding, "Wait, how would you know that though, I've never seen you anywhere near us, and she only ever hangs around at Blackwell with me or the skater bros. So how do you seem to know Chloe so well?"

 

Max froze at that and mumbled, "Oh... I guess she never mentioned me...?"

 

I hummed in thought as I tried to kick my fried brain back into gear. "Uh, I don't think so. Your name's Max, right? The only Max person that Chloe ever talked about was-" My eyes went wide, "Holy shit you're her. Max-" I snapped my fingers in recognition, "Caulfield... THE Max Caulfield who hella fucking abandoned her for five whole years? What the fuck, you've been right under our noses for a month and didn't bother to say anything?!

 

Max flinched and curled in on herself as she whined, "Yeah, that's me. I'm Chloe's so-called childhood best friend who didn't speak to her for five years... until today when she d-died in my fucking a-arms, so don't bother guilt tripping me, b-because I'm gonna be doing that for the rest of my fucking life, okay? I couldn't even save her, what a great f-friend I was huh?!"

 

She started sobbing uncontrollably after that, and now I felt like a total cunt. If this was any other situation, I would've continued ripping her apart piece by piece for not being around to help Chloe when she desperately needed it.

 

But I knew exactly how she felt right now, so instead I swallowed it down and just muttered, "Shit, I'm sorry. Hey, at-least you was actually there for her in the end, when it counted... Where was I again? Oh, that's right, I was asleep in my dorm when Chloe died, completely unaware that she needed my help! So, I'm just glad that she didn't have to die alone in that disgusting bathroom... Thank you."

 

Max nodded at that but stayed silent, and I didn't really know what else to say either, so I settled for doing the same.

 

I've never been good at keeping my emotions in check though, atleast not since first meeting Chloe. She had a natural way of bringing them out of me and actually helped me deal with them one at a time rather than keeping it all bottled up until I exploded. But the fact that she could no longer do that, made me suddenly feel an overwhelming sense of emotions all at once, each vying for dominance as they slowly bubbled to the surface. As usual though, my anger won out, or to be more specific, pure unbridled rage, at the very real possibility of Nathan fucking Prescott getting away with what he'd done to Chloe.

 

As a result, my blank stare quickly turned into a glare, and by now I was probably burning a hole into the carpet as I growled under my breath, "To think I once called Nathan a friend... I swear, I'm going to fucking kill him with my bare hands. That fucker is already dead, he just doesn't know it yet."

 

I immediately began plotting all the ways I'd make Nathan suffer, and my eyes remained lazer-focused on that same spot on the floor as I now imagined it was Nathan's smug face. I'm fairly certain that the carpet was starting to smoke, but I didn't care. Hell, I would love nothing more than to burn Blackwell to the ground, along with this shit-pit of a town that we never managed to escape from, if it meant Nathan would burn alive along with it for killing Chloe.

 

But right before I could cause an actual fire in the girls dorm, my concentration was broken by an unexpectedly intense feeling in my hand. The same one I used to control my... ability... when it wasn't in free-fall anyway, like it clearly was at the moment. At first I thought it was just a cramp or something, but as weird as it sounds, it felt more like the skin itself was buzzing – for lack of a better description – and it certainly wasn't the pins-and-needles kind. That's when I looked down and saw Max's hand was slowly creeping towards my own.

 

I glanced up at the frown on her face and muttered, "Uh... Max?"

 

Her eyes flickered over to me as she hummed. "Do you feel that too?"

 

I nodded in confusion. "Yeah... What-"

 

She cut me off by jumping her hand the rest of the way, awkwardly clamping it over mine.

 

Max only managed to hold it for a split-second though before we both yelped and jumped apart.

 

It felt like I'd just been electrocuted, and from the wince mirrored on her face I could only assume she felt the exact same thing.

 

Max stared back-and-forth between our hands for a moment before she whispered to herself, "An anomaly..." whatever the fuck that was supposed to mean.

 

Then she became fixated on her own hand instead and began repeatedly turning it over as she inspected it. The way she scrutinizing it, like she was looking for something invisible, you'd think she thought it had just grown extra fingers or something.

 

I was about to ask her what the fuck was going on when her eyes went wide and snapped back onto mine, before she said, all matter-of-factly, "You have powers too."

 

It took several long seconds for my brain to properly register what she'd said, and as much as I tried not to give away my utter surprise at being called out so bluntly like that, I'm fairly sure I was now gaping at her like a floundering fish. How the fuck did she know? I never even told Chloe about that, for fuck sake!

 

By the time I realized that she'd also said the word 'too' and I had managed to figure out a good enough way to respond without completely giving away my own secret, I began to hear footsteps beyond the door at the end of the hall, signalling that someone else was finally on their way up the stairwell.

 

Max immediately shot me a look that could only be interpreted as, "Shut the fuck up, we're going to discuss this later." so I forcibly closed my mouth instead, while we sat there and waited to see who would be the first person to witness us having an emotional breakdown in the middle of the girl's dorm hallway for all to see.

 

Please, please, please, don't let it be Victoria Chase. If it is, I don't think I'd be able to stop myself from breaking her nose, at the very least. Fuck knows the bitch has had it coming for years now, but after what her best friend (and probably boy-toy, if the rumors are to believed) has done, there's absolutely no way I won't be spilling her blood if she even dares to so much as open her fucking mouth this time...

Notes:

So, I toyed around with a few songs that were featured in BTS for this chapter's title but ultimately settled on picking 'Youth', since the lyrics fit perfectly with Rachel learning that Chloe has died before they could follow their dream of escaping the Bay.

As for the next chapter, unfortunately, I'm not sure when it will be out. I haven't even started writing it yet, and I'm having a little trouble with trying to figure out how exactly I want to handle adding in that increased darkness I also mentioned before. So I guess I'll see ya'll when I see ya! :)

Chapter 4: Even Angels Need Angels

Summary:

Kate Marsh replays the events that happened on the other side of the bathroom door.

Kate Marsh gives hugs that could brighten even the darkest of rooms.

Victoria Chase finds out that her words actually have consequences.

Kate, Max, and Rachel attempt to use movies as a distraction from their various feelings.

Notes:

Hey everyone! I'm still alive. Unfortunately, it's hard to write consistently when I've been dealing with a constant on-off headache for the past week or so, especially when I already struggle with finding the 'right' time to sit down and properly focus on my writing as it is. Plus I had a bit of writers block when it came to figuring out how I wanted to handle this chapter and despite the delays I'm still not quite happy with it, but oh well. So yeah, never fear, I'm still plodding along! And if you ever think I've just decided to give up on writing and abandoned you, all you need to do is look at the notes on the latest chapters of my fics; because if that ever does happen, trust me, I'll make sure you guys know about it. I won't be one of those writers who randomly vanishes into thin air one day without an explanation. Anyways...

Enjoy! :)

(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)

Chapter Text

Chasing Amber (Through Fields & Marshes)

 

Chapter 4: Even Angels Need Angels

 

An incredibly tired and worried Kate Marsh pushed open the front entrance to the dormitory while her mind was stuck on a loop, constantly replaying the horrific events that had unfolded roughly half an hour ago.

 

I recalled sitting in my assigned seat in Mr Jefferson's photography classroom after the lesson had already ended; I was lagging behind on purpose to be the last one out so that I could avoid being stared at, laughed at, and unfairly judged by everyone else while I walked down the hallways as if I was some kind of harlot when that's just not me at all. One minute everything seemed normal – or as normal as could be considering I'd been subjected to a weekend of hellish torture at the hands of the Vortex Club and their stupid video of me at that Party – then all of a sudden there was a loud bang that seemed to come from somewhere nearby which almost made me fall out of my chair in fright.

 

Now, I may have been sheltered to a ridiculous degree by my parents, but even I knew what a gunshot sounded like, and so did Mr Jefferson, since he rushed to the door to poke his head out into the hall and told me to stay right where I was before he went out to investigate. But why shouldn't I be nosy for a change like most of the other students usually are? I assumed there would already a crowd forming outside anyway. Besides,. its not like I didn't already have plans to do... that... tomorrow, so if I ended up getting shot and killed, I doubt anyone would even care. It would just save me the trouble of actually doing it myself.

 

I snorted at the memory of easily defying Mr Jefferson and following him out into the hallway, only to see other students already gathering near the bathroom as I'd expected, which must've been where the shot came from. At-least they were too busy gossiping about what had happened to pay any attention to my arrival for once. Though while I might not have cared about my own life, that doesn't mean I wouldn't say a few prayers for whoever was on the other side of the bathroom door. After-all, I wasn't a selfish a- a... butthole like some people.

 

Not counting those students still trading guesses about who the shooter was amongst themselves, the hallway was deathly silent for several very long minutes as we waited to see what happened next. There was no sounds coming from within the bathroom either, and nobody dared to approach the door any closer than the group had already done, which included the teachers who were fruitlessly attempting to convince everyone to get back in their classrooms to hide. Even the Blackwell security were embarrassingly delayed in their response to the situation, though I assumed they simply weren't expecting to face something like a real active shooter at a private school in such a small town like Arcadia Bay... Or they were just incompetent, argued a small part of my brain.

 

Right at that moment is when an ear-piercingly shrill scream erupted from behind the bathroom door. It was unmistakably one of heartbreak and pain; the kind that I would never be able to forget, and it was also eerily familiar. The students around me gasped and seemed to take a collective step back at the unexpected noise, before launching yet again into hushed whispers, this time regarding who it was that had just screamed.

 

A few seconds later was when the main entrance doors to Blackwell were silently – or as silently as could be anyway – burst open, revealing what seemed to be the entire security personnel employed by Blackwell which admittedly wasn't much, with David Madsen at the head of the pathetically small group. There was only five of them in total, including him. But seeing them all armed was enough to silence the students into wary submission as the security guards cautiously made their way towards the source of the gunshot.

 

Once they'd surrounded the bathroom door however, they all seemed unwilling to actually proceed any further. Except for David apparently, who was unphazed and simply grunted to himself at their lack of courage, then after eying the nearby group with disbelief and failing to make us back away with a wave of his hand, he instead counted down from three before kicking in the door with his gun at the ready. The instant he did so, all the students gathered alongside me held their breaths as one while we waited to see what had happened inside.

 

The door only remained open for about five seconds before David had quickly stepped over the threshold, letting the door swing shut behind him, but I don't think any of us were prepared to briefly witness the gruesome scene within, myself especially. There, laid on the floor of the bathroom in a large pool of blood – unmoving – was a girl with blue hair that I remembered seeing a few times around campus, hanging out with that popular girl, Rachel. And sitting off to the side under the sinks was what looked like a possibly unconscious Nathan, only this time the rich bully was sporting a badly bruised face, which a tiny sinful part of my brain was pleased to see.

 

However, the worst of all, and most unexpected occupant in the bathroom, was the obvious form of Max, who was bawling her eyes out and clutching at the blue-haired girl as if her life depended on it. My heart dropped into my stomach at the sight of someone I called a very good friend being in so much distress, and I finally realized why I recognized the scream earlier... because it'd belonged to her. So when the door closed, blocking the inside from view, I made a half-hearted attempt at stepping fowards, intending to go in there and comfort her. But I knew that was an incredibly stupid thing to do and managed to stop myself, reluctantly staying where I was.

 

I was getting increasingly frustrated with my fellow classmates at this point, who had yet again started throwing around theories like a game of hot potato, except now they were centered around who'd done what, and who was to blame. Most were as surprised as me to see Max in there, and even more of them had to be told who the blue-haired girl even was – her name was Chloe, apparently – but the general consensus seemed to be that Nathan had finally gone full-psycho and shot someone. Of-course, Victoria and her Vortex Club minions quickly came to his aid, attempting to somehow pin things on Max instead and saying that the blue-haired trailer trash deserved it. I was seconds away from coming to Max's defense and quite probably violently kicking Victoria where the sun didn't shine as my anger began to boil over, when the radios on the remaining security guards in the hallway simulataneously cracked to life.

 

The strangely clipped voice of David came over the radio, immediately silencing the din of the crowd as we all listened to him explain the situation. Some of it was too garbled to make out, but I got the gist of it: One suspect down – Nathan Prescott; One victim with a gunshot wound to the stomach – Chloe Price; One traumatized witness – Maxine Caulfield. Then he barked orders to the rest of his team, requesting police and paramedics ASAP. That's when I noticed Mr Jefferson – who had been standing next to me this whole time – had suddenly vanished into thin air, though I gave it no further thought considering I had more important things to be concerned about, like the wellbeing of my friend that had no doubt just witnessed a poor girl get shot.

 

The minutes slowly ticked by as we all waited for the police and paramedics to arrive, though in the meantime Nathan had been escorted out of the bathroom in – oddly enough – two sets of handcuffs by another member of David's security team, who temporarily placed him out of the way inside the boys bathroom instead. David himself stayed behind though, and was spotted desperately administering CPR to Chloe before the door shut again. Except he too now looked just as distraught as Max did, for some reason, which whipped the crowd into another round of frenzied gossip, over what could possibly make Blackwell's most hated head of security who always had a giant stick up his a- butt cry like that.

 

Someone attempted to call him a, uh... vulgar word to describe female genitals, but got swiftly quieted by the two often-high-on-drugs skater bros – Trevor and Justin if I remembered correctly – who mentioned that he was married to Chloe's mother, Joyce. And at the mention of the kind-hearted waitress of the Two Whales Diner, the rest of the students seemed to fall silent out of respect for her (except for the Vortex Club, no surprise there). Apparently most people here had run into Joyce in some way or other, myself included, and her food was held in high regard by the vast majority of the student population, who preferred her higher priced but much higher quality food to that offered by Blackwell's abysmal cafeteria.

 

That silence was maintained until the police and paramedics finally turned up, crashing through the front entrance at the same time. The latter proceeded straight down the hall towards the bathroom, having already been given directions over the radio by the security guards, while the police remained behind for a moment to have a quick conversation with Principal Wells, who until now hadn't stepped a single foot out of his office. This caused several people to whisper about him being a coward that didn't care about the wellbeing of his students, which a not-so-small part of me privately agreed with.

 

The paramedics were quick to transport the unnaturally pale Chloe out of the bathroom, and now that everyone knew who she was, and who her mother was, the onlookers had the decency to remain solemnly quiet until she'd been removed from the building entirely. Unfortunately, that didn't last very long, as one of the police officers headed inside the bathroom, only to come back out a minute later escorting an absolutely broken-looking Max towards the front doors. Barely ten seconds after she'd disappeared from view, David stumbled out next and attemped to recompose himself, before he was approached by the rest of the police officers who demanded that he handed over the suspect so they could take him into custody.

 

David seemed to bristle at that, and refused to give them access to Nathan, claiming that he didn't trust any of them to handle him. Likely because the Prescotts owned the ABPD, according to several students next to me. The officers then tried to press the subject and when he denied them a second time, they attempted to walk around him since they evidently knew where Nathan was being held – presumably because Principal Wells told them – and the situation suddenly became tense, almost standoffish, as David was surprisingly backed up by his entire security team who didn't hesitate to block the officer's from entering the boys bathroom. considering that the victim was their boss' step-daughter, I guess they'd rather go up against the police and not him. Eventually though, David compromised before things could turn physical, opting for personally handing Nathan over to Officer Berry – the one who'd escorted Max away, it seemed – and only him.

 

So while they waited for him to return from dealing with Max, the other officers decided to take advantage of the crowd's presence while we were all still standing around, and started taking statements from us; asking what we saw and heard. Which besides hearing the gunshot itself, we only saw the same aftermath that David did, so we weren't much use to them. Part-way through asking us those questions, Officer Berry came back and true to his word, David dragged Nathan out of the boys bathroom and practically threw him into his arms. I'm pretty sure I heard him growl something along the lines of 'get this piece of s- poop out of my sight before I do something I definitely won't regret'. Officer Berry seemed to get the message though, and was quick to haul Nathan out of the building, despite the adamant protests of Victoria and the rest of the Vortex Club who claimed that he'd done nothing wrong, as if we hadn't all seen the same thing...

 

After that, the police and Principal Wells himself finally forced the crowd of students to disperse, telling us to return to our dorm rooms or homes and to keep an eye out for an email from him about the possibility of upcoming classes being cancelled because of what had transpired. That itself was enough to make people leave, along with eliciting a huge round of cheers at the prospect of no classes, like it hadn't just taken someone getting shot to achieve such a thing. Typical Blackwell. Naturally, I was one of the first to leave, desperate to check up on poor Max. She was going to need my help after what she'd clearly witnessed, and there was no way I wasn't going to be there for my friend.

 

So after practically sprinting across the entire campus, there I was now stumble-rushing my way up the dormitory stairwell, and as soon as I pushed open the door to the girls floor, I was pulled out of my memories and froze up on the spot at the surprising sight in-front of me. I'd expected Max to be in her room or already on the way to the hospital, but no; instead she was sat up against the wall out in the hallway, and she wasn't alone. Sitting next to her was an equally disheveled and upset Rachel, who she must've told about what'd happened to Chloe. And seeing her now, I suddenly realized that she hadn't been there to witness it for herself – if she had been, I'd have certainly noticed – and my heart dropped into my stomach for the second time in half an hour. Now I had to comfort two people, one of them being the most popular girl in school, no less.

 

Fortunately for me, there was no time to dwell on how far out of my comfort zone this whole thing was going to be, since they'd both snapped their attention onto me the moment that I opened the door. So I ignored my lungs which were crying out for oxygen after my mad dash to get over here as fast as I could, and breathlessly made my way down the hall. Their eyes were tracking me the entire time as I approached them, and I could tell that they'd been crying but they didn't tell me to go away, so once I'd knelt down in-front of them, I did the only thing I could think of; I opened my arms and pulled them both into the warmest hug I could muster.

 

Or, at-least I tried to. Max eagerly accepted my embrace, but Rachel went as stiff as a board and resisted. Not that I could blame her, since we'd barely spoken to each other. Though unlike most of the other students at Blackwell, Rachel has never said anything mean to me, despite the rumors of her also being a part of the Vortex Club. But since I judge people on their actions, not rumors, I was willing to give her the benefit of the doubt either way. Besides, after what had just happened, that was the last thing on my mind right now. Thankfully, once Rachel saw how quickly Max had jumped into my arms, she reluctantly followed suit and allowed me to drag her in as-well.

 

The awkward three-way hug didn't last very long though, before I tried to say, "I'm here for you-"

 

I didn't even get to finish before Max started sobbing into my shoulder and blubbered, "She's d-dead, Kate. I c-couldn't s-stop it..."

 

Those words managed to set off an immediate chain reaction, causing Rachel to begin crying on my opposite shoulder too.

 

It felt like my insides had leapt into my throat, and I had to force down the urge to be sick. I'd suspected that might've been the outcome considering all the blood and how pale Chloe looked when she was being removed from the bathroom, but still... I really didn't know what I was supposed to say to that. Honestly, there weren't any words good enough, and I didn't trust my voice not to betray me right now if I risked trying to speak anyway. So instead, I tried to project the strength they needed, opting to hold onto them both as tightly as I was able, and ignored the uncomfortable feeling of their tears almost instantly soaking straight through both my cardigan and the shirt that I was wearing underneath.

 

We remained like that for what seemed like hours. Until we were rudely interrupted by the entrance to the girls dorm being angrily flung open. The three of us jumped apart as if we'd just been caught with our hands in the cookie jar, and turned to see that Victoria Chase – of all the darn people – was now stomping her way down the hall. When she spotted us sat on the floor though, she seemed to freeze in her tracks for a moment, much like I had done, and I swear that I saw a look of hesitation flicker across her face. But it vanished just as quickly as it came, replaced with her usual air of smug-like righteousness that made you want to knock her down a peg. Or twenty. But even if I wanted to, that wouldn't be very Christian of me, would it?

 

Max and Rachel both tensed up like coiled springs, ready for a fight, as Victoria slowly approached us like a cat stalking its' prey while she spat her first venomous words at Rachel, "Wow, Amber. Are those tears I see? I didn't think you was even capable of producing those, so you might as-well stop faking it. I mean, your dropout punk bitch has only been gone for like half an hour and I see you're already trying to start a new harem. With your track record, that... really doesn't surprise me at all, actually."

 

Rachel attempted to stand up, no doubt intending to attack Victoria, but was stopped by Max who grabbed her arm to hold her in place, so instead she weakly retorted with, "Fuck you, Vicky."

 

Max must've not been expecting me to try doing anything though since I was unrestrained, but I'd be lying if I said I wasn't still frustrated with the comments she made outside the bathroom earlier, and neither of them, or me for that matter, should have to put up with her bullying. Least of all right now. So the temptation to shut Victoria's mouth myself was rising fast.

 

Victoria casually snorted at Rachel's lame rebuttal and turned her attention to Max instead, shooting her with a furious glare. "So tell me, are you pleased with yourself, you stupid hipster bitch? Nathan's been arrested thanks to you-"

 

Max interrupted before she could finish, her voice laced with sarcastic disbelief. "Are you serious right now? Thanks to me? I'm not the one who fucking shot somebody, Victoria!"

 

She scoffed at that. "Oh please, obviously you're just trying to pin the blame on Nathan. But he wouldn't go around shooting people, even if that piece of trash did-"

 

What happened next was like one of those blink-and-you-miss-it moments, because before I had the chance to give into my own urges, Max had seemingly teleported across the hall, causing myself and Rachel to do a double-take as she appeared right up in Victoria's personal space and shoved her against the wall; the sudden deadly look on Max's face had effectively silenced Victoria into submission before she could even complete her sentence.

 

Max then prodded her finger harshly into Victoria's stomach and growled dangerously, "How about we re-enact what I saw Nathan do to Chloe, huh? The expression of rage on my face that you're seeing right now? That's exactly what Chloe saw. The finger jabbing into you? That's Nathan's gun, being pressed into her stomach while he pinned her to the wall, just like I'm doing to you now. I was there, I saw it all happen. So go on, Victoria. Finish whatever you were about to say and you'll see how she felt when she collapsed to the floor in pain. I dare you."

 

Victoria seemed to flounder for a split second, her voice stuttering slightly before she regained control. "I- I- Uh... Everyone knew that piece of trash was a ticking time-bomb, it was only a matter of time until she did something she couldn't come back from. So yeah, you're damn right that she deserved it..."

 

Max let her finish this time, and the silence lingered onwards for no more than two seconds before a deafeningly loud crack resounded throughout the otherwise empty dorms.

 

Victoria had been slapped so hard by Max that she stumbled sideways and fell over her own feet, landing on the floor with a groan.

 

She was quick to roll over though, and stared up at Max in shock while clutching at her already-reddening cheek. "How... How dare you-"

 

Max's nostrils flared and she didn't hesitate to fire back, incredulous. "How dare I? No. How fucking dare you!"

 

Then she seemed to realize what she'd done, and took a moment to calm herself down before extending a hand for Victoria to take.

 

When she refused her help and warily stood back up on her own, Max sighed. "Look, I get that you might not want to believe what Nathan did today, but in that case, your entire life is probably about to collapse down on you. When that happens, you'll no doubt be questioning your existence. So when you're ready to stop pretending to be such a cold-hearted monster – since you're not fooling anyone, least of all me – because I know you can be better than that, just know that my door is open and I'll have all the answers you need."

 

Before Victoria could even try to respond to that, Rachel spoke up next. "You know, I was hella protective of Chloe. For example, I once got myself stabbed by defending her from a murderous drug dealer, so unless you want me to do hella more than slap you for what you just said, Vicky, I suggest you fuck off back to your room and leave us alone. Right now." Then she cracked her knuckles for added effect.

 

Victoria appeared to realize when she was outmatched, and didn't want to risk getting into a two-on-one fight (which most definitely would've been a three-on-one fight at this point if I had anything to say about it), so she turned tail and ran back towards her room. Well, more like she limped (which was hilariously fake, Max hadn't hit her that hard), while still holding her face and grumbling a long string of expletives under her breath, before she finally kicked the door shut behind her.

 

Once she was gone, Max wasted no time in wandering up the hall herself and when she realized neither of us were following, she stopped outside her dorm room before calling over her shoulder, "Ugh, I'm not sitting out here any longer if everyone is coming back. I'd much rather continue my crying session in my very own cocoon of despair so I won't get interrupted by anyone else. Are you guys coming or not?"

 

Rachel shrugged. "I'd prefer my room honestly since its much more out of the way, but even I know that's probably not a good idea, considering I have more than enough booze stashed away in there to drink myself into oblivion, so... sure, I guess."

 

Max glanced at me questioningly as if that wasn't such a concerning statement for Rachel to make, "Kate?"

 

I just nodded instantly. "Max, there's no way I'm going to ditch you after what you've just been though. How about... we watch some movies as a distraction, or something?"

 

Max hummed in thought for a moment before answering with, "That's better than sitting in suffocating silence, I suppose. So long as they're not about time travel, anyways. Come on."

 

Then she opened her door and quickly ushered us inside before we could question her strange decision to omit time travel related movies.

 

Needless to say, we ended up spending the rest of the evening sitting on Max's bed – completely ignoring the knocks of all our other dorm-mates who came by seemingly every five minutes to check on her – and watching a bunch of movies on her tiny laptop screen picked out from the huge collection that Warren had gifted to her on a flash drive. Well, I say huge, but after Rachel and Max had painstakingly finished reviewing the movie titles for my benefit, it turned out there were only a select few in there that wouldn't scar me for life. And one of those just so happened to be a really sappy romantic movie – who'd have thought Warren was such a hopeless romantic? – which of-course triggered the waterworks all over again before we'd barely gotten ten minutes into it.

 

At around 11pm I decided to call it a night and said goodbye so that I could take care of Alice's nightly routine. Rachel opted to stay behind and spend the night in Max's room because she didn't want to be alone – not that I could blame her – and neither did Max, but as much as I wanted to join their inpromptu sleepover, I still had to take care of some last minute homework. I doubt I'd be able to sleep anyways, so I wasn't going to risk slacking on it, even if classes actually were going to be cancelled for the rest of the week, according to the mass-email that Principal Wells had finally gotten around to sending out an hour ago, along with platitudes and apologies about Chloe's death which were completely meaningless and empty as far as the other two had been concerned.

 

When I finally exited Max's room, the last thing I saw before I closed the door behind me was her and Rachel curled up against each other on the bed, and that sight caused my heart to do backflips in my chest for some odd reason, which I just put down to being because of my intense feelings of sadness over what they were going through. I definitely wasn't having sinful thoughts about both of them being so close together, and that most definitely didn't stem from me being jealous due to my stupid little crush on Max that'd spontaneously develoved over the past month of getting to know her, causing me to spend half of that time strongly denying it even existed – throwing my normally steadfast and sheltered wordview into chaos once I eventually accepted it for what it was – nope, I'm sure it didn't have anything to do with that at all...

Notes:

So, part of my writers block for this chapter included me being indecisive over who got to slap the shit out of Victoria. As you could probably tell, in the end I settled for making it clear that all three of them were certainly willing to do it in their own ways (yes, Kate too; she's dealing with a lot and isn't immune to sinful temptations, including the winky-face kind), but when I finally decided on having Victoria say that Chloe deserved to get shot (which physically hurt me because she abso-fucking-lutely does not deserve it, and that's the sole reason I am such a diehard Baer *cough*), I knew at that point Max was ultimately the only one who had the right to actually go through with it. And boy was the slap satisfying to write, even if I may have used Victoria as a punching-bag for my own feelings on those hypothetical people who think that Chloe deserved what happened to her. Sorry Victoria! Maybe I'll make it up to you if you stop being such a bitch! Wait, why am I apologizing to someone who isn't real? Oh god what have I become?!

Ahem~ Moving on... I also just want to give fair warning now, if you've read Pricefield - Time Warriors yet, then you know what I'm like when it comes to writing things on the go, so the next chapter will take a few turns that I didn't originally plan on. I mean, obviously this fic was gonna start out dark since there's no Chloe in it, but... yeah. You'll see. I'm just gonna keep ya'll in suspense until next week, yes that's right, next week, because wowser; I actually managed to write another whole chapter in one night(ish)!

See you then! :)

Chapter 5: Midnightmare Revelations

Summary:

Max Caulfield has horrible nightmares; some expected, and some not.

Victoria Chase's rage-crying session gets rudely interrupted by screaming.

Surprise revelations prompt a worrying hospital visit in the middle of the night.

A bunch of idiots try using guns to ambush a girl with powers; it's not very effective.

Notes:

Hey ya'll! Another chapter, as promised, and some stuff you probably weren't expecting to see in this fic. Can I ever keep things simple for once? Apparently not.

Enjoy! :)

(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)

Chapter Text

Chasing Amber (Through Fields & Marshes)

 

Chapter 5: Midnightmare Revelations

 

At precisely midnight, Victoria Chase – who had been spending the last few hours silently rage-crying into her pillow since being slapped in the face by Maxine Fucking Caulfield of all people – was violently ripped from her endless despair by a gut-wrenching scream tearing its way through the girls' floor of the dormitory which was not dissimilar to the one that she'd heard while standing outside the bathroom earlier.

 

My emotions were still at an all-time high as I shot straight up and bounced off my bed in frustration while swiping the pathetic leakage from my eyes, fully intending to go give that twee hipster bitch a piece of my mind for making such an ungodly noise at this time of night when people were trying to sleep – not that she needed to know I had actually been crying my eyes out this entire time over what she'd said to me, but that's the excuse I was going with anyway – so once I was satisfied that I didn't look like a fountain of ruined makeup, I was ready to go rip her a new asshole.

 

I took one last not-so-calming breath before donning a mask of fury, then wrenched my door open, stormed across the hall and all but kicked Maxine's door down, only getting half-way through my opening salvo of, "Jesus fucking Christ Caulfield, people are trying to sleep here you bitch-" before my voice decided now was a good time to disobey me and stop working of its' own accord.

 

To say that I was unprepared to see what was inside would be a massive understatement. I mean, yeah, I wasn't expecting the absurdity of seeing Rachel Amber sharing Maxine's bed right now, but jealousy was one of the few emotions I had gotten pretty good at handling and managed to stamp down on before it was able to rear its head. No, the thing that totally threw me, was instead the look of sheer terror etched onto Maxine's face as she sat bolt-upright in her bed, and even in the dim light I could tell that she was completely drenched in her own disgusting sweat, while Rachel was trying (and failing) to calm her down.

 

Max didn't seem to have even registered the sound of my voice, or my presence in her open doorway for that matter – she was too busy frantically rubbing at her wrists for some reason, and was that a nosebleed I could see? – but Rachel sure did. She only spared me a quick flick of her eyes followed by a glare in my direction before she turned her attention back to Max, who was slowly starting to rock back-and-forth while hugging at her knees. It looked like she was mumbling something under her breath as-well, but it was too quiet to distinguish what it was. All I could do was stare at her, with no idea what I was supposed to do in this situation.

 

I don't know how long I had been standing there like some ridiculous statue, before I was snapped out of my reverie by Kate painfully elbowing me in the ribs as she shoved me out of the way so that she could get inside herself. Holy fuck did that hurt and would probably leave an awful bruise, but I was still too stunned by what I'd just seen to give her a verbal tongue-lashing for it. And now that I was aware of my surroundings, it seemed like the entire floor had been woken up by Maxine's screaming, because except for Kate, they were all hovering around in the hallway like useless lemmings. I assume they didn't dare to come any closer with me standing there at her door like some kind of sentry.

 

When I heard Maxine's raspy voice calling my name, I almost jumped out of my skin, and so I turned my attention back to the inside of her room just in time to see her staring at me with an unreadable expression on her face. And now that our eyes had locked together, it was like some invisible force was keeping me from tearing my gaze away. The longer we remained connected, the more I desperately wanted nothing more than to run away, but the twinge of something which felt uncomfortably like concern that flared up in response wouldn't allow me to; no matter how hard I tried, I was unable to escape its' hold.

 

Only when it was eventually broken by Kate trading places with Rachel to comfort Maxine herself – the latter of which then came to stand in-front of me – did I even manage to blink my way back to reality, as I tried to keep my face impassive and not make it seem like I was already on the defensive, by biting out a hard, "What?"

 

Rachel frowned at me for a moment before gesturing to the open door behind me. "If you're going to insist on standing there, the least you could do is make yourself useful. Help me get rid of the gawkers. The last thing Max needs right now is more rumors being spread-" Then she shot me a sharp glare and added, "That includes by you. Understood, Maribeth?"

 

I flinched at her using my god-awful middle name and knew that there was no point trying to return the favor since she seemed to like being called Dawn, so instead I just rolled my eyes at her. "Fuck you. Fine, but I make no promises."

 

Her eyes turned into slits as she pushed past into the hall. "I'm sure you'll make an exception for me. I mean, unless you want me make good on my earlier offer by knocking a few teeth out of that pretty little mouth of yours."

 

Eventhough she clearly used it as an insult, my stomach still decided to gave me a case of the butterflies upon being called pretty – what was I, twelve? Ugh! – which I pointedly ignored and shot back with, "Bitch, you wouldn't dare."

 

She raised an eyebrow at that. "Well, I doubt you ever expected to get slapped before today either. Actions have consequences, Vicky. Not even your Highness is as immune to it as she thinks, because clearly you haven't looked in the mirror yet."

 

My hand instinctively reached up to touch my cheek and I winced at the pain. "Oh god, is it really that bad?"

 

She smirked infuriatingly. "No comment." Then she realized our dorm neighbors were eying us curiously and turned to address them, "Okay everyone, there's nothing to see here. Go back to bed you nosy bitches."

 

Miss-Big-Tits-Dana was of-course the first of them to speak up, worry clear in her voice. "Not until I know that Max is okay."

 

My mouth decided to respond to that before Rachel could, despite my best efforts to pretend I didn't care (which I didn't). "Really Dana? I know you cheerleaders like to fuck away your braincells and all but even you should have enough of them left to know that the answer is obviously not. Now like Rachel said, all of you fuck off!"

 

Dana seemed to have the mental capacity to at-least look embarrassed, eventhough I'd basically just called her a slutty whore. Which she was. Sorry, not sorry. Then she turned to the rest of the crowd and made a shooing motion with her hands, which besides myself and Rachel being the top contenders for the crown of Blackwell, Dana was the self-appointed dorm-mother that everyone usually listened to, and this time was no exception. With all three of us ordering them away, they didn't really have much choice but to obey, and once everyone else had retreated back into their rooms, Dana scoffed before giving me a middle finger, then slammed her own door shut too.

 

Rachel just shook her head at me in exasperation. "I really wish you'd stop being such a massive bitch to everyone, Vicky. You know, I can tell you've been crying. Just thought you should know that."

 

Then she stomped back to Maxine's room before I could even attempt to deny her accusation. Damn it, she better not spread that around, because if there's one thing that my father drilled into me, it's that a Chase does not cry, ever! (At-least, not in public anyway...)

 

When I eventually dragged myself up the hallway and peered into the room, it seemed like Maxine had mostly calmed down. She still looked like she was on the verge of tears, and she was shaking like a leaf, but at-least she didn't have that horrifying thousand-yard-stare in her eyes now.

 

And as I re-entered, Maxine's attention snapped straight to me, or rather to the object in my hand that I wasn't even aware of holding as she croaked, "Oh, you got me some water... Thanks, Victoria. Now gimme!"

 

I tried hard not to roll my eyes at her grabby-hands and nonchalantly handed the bottle over to her, as if I hadn't just spaced out so much that I'd apparently gotten her a drink from the vending machines all the way down the hall without even realizing it. Why the hell did I do that? I'm not some slave, and I don't even care about this hispter bitch, she slapped me for fuck sake!"

 

Once she'd gulped down almost the entire bottle in one go, she awkwardly glanced around her room and asked, "Uh, where's my Journal?"

 

I snorted at that. "Oh look, the hipster even keeps a diary! But how the hell should I know where you hide it?"

 

Max rolled her eyes. "That was a rhetorical question, Victoria." Then she snapped her fingers and pointed at the couch at the side of the room before adding, "Ah, check between the cushions."

 

Unfortunately for my insatiable curiosity, Kate managed to beat me to it and stuck her hand into the back-folds of the couch before I had a chance to snag Maxine's precious diary for myself. But as Kate withdrew a battered plain-looking spiral notebook that undoubtedly doubled as Maxine's Journal, I forced myself to keep my future-excitement in check, because at-least now I knew where it would be hidden next time I came snooping through her room. Oh man, I'm sure the Vortex Club would have a field day going through it.

 

As soon as Kate gave it to Maxine, she started tearing through the pages, seemingly at random, and evidently Rachel must've been as confused as me when she spoke up. "So uh, what does your Journal have to do with you screaming bloody murder and almost giving me a heart attack? What exactly are you looking for?"

 

Maxine didn't even look up as she replied, "Answers. To the nightmare I just had. I'd expected to be tormented by the scene of Chloe getting murdered over and over again after today, but... well, that wasn't the only thing that I had to endure-" She shuddered a little before continuing, "I... saw something that didn't make any sense, because it seemed different to what happened in my-"

 

She abruptly cut herself off before finishing her sentence, prompting Kate to ask, "in your... what, Max?"

 

Maxine shook her head slightly and mumbled, "Never-mind." then she turned to the next page of her Journal, and her eyes instantly went wide, followed by the utterance of a single breathy, "Fuck..." before the Journal slipped out of her hands, where it landed unceremoniously on the floor.

 

Naturally, I was quick to react and managed to scoop it up myself this time. Maxine didn't even try to protest against me looking through her Journal, so I glanced down at the page she'd been looking at and began to read, my confused frown getting deeper with each passing second until I voiced it aloud. "Since when did you have a history of blackouts, Maxine?"

 

Maxine balled her hands into tightly-bound fists and ground out, "I don't have a history of blackouts, I think that's kinda the point."

 

I raised an eyebrow at her and tapped the Journal page for emphasis. "Then why did you write on October 3rd, and I quote, 'I blacked out for the fourth time today. And just like the last two, it felt nothing like that first time where I blacked out and somehow found myself to have travelled all the way from Seattle to Arcadia Bay without realizing it, only to have written a note to myself claiming to be from the future-' I stopped there and scoffed, "And what the fuck's that even supposed to mean?"

 

Maxine dismissively waved a shaky hand. "Forget about that, the first one isn't the thing that concerns me, the other three are. Because, Victoria, I'm pretty damn sure it's not the fall-asleep-in-class kind of blackouts you're thinking of, but the ones where you completely lose track of time and find yourself in an entirely different place with no idea how you got there and can't remember what you were doing during that time. The kind of blackouts that you only get from being... d-drugged."

 

While Kate gasped loudly, and Rachel's eyebrows shot up in surprise, I wasn't buying it at all and snorted in disbelief. "Are you seriously trying to tell us that someone went to all that effort just to drug boring old you multiple times? Wow, and here I thought I was the narcissist!"

 

The look on Maxine's face clearly screamed, 'You're going to eat your words, bitch', but she didn't get the chance to actually say it, because Kate got there first and muttered, "She's telling the truth."

 

I crossed my arms, unsurprised. "Figures you'd say that. Let me guess, you're also going to claim that as your excuse for being outed at the Vortex Club Party as the fake bible-thumping whore that everyone knows you are?"

 

Rather than stare at the floor and mumble an affirmative like I expected, she instead stared right at me, forcing my deadly green eyes to clash with her unusually defiant hazel gaze as she growled out, "Actually, yes. Now that Max put into words the things I was already thinking, it all suddenly makes sense to me. I don't expect you to believe it, but I know that I can handle my alcohol. And I know I only had one sip of that disgustingly cheap liquid on offer that you called wine, before I switched to water. Then everything after that is a fuzzy blur, I can only remember tiny bits and pieces. Much like Max described, I have absolutely no memory of doing the things that I apparently did, and I can tell you now that if I had remembered doing it, I most certainly wouldn't have consented to what those perverts were doing to my body when I was completely out of it, which you thought would be such a great idea to capture on video for the entire world to see, rather than step in to protect another girl, you- you... selfish bitch!"

 

Well, it sounded like that explosion had been building for a while, but she was right, I still didn't believe her, and I really wanted to voice that. However, the way she said it with such certainty managed to catch me off-guard... enough for me to believe that she believed it, at-least. Also, the supposedly Christian girl just called me a bitch, so there was that to consider. Meaning that rather than call bullshit, my jaw just kept opening and closing pathetically, with no words able to come out.

 

Rachel decided to capitalize on my stupid silence by emotionlessly stating, "I believe them both."

 

Kate spun around to face her. "Wait, you do?"

 

Rachel seemed to take a deep breath, along with an audible gulp, before her next words chilled me to the bone. "Yeah... because I think I was drugged last night, too."

 

Maxine, who was in the middle of finishing the last of her water, choked in surprise at that, before looking at her with a mixture of defeat and fear as she whispered, "No... Please tell me that's not true-"

 

Rachel raised an eyebrow at Maxine's weird reaction for a second before grimacing. "Well, I've been feeling like death all day, that's why I skipped all my classes and stayed in bed. Which is why I wasn't there with Chloe, when... when-" She shook her head slightly and continued, "The first thing I remember is waking up or whatever this morning behind the Bigfoots bleachers across from Blackwell. I told Chloe that I'd just gotten blackout drunk the night before and had a killer hangover, because I thought that's what happened. I mean, I do like to party, so I'm no stranger to being drunk and hungover on a morning. But this time it seemed different, and even now I still feel a little off... gross, even."

 

Kate started wringing her hands. "So... I, um... I also woke up the morning after the party behind the bleachers."

 

Maxine seemed to whine under her breath. "If what I wrote in my Journal and saw in my nightmare means anything, then make that three of us, apparently..."

 

Rachel swore. "Shit, so... that means we were all drugged by the same person, right?"

 

The stunned silence following her pointing that out was broken by Maxine throwing her empty water bottle across the room in a fit of broken rage, where it narrowly missed my head, bouncing harmlessly off the mirror next to her bed as she exclaimed, "God fucking damn it!" (which Kate visible winced at) Then her shoulders sagged, and she sobbed out, "I failed... I completely and utterly failed!"

 

With the three of them convinced they were all drugged by some mysterious person, I really didn't know how to act right now. It was all I could do to keep my voice from wavering as I simply asked, "What the hell are you talking about, Caulfield?"

 

Maxine glanced between the three of us before sighing. "I'll explain later. Right now I think it's probably a good idea for all of us to take a trip to the hospital and get tested for drugs. Or to be more specific, for GHB."

 

I was distinctly aware of my heart skipping several beats at that, and this time my voice really did waver. "Wh- Why, uh, do you think they used GHB?"

 

Max gave me a deadpan stare. "Victoria, you're responsible for hosting elite high-school parties, and everyone knows the Vortex Club does drugs. I'm damn sure you know what GHB is used for, so why the fuck do you think?"

 

I tried to keep my breathing under control as I scoffed. "Of-course I know what GHB is, it's a- a... date... rape-" I blinked in realization, "Wait, do you really think that they actually... you know..."

 

Eventhough I couldn't finish that sentence, Maxine seemed to know exactly what I was getting at, if the sudden murderous look on her face meant anything, as she hissed, "For their sake, they better not have. But there's only one way to find out..."

 

She abruptly stood up to snatch her Journal out of my hands that I'd forgotten I was still holding, before grabbing her ugly hipster messenger bag and placing it inside as she bushed past me to open the door, then she turned back to face us in the doorway with a frown. "Kate, Rachel, if you guys want to stay behind, that's fine, but I'm going with or without you. Because if I really have been drugged multiple times, then that certainly fucking changes how things are going to play out this week."

 

Maxine waited for a few seconds like she hadn't just said yet another strange thing, and seemed to breathe a sigh of relief when Kate and Rachel traded glances before ultimately agreeing to join her, then she furrowed her brow at me once she saw that I hadn't moved a muscle yet. "Victoria, I don't expect you to come with us, but trust me when I say this involves you more than you think. That thing I said earlier about your world collapsing down on you? This is where it begins, albeit slightly ahead of schedule. But like I said, I will have answers for you, so the choice is yours. Plus, I really want the chance to say 'I told you so' to your face."

 

Then she shut the door, leaving me engulfed in the darkness of her own room. Thankfully she didn't lock me inside, because that'd be embarrassing as fuck. I'm not sure how long I stood there, before I finally came to a decision and left the room, managing to catch up with them outside the dorms. If they asked, I'd just say I was tagging along purely out of curiosity. However, much like that saying... once is a chance, twice is a coincidence, and three's a pattern; I couldn't deny that the idea of three girls living in the same town, going to the same school, and sleeping in the same dorm as me, who all thought that they might've been drugged by the same person, didn't worry me. Or scare the hell out of me, for that matter. But it's not like I was going to tell them that. So curiosity it was.

 

When Max heard my footsteps behind her, she turned around with a shit-eating grin on her face. "I had a feeling you'd decide to come with us."

 

I casually shrugged. "Only because I'm curious."

 

If it was even possible, her smirk got even wider and I wanted to punch it right off her face when she just said, "More like you want to know if it could've happened to you."

 

I wasn't expecting her to hit the nail on the head quite so perfectly and almost tripped over my own damn feet in surprise. "What? No I do-"

 

Maxine cut me off, her smirk now replaced with one of concern, which made me want to punch her far more than the grinning did. "It's okay, Victoria. I get it. If myself, Kate, and even Rachel – the most popular girl in school – isn't off-limits for getting drugged, then surely this person wouldn't hesitate to go after you, either." Then she reached out to put a hand on my arm and, shockingly, I no longer wanted to bite her head off, as she asked in a small voice, "Do you think he might've gotten to you?"

 

Her useage of he definitely didn't go unnoticed by me, but I decided not to bring it up and sighed instead. "Honestly? I don't know. Like Rachel, I drink a lot, especially at the Vortex Club parties. I don't recall ever waking up randomly behind those disgusting bleachers though, and believe me I'd remember if I did, but... you never know, right?"

 

She wordlessly nodded, then let go of my arm and gestured towards Rachel leading the way. "Just an FYI, we're taking Rachel's car because Kate and I don't drive, but she does."

 

I frowned in confusion. "Huh? Last I checked, Rachel doesn't even have a car. And where are we going? This isn't the way to the Blackwell parking lot."

 

Rachel quietly called over her shoulder to not attract the security guards' attention as she lead us through the passage-way between the dorms and main campus, heading towards the road itself. "That's because technically, it's not mine. Well, it is, but... it's not officially roadworthy and stuff. Which is why it's not kept in the Blackwell parking lot, it'd probably get towed away. So it's parked around the corner up the road instead, in that old abandoned parking lot that nobody uses except as an overflow for when Blackwell is hosting the Bigfoots' matches."

 

Ten seconds later we rounded said corner and at the end of the road was the dingy parking lot that she mentioned, with only one vehicle sitting inside. And that vehicle just so happened to be a very familar one which made me immediately rethink my plan on going with them to the hospital, because there's no way in hell I was getting in that fucking thing.

 

Oddly enough, Maxine seemed to act like she'd just walked into a brick wall upon spotting the rusty beat-up pile of trash that was meant to pass for a truck, causing all of us to stop walking as she mumbled, "That's... C-Chloe's truck."

 

Rachel scuffed her feet on the ground awkwardly. "Well, yeah... But, I mean, it kinda belonged to both of us. She was just the one who always drove it." Then she raised an eyebrow and added, "Hold on, how do you even know it's her truck?"

 

Maxine opened her mouth to answer, and then all of a sudden she vanished. Like, she legit fucking disappeared into thin air right in-front of us. Only to burst out of the treeline slightly ahead of us a couple of seconds later, looking like she'd just ran a marathon through the woods. And was that another bloody nose I could see? What the shit?

 

I didn't have time to question my sanity much further though, because Maxine turned towards us and yelled, "Guys, we're being followed, get to the truck! Victoria, you can ask your damn questions later, just fucking run!"

 

Considering I was literally just about to ask what the fuck was going on, my jaw slammed shut and my adrenaline spiked instead, as she started sprinting up the street, followed confusedly by the rest of us.

 

That confusion only lasted a second though, as something that sounded worryingly like a suppressed gunshot whizzed past us, followed by several more, and I couldn't stop myself from shouting in disbelief, "Holy shit, we're being shot at!"

 

Maxine snarkily called back over her shoulder, "You don't say, Victoria!" then she added, "Crap. Kate, duck!"

 

Out of the corner of my eye, I watched Kate bend her entire upper body over in fright, just in time for something to go flying right past where her head was, at the same time as another one went sailing past my hip, which just pissed me off even more. "What the fuck is going on, Maxine? Why are people trying to shoot us? And how many of them even are there?!"

 

Maxine slowed down slightly to let the rest of us catch up to her before she replied, "There's at-least three of them. Just focus on not getting shot please, and get to the fucking truck already, because they apparently shoot to kill!"

 

I took once glance at our distance to the truck and I swear it hadn't changed since we started running. It was like one of those stupid carnival funhouse hallways that looked like they stretched on forever.

 

No more than five seconds later, Maxine seemingly teleported from in-front of me, only to reappear next to Rachel, just in-time to shove her out of the way of a bullet that would've probably hit her in the back of the leg.

 

Rachel stumbled slightly but managed to regain her footing and kept running, as she finally said her first words since the bullets began flying, "Thanks, Max! Seriously, how the fuck did you do that?"

 

Maxine groaned and jumped sideways to dodge another gunshot as she replied, "Okay, fine, do you remember the weird thing with our hands that we forgot to talk about earlier? Well, you're not the only one who can do stuff. The rest I'll explain when we're not being shot at!"

 

Once we were almost at the final stretch to the truck, Maxine seemed to teleport slightly and flickered as she ran, before she growled in annoyance, "Okay, these fuckers are apparently going to try shooting at Chloe's truck and that's a big no-no as far as I'm concerned. I know Rachel has the keys, so everyone keep running and when you reach the truck, don't hesitate to get the hell out of here. Don't worry about me not being there, I'll catch up before you manage to drive away. Now excuse me while I go kick their asses-"

 

Then she flickered on the spot again before adding, "Oh, and Rachel? When you get to the truck, you'll need to use your power right as the overhead streetlight blinks. Just aim directly across from the driver's door. And if you need another incentive; If you can't do it on-command, you'll get a bullet to the shoulder, and if you hesitate after that, you'll also take one to the chest. The first is just a flesh-would that you'll survive, but the second is guaranteed to kill you, and I can't be in three places at once to stop it because I've already exceeded my limit here as it is. So if you can scare off that one, I'll take the other two. Please just trust me, it'll be fine."

 

When everything had been said, she abruptly blinked into nothingness, vanishing from their midst. And now it was only the three of us left in a dead-sprint to the truck with no room to consider the insanity of this entire situation, or what any of it meant for our perception of reality...

Notes:

I had to cut the end of this chapter a little awkwardly from my original version of it, since the next one's going to be from Rachel's POV, and I wanted to give her a slightly longer chapter than what the next one would've been otherwise, because her initial intro was quite small. And in-case you were wondering, yeah, there's worse things still to come (Sorry!), before it inevitably gets better. If any of it turns you away, there'll be no hard feelings. This is just the way it works when I'm writing on the go; beyond the first few chapters, a lot of it becomes unplanned and unpredictable. It's a habit I can't break, unfortunately. *shrug*

Also, the next chapter's already been written again, but don't get your hopes up expecting regular updates, 'cause we all know by now that never lasts long with me lol.

See ya'll next week! :)

Chapter 6: Admissions

Summary:

Rachel Amber is forced to use her powers.

The gang escapes the trio of armed goons but not before one of them is hurt.

So now they need to visit the hospital for more than just drug tests.

Along the way plans are made and reinforcements get called in.

Notes:

Hey ya'll! I almost forgot about posting this chapter today (I had a hella lazy weekend), but here it is, only slightly later than usual.

This chapter is a continuation of the previous one, just from Rachel's POV instead. And it goes without saying, that I know absolutely nothing about how hospitals are supposed to function, especially in the US, so you might need to read it (and the following chapter) with a pinch of salt.

Enjoy! :)

(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)

Chapter Text

Chasing Amber (Through Fields & Marshes)

 

Chapter 6: Admissions

 

Rachel Amber, who until this point had been soley focused on outrunning bullets – while being quite frankly scared shitless – decided that now was the time for her to step up and take control of their little group, since Max had just decided to ditch them in favor of doing her own thing.

 

As much as I wanted to think about how the actual fuck Max knew I had powers, or that she knew my powers were the kind that could be used defensively – or offensively, for that matter – when I never told her about it, there wasn't any time to waste on doing that right now, and so I quickly scanned the area to figure out what our best option would be.

 

I immediately gestured towards the treeline running parallel to us, getting Kate and Victoria's attention. "Guys, it'll be safer if we cut through here to get to the truck. It's dark, and the trees will give us plenty of cover along the way, so there's way less chance of us getting shot if we do. Especially now that Max isn't around to defy fate by helping us somehow avoid taking any-more bullets in the back."

 

Victoria looked like she was going to argue for a moment, whether she was against my leadership or my idea I wasn't sure, but then she decided against it and simply nodded in agreement.

 

Another round of gunshots flying perilously close by spurred us back into action, and we all but dived amongst the trees, but not before I heard a muffled cry come from behind us. So perhaps Max didn't need to be right next to us for her to keep saving our asses, after-all.

 

While we were blindly sprinting through the woods, it was a miracle that none of us tripped over, since we could hardly see where we were going. And luckily, we hadn't managed to get lost in the short time we were in there either, since we re-emerged from the trees thirty seconds later in the right place.

 

The parking lot itself was wide-open and an easy way to get shot if we didn't keep moving, so I quickly ran across it to the far end where Chloe had frustratingly parked the truck last, followed by the other two who were much more out of breath than me, which was surprising considering Victoria's athletic figure. It's probably due to all those cigarettes she smokes.

 

Upon reaching the truck, I flung open the passenger door and ushed Kate and Victoria inside, before jogging around to the other side. Unfortunately, right as I opened the driver's side door and was about to climb inside myself, the streetlight above us flickered, just like Max had warned me it would. None of us missed it, since it was pretty obvious, being the only real source of light in this area of the parking lot. So whatever I was supposed to do, it was now.

 

I glanced up at the light for a moment before turning around to face away from the truck, as I frantically scanned the darkness across from us, beyond the road. But I couldn't see a damn thing, nor could I get my power to manifest itself; the one time I actually needed to use it and it didn't want to fucking cooperate!

 

Max had already been able to do the impossible, and she had been right about everything else so far, including the flickering streetlight. So I knew I was about to get shot, and there was nothing I could do to stop it. I only hoped that she was right about it being a flesh-wound...

 

Then a few seconds later, as expected, I heard the muffled sound of a single gunshot coming from the shadows, and barely a split-second later felt what was was unmistakably the bullet as it impacted my shoulder, causing me to hiss in pain, "Motherfucker! There you are-"

 

I was hella lucky that the gunshot gave off just enough of a flash for me to pinpoint his position, and oh look – now my power wants to work, after I've already been fucking shot – and it suddenly didn't take much effort at all to bring the power to the surface.

 

As my entire right arm spontaneously burst into bright-yellow flames, I very briefly wondered how this must look to Kate and Victoria, but I was too focused on the threat to give it much thought. So, now fueled by my pain and anger, it was worryingly easy to tap into the burning sensation rippling beneath my skin, and flick a sizeable chunk of fire back at the bastard, like my very own fiery bullet from hell. I just prayed this didn't cause another stupid forest fire if I missed.

 

Surprisingly, I must've managed to hit my target since a loud yell sounded, followed by a human-shaped silhuette lighting up the background as they caught fire, before they promptly dropped to the ground and began rolling around in an attempt to put themselves out. In their panic, they must've forgotten that they were on the edge of a steep embankment since Blackwell was so high up on the wooded hillside, and so the poor guy suddenly disappeared as he went rolling out of sight. Maybe all that rolling would be enough to put him out, and I hadn't actually just killed someone. But, I mean, he did shoot me, and probably would've killed me if I hadn't done anything, so-"

 

I was abruptly pulled from my thoughts by the sound of Victoria's voice, "For fuck sake, Rachel get in!"

 

Blinking back to reality, or whatever this situation was supposed to be classed as, I noticed my arm had already put itself out. I could still feel the power thrumming under the surface, begging to be let out, but I'd probably already given the other two nightmares for the foreseeable future – not to mention myself – so I promptly got into the truck and slammed the driver's door shut.

 

Glancing into the rearview mirror at my reflection, I looked completely normal again, minus the bleeding wound on my shoulder, of-course. And seeing it for the first time brought back a sting of pain, but other than a groan that escaped my lips, I just pushed through it, turning my attention to the truck and inserting the keys instead.

 

For a moment there, I thought it wasn't going to start up, but thankfully it did; the engine roaring to life with a ferocity that wildly contradicted the otherwise terrible condition of the truck. Not that I'd ever say that out loud. Chloe's ghost would probably haunt my ass forever. Well, more than it already will, anyway.

 

I was vaguely aware of Kate sat at the other side of the truck, still staring at me with wide eyes, but I decided now wasn't the best time to tease her. After-all, she probably just had everything that she believed in brought into question.

 

Victoria spoke up, apprehensive. "Rachel, are we really going to leave Maxine out there?"

 

I rolled my eyes at her. "Is that concern I hear in your voice, Vicky? Don't worry, we're not leaving her here. Fuck that." Then I spotted movement in the trees and pointed towards it before adding, "See, there she is."

 

The three of us watched as Max stumbled out into the parking lot. But unfortunately, it appeared that she wasn't alone, as she was quickly followed by the third and presumably final attacker who pointed their gun at her back. And they must've ordered her to stop moving, because that's exactly what she did.

 

The guy then slowly walked up to her and placed the barrel of his gun flush against the back of Max's head, causing Kate to gasp, "Oh no, Max! What do we do?"

 

I narrowed my eyes furiously and turned to open the door again, briefly wincing as I moved my injured shoulder. "Like hell am I going to let this piece of shit just execute her."

 

And I was half-way towards throwing the door wide-open when Victoria grabbed my wrist before I could get out. "Rachel, wait! I get the feeling she doesn't want you to rescue her."

 

I scoffed at that. "What the fuck are you talking about?"

 

She nodded her head in Max's direction. "Look at her."

 

I turned to make eye contact with Max through the wind-shield, and even from this distance I could tell that the look on her face said, "Don't you fucking dare!"

 

Victoria hummed, uncertain. "Listen, she somehow managed to stop us from getting shot back there on the street, and she was right about you being shot in the shoulder by that guy. As ridiculous as this is, I think we have to trust that the hipster bitch knows what she's doing."

 

Kate gulped. "Okay, but... can we open one of the windows? I want to hear what they're saying, at-least."

 

I reluctantly nodded and sat back in my seat, then cautiously rolled the driver's side window down half-way without drawing the guy's attention, just in-time for us to hear Max say, "I seriously doubt that you're going to shoot a teenage girl in the back of the head."

 

The guy seemed to snort in amusement. "If you think I won't do the job I was paid for, then you're in for a surprise, little girl. But just because you called my bluff, I'll give you a demonstration-"

 

Then he aimed his gun away from the back of her head, and towards us. Or rather, at the engine of the truck we were currently sat in. And right as he went to fire, Max did her flickery thing again and shoved her hand out, pushing his arm away, hard, causing the gunshot to completely miss the truck and ourselves.

 

I could practically feel Chloe's ghost breathing a sigh of relief at her – our – truck not being shot, as if she was watching all this play out along with us. She'd probably love this crazy shit, honestly.

 

Max followed up her move by flickering once more, only this time she somehow re-appeared behind him with his own gun in her hands, already pointing it at the back of his head, instead of the other way around, as she snarled, "Actually asshole, I think it's you who's in for a surprise. So if you know what's good for you, you're gonna tell me who hired you. Now."

 

Contrary to deadly edge in her voice, Max was staring at us with a smug grin plastered on her face, so I don't think she was actually going to shoot the guy. But even so, Max Caulfield holding someone at gunpoint sure was a terrifying thing that I never expected I'd see, and from the look on the others' faces, neither did they.

 

The guy scoffed at Max. "If you think I'm going to tell you who my employer is, you might as-well just shoot me now and get it over with, because that's never going to happen, little girl."

 

Max teleported back in-front of him now, and chuckled to herself. "No need, I already know who it is. I mean, it's really fucking easy to figure out, considering not even a day has gone by since I beat someone to a pulp after they shot my best friend. So yeah, I suggest you go tell your boss, Sean Prescott-" The added emphasis getting his attention and making his eyebrows raise in response, along with mine (and Victoria's), not that she saw it, "He made a critical mistake by trying to have me killed, especially after his rich entitled brat of a son murdered someone very important to me. So I want him to know that he just sealed his own fate even tighter than Nathan's already is. And I doubt the District Attorney will be happy about his daughter being shot by Prescott thugs, either-" I just scoffed at that, because while she wasn't wrong, I certainly didn't want anything to do with my dad, or for him to get involved in this. "Oh, and one more thing; if it wasn't already clear to you, I'm so much more than a little girl, so if I was you, I wouldn't call me that again."

 

The guy just rolled his eyes and laughed. "Or what, little girl? Are you going to shoot me or not?"

 

Max shook her head and sighed. "No. But I'll do the next best thing. Spoiler alert, this is going to hurt."

 

Then she kicked him as hard as she could in the balls, causing the three of us to wince in second-hand pain.

 

While the guy was holding his groin and howling in agony, Max continued speaking without a care in the world, "Now, I'm not sure what happened to your friend on the street, but he seemed to run away like a coward once I stole the bullets out of his gun. And the other one probably needs medical attention, after the dumb-ass fell down the hill over there- " then Max jabbed a thumb towards where the one that I set on fire had been, before she casually walked away while still holding the guy's silenced pistol.

 

Just before she reached us though, she called back to him over her shoulder. "Since I highly doubt that Sean will stop, despite the fact that his first attack completely failed to eliminate this so-called 'little girl', all I have left to say is: Better luck next time, assholes!"

 

Then she jumped into the truck and I wordlessly floored the gas, tearing out of the parking lot before we could get hit with any-more surprises, and speeding towards our original destination. Only now we needed to go to the hospital for more than drug tests, since I also had a gunshot wound in my shoulder that needed taking care of. And how the hell we were supposed to explain that, I had no fuckin' idea...

 

For a solid minute since escaping from the abandoned parking lot, I'd been completely ignoring the speed limit and driving at break-neck speeds. And now that I was satisfied we weren't being pursued, I decided to pull the truck into a dingy little alleyway between two stores that had clearly seen better days.

 

As soon as I'd killed the engine, Victoria exclaimed, "Why the hell did you stop?"

 

I sighed and turned in my seat as much as I could without disturbing my poor shoulder. "Because after what just fucking happened, I want some answers, Vicky. Don't you?"

 

Max groaned and spoke up before she could respond. "Can this please wait until we get to the hospital? You're bleeding, Rachel!"

 

I shrugged my non-injured shoulder and shot back with, "And you seem to have a hella bad nosebleed, Max. So tick tock. How did you do all that back there? How did you know I had to use my powers? What's yours? Why did you steal that guy's gun? Why-"

 

Max cut off my torrent of questions by simply stating, "I can rewind time."

 

The way she said that like it was such a normal thing caused me to shut up hella quick.

 

Victoria, naturally, rolled her eyes. "Great, now the hipster's gone crazy and needs to be put in a psych ward. Fan-fucking-tastic."

 

I was about to demand for Max to prove it, when she appeared to flicker on the spot, before even more blood dribbled out of her nose and she ground out, "I literally cannot prove it to you, Rachel. I used everything I had trying to keep you guys from being gunned down on the damn street so cut me some fucking slack, okay?!"

 

My emotions were beginning to get the better of me again, and I spat back with, "Then how the fuck do you expect me to believe you?"

 

Max huffed at that. "Was me saving your asses back there not enough proof? Fine. I didn't want to reveal this so soon, but I only have one other thing that'll make you listen." Then she took a deep breath and said, "I already saved your life once before. April 22nd."

 

I blinked in confusion. "April 22nd? What do you mea-" My eyes went wide in realization. "Wait, that night... it was you?!"

 

Max nodded sharply. "Yes. Thats why I wasn't concerned about the first 'blackout' mentioned in my Journal, because it was me from the future. I had to travel all the way from Seattle to Arcadia Bay just in-time to save you from an untimely death. You're welcome, by the way. Not that it really matters, since you apparently didn't take the warning that came with it as seriously as you should've."

 

I frowned at that. "Yes I did! I avoided him as much as I could, just like you said-" Then it hit me. "Unless... he's the one who-"

 

Max quickly shook her head and interrupted me. "Hospital first, Rachel. Please. Then I'll explain everything else. I promise."

 

I desperately wanted to just shake her until all the answers fell out, but the adamant glare she shot at me made it clear that this was not up for debate, so I reluctanty started the truck again and continued driving to the hospital, while my mind went into overdrive now that there's a good chance I knew who drugged me. And probably them, too...

 

About five minutes later we finally pulled up outside the hospital, right on the edge of town.

 

But before we could exit the truck, Kate asked, "How do we explain Rachel's wound? I mean, being attacked in the middle of the night by three people with guns seems unbelieveable. Especially in a tiny town like this. Do we just tell the truth?"

 

Max hummed in thought as she attempted to come up with a plan on the fly. "Yes, but not to the hospital staff. There's only one authority figure in this town I trust, technically two. We'll just get them to fix her up and do the drug tests we originally planned on coming here for. As for reporting what actually happened..." She frowned for a moment before continuing, "Does anyone know the number for the ABPD front desk? I can't just call 911 and ask to speak to one of their officers, y'know?"

 

Rachel snorted. "You're in luck, then. I practically memorized the damn thing, with the amount of times Chloe got herself into trouble. Here-" I brought up my phone contacts and showed her the number so that she could put it into hers.

 

Just as she was about to call it, Max glanced at me and grimaced. "Something tells me you're not gonna like what I say next, but uh... I assume you also have David Madsen's number? You might want to text him while we're at it."

 

I scoffed at that. "Yeah, no. Fuck that shit. He made Chloe's life a living hell, and mine for that matter. To say I hate him is an understatement. And how do you even know him?"

 

Max sighed. "I'm from the future, remember? Look, I don't like David all that much either. And you're right, he did make Chloe's life a living hell; but he also saved my life once before and he's the only other person in this town I trust to actually have my back if he understands what's really going on. Considering we just narrowly avoided being riddled with bullets, even if we do have powers, it'll be a good idea to have him on our side for backup. Just in-case, okay?"

 

Victoria cleared her throat to get our attention. "How is that brain-dead moron supposed to help us? He just lost his step-daughter, didn't he? He'll be even more of a mess than usual."

 

Max nodded at her. "Yeah, but that's exactly why he won't hesitate to help. David showed it in the worst way, but I know deep down he did care about Chloe. Trust me on that. And the guys that came for us were clearly hired by the Prescotts to eliminate the only witness to her murder. Unless they somehow know about my powers, but I don't think that factors into it, since they didn't seem to be expecting me to wipe the floor with them like that. Anyways, David won't let the Prescotts get rid of the only person who can get justice for Chloe, I'm sure of it." She must've been expecting Victoria to protest the fact that we were attacked by Prescott goons, but when she surprisingly didn't, Max turned back to me and added, "Just tell David that I'm in danger, and to come to the hospital. Preferrably armed to the teeth with every damn gun he owns."

 

Kate quietly pointed out an obvious flaw in her plan. "I don't think the hospital would allow him inside with a bunch of weapons, Max."

 

She just waved her phone in response. "If I can get him and my ABPD contact working together, I'm sure they'll let him act as my protection detail, or something, since he won't be needed at Blackwell much with classes being cancelled for the rest of the week. And if not, then he can just leave them in his car for later."

 

Victoria groaned. "Okay, can we hurry up and get this over with? Rachel's still bleeding. I might want her dead, but not, you know, dead dead."

 

I dramatically put a hand over my chest and exclaimed, "So you do care! Oh, be still my beating heart!"

 

Victoria rolled her eyes at me. "I take it back. You can leave her bleeding out on the sidewalk for all I care."

 

Kate tutted, she honest-to-god tutted. "Children, please. Not now."

 

Victoria whipped around and glared at her. "The fuck did you just call me?"

 

Kate held her gaze. "You heard me, Victoria. If you're going to be here, play nice. Or you can get out and walk back to your fancy dorm room all alone and hope you don't get attacked again without us. Your call."

 

As Victoria sat back in her seat with a huff, Max tapped the big green button on her phone. "Speaking of calls, here we go. Rachel, text David now, please."

 

While I very reluctantly opened David's contact information on my phone and texted exactly what Max had told me to, her phone just kept ringing. It seemed like it was going to go to an answering machine, until someone eventually picked up after six rings.

 

Max put it on speaker-phone so the rest of us could listen, and there was nothing but eerie breathing noises on the other end for a few seconds, but then a raspy voice spoke. "Uh, hello? Sorry about the delay. We don't normally get calls to the front desk at this time of night, so there was nobody staffing it. How can I help you?"

 

Max awkwardly cleared her throat. "Yes, hi. Could you please tell me if Officer Anderson Berry is still on his shift, or is he in the office?"

 

The guy on the other end seemed to snicker for a moment. "Oh! Yeah, I think he was about to head home. Hold on a sec-" Then he must've pulled the phone away to shout over his shoulder, which the phone still picked up pretty clearly, "Hey Andy! There's some girl on the phone here who knows you by name and wants to know where you are. Did you pick up a new side-piece without tellin' the rest of us?"

 

Max visibly cringed at that, and I think so did everyone else.

 

We couldn't hear whatever Berry's reply was, but the other guy grunted to himself before putting the phone back to his ear. "He wants me to transfer you to his desk phone, please wait a moment."

 

A couple of seconds later, there was an audible click and another voice answered the phone. "Hello? I'm Officer Berry. Who is this?"

 

Max couldn't resist rolling her eyes as she replied, "Definitely not your side-piece, Andy."

 

There was a brief silence before Berry groaned. "Oh, Max. If you heard that, I'm so sorry."

 

Max hummed into the phone. "Yeah, I heard every last word. Tell your co-worker he's a dumb-ass for me, would you?"

 

Officer Berry snorted. "Gladly. You'll get no argument from me about that. But, uh... this is unusual. You've never called me before. Can't this wait until morning, when I swing by to pick you up for your witness statement?"

 

Max shook her head, as if he could see her. "No. But it's related to that, because the Prescotts are already out for my blood, apparently."

 

We heard the sound of a chair squeaking and he must've sat up straight because his voice turned serious. "What does that mean? Are you in trouble, Max?"

 

She took a breath before skirting around the question. "Your co-worker said you were about to go home, right? So I assume your shift is ending. You might want to pay a visit to the hospital first, though. I'm not gonna say more over the phone."

 

You could practically hear the frown in his voice as he said, "The hospital? Why, you're not hurt, are you?"

 

Max glanced in my direction for a moment before answering, "Not me, no."

 

I'm fairy certain he muttered something very unprofessional under his breath, as he replied, "I have some last minute paperwork to finish up, so give me ten minutes, and I'll be right there." then he abruptly ended the call.

 

Max pocketed her phone and mumbled, "That went well." before turning to me and asking, "What about David?"

 

I glanced down at my phone and sighed at David's typical bullshit.

 

00:10am | ProspeRachel 'The Dawn Of' AmberPrice: David, this is Rachel. Max Caulfield is in trouble and needs your help. Come to the hospital, and bring as many guns as you can carry.

 

00:11am | David 'The Paranoid Home-Wrecker' Madsen: Rachel, I always said you were dragging Chloe down, and no matter how many times I told her that you were nothing but trouble, she wouldn't listen to me. You had her wrapped around your finger and guess what? She's dead, no doubt thanks to you! So what possible reason would I have to ever do anything you say, when this is obviously just you trying to play another sick prank on me? Don't ever contact me or what's left of my family again."

 

I growled in disbelief, "The dumb-ass thinks 'the girl who dragged Chloe down' is trying to play a prank on him and blames me for her death. No surprise there. Hold on-" then I furiously typed out a reply.

 

00:11am | ProspeRachel 'The Dawn Of' AmberPrice: Are you for real right now, David?! I don't care if you approved of us or not, but Chloe was still my girlfriend, and now she's dead. So don't you fucking dare try to blame that on me, you stupid piece of shit! Also, if you didn't know, it turns out that Max just so happens to be Chloe's long-lost childhood best friend. Yeah, that one. She hadn't even seen her in five years, until today in the bathroom. Apparently, Chloe died in her arms, instead of mine, so if there was ever a time for me to not be pranking your hella paranoid ass, it would be now. Get the fuck over here and do right by your dead step-daughter for once by taking this seriously!

 

Yeah, okay, I know what you're thinking. I admit I might've gone a little overboard, and I was kinda expecting him to blow me off now, while we awkwardly sat there waiting for him to text me back. But imagine my surprise when he did the exact opposite.

 

00:12am | David 'The Paranoid Home-Wrecker' Madsen: Copy that, sit tight. I'm on the way, ETA five minutes.

 

Max took one look at the text and hummed in surprise. "Well... I think that's the best we can hope for." then she put the silenced pistol that she'd stolen into the glove compartment for safe keeping, and gently nudged me. "Right, come on. Lets take you inside before you get bloodstains all over Chloe's truck, yeah?"

 

I simply decided to ignore how she omitted my name from the ownership of the truck yet again, and just groaned in agreement when my wounded shoulder flared up in pain, as I moved to open the door.

 

The moment when my feet touched the sidewalk and I attempted to stand up though, was when I became distinctly aware of just how much my shoulder actually really fuckin' hurt. Clearly the adrenaline had worn off now and I only had a split-second to register the fact that I was about to hella regret my inattentiveness, when my unexpectedly shaky legs buckled and fell out from under me. It was all I could do just to flail my hands and hope to break the fall somehow, but I had no such luck.

 

However, I apparently hadn't noticed Max – who'd gotten out of the opposite side of the truck at the same time as me – doing her flickery teleporting shit to save the day again, until a pair of thin spindly arms wrapped around my stomach that could only belong to her, as she caught me from behind.

 

She grunted from the exertion of having to hold up my body-weight, only letting go once the others had reached us and managed to assist in keeping me up-right. Then she moved around to my front, and I was able to get a good look at her face, along with the heavy trail of blood that was trickling out of her nose yet again because of my stupidity.

 

Max winced and rubbed her temples as she said, "Ugh. If I hadn't done anything, you'd have cracked your head on the edge of the door-frame. I couldn't exactly let that happen, could I?"

 

I tried to mask my guilt with a poorly-timed joke. "Thanks, Max. You know, if you save my life one more time, I might just have to start owing you."

 

She obviously wasn't impressed. "You damn-well already do owe me, because this is the third time now. I'm keeping count, Rachel." then she pointed in the direction of the hospital entrance and grumbled, "Now get your ass inside because if there's one thing I'm not doing, it's carrying you."

 

As Max walked on ahead while the others escorted me towards the hospital building, I heard Victoria muttering to herself, "Okay, since when did the hipster bitch become so assertive?"

 

I was wondering that too, to be honest, but I still couldn't stop myself from taking a shot at Victoria. "It's probably just a side-effect of being around you and your petulant bullshit, Vicky."

 

While I wasn't able to see her reaction, I heard her scoff. I also felt her grip on me tighten, and became wholly aware of how intimately her hands were clutching at either side of my hips. I had to literally force myself to refrain from commenting on it as we finally walked through the doors of the hospital.

 

The rest of us reached the front desk just in-time to overhear Max talking to a familiar-looking receptionist. "Hey, can we get some help over here, please? Our friend has been shot. And could I get some tissues for this stupid fucking nosebleed, already?"

 

The receptionist scowled at her tone as she gestured to a box of tissues on the desk, then glanced behind Max, and her eyes widened upon seeing me, before she quickly spoke into a microphone attached to the desk, "Attention all staff: We have a VIP in the lobby with a gunshot wound. I repeat, we have a VIP in the lobby with a gunshot wound. All on-call relevant doctors please respond."

 

I groaned in embarrassment and glared at her, who I now remembered to be the exact same receptionist from back when I'd been stabbed by Damon. "You're a total bitch, you know that, right?"

 

The receptionist shrugged at me. "Sorry, but we have protocols in place for when certain people, such as the daughter of the District Attorney, walk through the door with an injury... Again. I'm just doing my job here."

 

I was about to call her out on that because the smirk on her face clearly said otherwise, when a nearby door burst open, revealing several out-of-breath male doctors rapidly approaching.

 

The first one to reach us, looked around at everyone and asked, "Alright, which one of you can best explain the situation to us, in the event Miss Amber here loses consciousness?"

 

Max awkwardly stepped forward with wads of tissue stuck up her nostrils. "Erm, I can. I guess?"

 

One of the other doctors nodded. "Very well, come with us. The rest of you will have to wait, I'm afraid."

 

I hadn't even realized that the third doctor had retrieved a conveniently-placed wheelchair for me until I was practically shoved into it and protested immediately. "Hey, I can still walk, you know!"

 

Max shook her head at me. "Rachel, stop being so stubborn. Let them do their thing. I told you I'm not gonna carry you."

 

Ugh, this was so fucking embarrassing!

 

Then as the doctors started to wheel me away through the doors they came from, Max called over her shoulder to Kate and Victoria, "Oh, and don't forget about the other thing we came here for. We'll see you guys soon, I hope."

 

Once the doors swung shut behind us, the first doctor asked, "Now, where were you shot, exactly?"

 

I winced at the jolt of pain brought on by the reminder. "Uh... in the upper left shoulder."

 

The doctor pushing my wheelchair hummed at that. "How long ago?"

 

I wasn't entirely sure, so I glanced at Max, who answered for me. "It happened roughly ten minutes ago. Maybe a little longer."

 

The other doctor who was ahead of us, turned around and began walking backwards into the elevator behind him as he gave me a strange look. "Miss Amber, after your last visit here, your father informed us about the kind of people you are friends with. One in particular, anyway. And given their history... is there anything else we need to know before we take you in to get patched up?"

 

My eyes narrowed dangerously. "If you're talking about my girlfriend, Chloe Price, then you had best shut the fuck up right the hell now because if you weren't aware, she got murdered today. So, Doc, I don't care how injured my shoulder is, I'll still rip your god-damn balls off and feed them to you if you so much as dare to say that she was a bad influence on me or whatever, just 'cause she liked to smoke weed. Are we clear?"

 

The guy grimaced and put his hands up defensively, at-least appearing to regret his choice of words. "Oh, my apologies... I heard about the incident, but I didn't know it was- I'm sorry for your loss."

 

Max scoffed next to me. "Yeah, I'll bet you are..." then she sighed and added, "However, we do have reason to believe that Rachel could've been under the influence of drugs recently. Involuntarily , might I add."

 

The other doctor beside me frowned. "Ah. Thank you for telling us. Do you know what drug it was?"

 

Max exhaled slowly. "Probably GHB. In-fact, we were actually on our way here so we could all get tested for it, before some jack-ass decided to put a bullet in Rachel's shoulder. So if you could get that sorted out for us, that'd be great."

 

The first doctor raised his eyebrows. "Just so we're clear, are you saying that you and all your friends back there in the lobby want to be tested for the presence of GHB, along with Miss Amber?"

 

Max nodded. "That's precisely what I'm saying, yes."

 

The one pushing me huffed as we exited the elevator. "Strange, but very well. I'll be sure to pass it on and someone else will come by shortly. Until then, you can take a seat in the waiting room over there-" his arm pointed to the side in my peripheral vision at the nearby uncomfortable-looking chairs before he continued, "because I think we have everything we need right now to take care of Miss Amber. Thank you for your assistance."

 

Max seemed like she was about to disagree and demand to go with me, but when she saw we were approaching doors clearly marked 'Authorized Personnel Only', she just sighed and nodded. "Alright. You're gonna be fine, Rachel. Don't worry."

 

I snorted at that. "Who's worrying? I got stabbed in the arm and lived. This is nothing."

 

One of the doctors gave me a look that made the hair on the back of my neck stand up. "From what I recall hearing about that, you technically didn't. You flatlined once while they were in the middle of operating, and you were lucky to be revived."

 

It was a good thing I was still sat in the wheelchair, because otherwise my stomach might've dropped out of my ass, as my eyes went wide in surprise. "...Wait, what- why the fuck is this my first time hearing of it?!"

 

The doctor shrugged as he pushed me through the doors to the surgical room, leaving Max behind. "I imagine your father didn't want us to tell you at the time because you were still a minor, and dealing with near-death experiences can be traumatizing for anyone, especially at that age. Perhaps he didn't tell you when you turned 18 because he didn't want to reopen old wounds?"

 

I scoffed and growled under my breath, "Sure... it's just another secret he decided to keep from me. Fucking asshole."

 

The lead doctor turned and cleared his throat. "Anyway. Do you still want to be tested for GHB like your friend said? Because it'll be best for us to take a sample now, before we administer any sedatives that could mess with the results and get started on fixing your shoulder."

 

I gulped and reluctantly nodded. "Yeah, okay. I don't have to pee into a cup though, do I?"

 

The one pushing me barked a laugh at that. "Ideally, that'd be one of the ways to test for it, but considering we need to deal with your wound as quickly as possible, it'll be better to just get a hair sample and do it that way. May I?"

 

I shrugged my non-injured arm. "Whatever-" and immediately yelped as he literally yanked out a a few strands of my hair. "Oww, what the fuck, dude?!"

 

The doctor next to me snickered. "Sorry, but it hurts more if you have time to prepare for it."

 

I found that hard to believe, and watched with slightly watering eyes while the one in-front of me started fiddling around with a syringe and vial, which for some reason made my skin crawl, as he exclaimed, "Right! Lets get you knocked out then, shall we?" though he must've seen the look on my face because he followed it up with, "Ah, not a fan of needles, I take it?"

 

I eyed the offending needle warily. "Oh, just shut up and do it already. And if you get the results back from my test while I'm still out of it, you have my permission to tell my friends what it says, but only them. Do not inform my father. Understood?"

 

He nodded at me with a smile, which for a split-second my brain registered as down-right predatory. "As you wish. Though if you're still on your father's medical plans, I imagine he'll find out eventually."

 

I just grit my teeth together at that, while the guy carefully punctured my skin, and I had to fight back the suddenly overwhelming urge to vomit.

 

Thankfully, the sedative didn't take long to kick in after that, and everything soon faded into nothingness as the trio of dicks calling themselves doctors were able to begin working on my wounded shoulder.

Notes:

Unfortunately, the next chapter isn't written yet, so I doubt it'll be out in time for next week, but we'll see. Though I will say that it's going to have another one of those unplanned dark things I mentioned last time, which is probably gonna make you want to burn my house down. I figured that I'd warn you about it now, so you can prepare the pitchforks and torches in advance. :P

Chapter 7: Hospital Horrors; Part 1 - The Test

Summary:

With Rachel safely in surgery, the girls get the ball rolling on their original reason for visiting the hospital.

And a hella awkward bathroom experience ensues...

When their reinforcements arrive, Max comes face to face with someone she hadn't accounted for.

An anxiety attack follows...

Notes:

Hey ya'll! I hope you've bought your pitchforks by now, because this chapter signals the start of a four-part mini-arc that wasn't even supposed to be a thing, until I realized I had to write way too much and wouldn't be able to fit the dark thing I wanted into this one like I'd planned to. So, you'll just have to endure the set-up and remain in suspense for a tiny bit longer. Sorry, not sorry!

That being said, my disclaimer from the last chapter still applies; take everything that happens during this entire hospital visit with a huge pile of salt, 'cause I don't have a clue what I'm doing and my research only gets me so far. Certainly don't attack me with those pitchforks over it- you'll want to save that for later, trust me. :P

Enjoy! :)

(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)

Chapter Text

Chasing Amber (Through Fields & Marshes)

 

Chapter 7: Hospital Horrors; Part 1 - The Test

 

Max had been sitting in the drab-looking waiting room for what felt like forever since Rachel had vanished beyond those infuriating heavy-duty double doors, which seemed to have been labelled 'Authorized Personnel Only' just to ensure that someone like her stayed out; and with the other two still not there to keep her company yet, she was seriously starting to consider the idea of trespassing simply for the heck of it and then rewinding, as a way to relieve herself from the perpetual state of boredom she was currently stuck in, despite the fact that she'd actually been sat there for maybe only a few minutes at most.

 

I had just stood up from my seat, fully intending to go kick down those stupid doors so that I could check on Rachel, when Kate and Victoria finally emerged from the elevator. And since I was the only other person in here at this time of night, they of-course almost immediately spotted me before I had the chance to slink away.

 

Both of them made a bee-line straight towards me, with Victoria surprisingly being the first to ask, "So how's Rachel? Is she okay?"

 

I resisted the urge to say something mean about her suddenly having empathy for another human being, and instead slumped back down into my chair with a heavy shrug. "She should be. Like I told her back on the street, it was just a flesh wound. I was hoping Rachel would be able to control her power quick enough if she had advanced warning, but apparently not. Whatever- at-least she'll be able to get a cool scar out of it."

 

Kate took a seat across from me and gave me a strange look. "Oh, I guess that's good? But... speaking of your, um- powers, I think we're both going to need you to give us a proper explanation, Max."

 

Fuck- this was so not the moment for that conversation, so I quickly glanced at the clock on the wall to check the time, and realized it'd only been three minutes since Rachel had left my sight. Are you fucking kidding me? Ugh! This was one of those instances where I wished I could jump forward in time instead of backwards, because not only was I bored out of my mind in this off-white surgical hellscape, I also had to somehow avoid telling them about all the insane shit I'd been through. I'd honestly prefer being tortured with small-talk than doing that right now, though even if I managed to get Kate to back down, the look on Victoria's face told me that she wouldn't give up so easily.

 

I rubbed my eyes in frustration. "Guys, I get it... if I was in your shoes, I'd want answers too. And I did promise to give them to you, but trust me when I say that it's not something you'll want to hear me tell more than once. So please- for my sanity and yours, just wait a little bit longer, okay? At-least until Rachel is out of surgery, because it very much involves her."

 

Kate hummed uneasily. "Well... I suppose that's fair-"

 

As expected, Victoria scoffed before she could finish. "No it isn't! I want to know how the hell Max can suddenly bend time around her fingers, and how... how Rachel is able to turn into some kind of human fucking fireball! I mean, shit- Maxine, do you have any idea how utterly insane it was to see you two doing such impossible things?!"

 

I couldn't help myself from angrily snarking back with, "Yeah, I'm well aware of that, Victoria. In-fact, when it comes to me controlling time, you guys only have to see the end results; whereas I have to live and experience the whole damn thing in real-time first before I can fix it. So maybe you should be patient for once and consider what that actually means from my point of view, because I'd already had the worst fucking day of my life as it is- and then on top of that I just had to watch all of you get gunned down like dogs one-by-one, right in-front of me, before I was able to avoid it!"

 

The brief expression of shock that flashed across her face took me by surprise, and when she opened her mouth to retort, I wasn't sure if she was going to apologize or continue arguing about it.

 

Luckily, I was saved from finding out by a female nurse walking into the waiting room and quickly heading towards us. "Ah... excuse me, is there a Kate Marsh here? I've just been informed by reception that a group of girls were requesting drug tests- was that you guys?"

 

Oh, so that's what took them so long to follow me up here. Duh, Max.

 

Kate seemed to breathe a sigh of relief at that and stood up. "I am! And yes, we did."

 

The nurse glanced around at each of us and nodded to herself. "Phew, that could've been awkward if you weren't! Alright everyone- come with me, please."

 

As we stood up and started to follow her out of the waiting room, I asked, "So, I assume you're the one who'll be testing us?"

 

The nurse shrugged. "Normally I wouldn't be, but the usual nurse in charge of the lab isn't here during the night-shift. If the lab is required when she's not here, then we have to wake her up in the middle of the night, otherwise the job falls to me- but I'd rather let that poor woman sleep for once and just do it myself, since-"

 

Before she could finish her sentence however, those same doors which Rachel had disappeared behind slammed open again, as one of the doctors who had been wheeling her away – the one that clearly disapproved of her relationship with Chloe – stepped through and upon spotting us leaving, yelled, "Nurse Jane, wait up!"

 

Obviously that wasn't any of our names, nor were we nurses, so by process of elimination he must've been calling out to the nurse we were with, which became clear when she groaned in annoyance and spun on her heel as he caught up. "That's Doctor Jane to you- Doctor Stone, how many times do I have to correct you before you accept that?"

 

The man now known as Doctor Stone glanced at me and completely ignored her question. "I was just coming to find you, I'm glad I caught you in time- I assume you're about to test these three for GHB, yes?" He didn't give her chance to reply before continuing, "Well they came in with our VIP patient, and I have a sample here from her that you'll need to test, as-well."

 

Then he produced a sealed vial containing what looked like a fistful of Rachel's hair, shoved it into her hands, and promptly scurried off back the way he came.

 

Victoria glared at the back of his head as the doors swung shut behind him, and muttered, "What the hell was that jerk's problem?"

 

Doctor Jane frowned at the vial in her hand for a moment before slipping it into one of her many pockets and gesturing for us to keep walking with her. "I'm sorry about that. For some reason he simply refuses to address me as Doctor. I've been working at this hospital for years and everyone else here respects me except for him- I believe he recently transferred over from somewhere in Florida, so he's fairly new to how things work around here, but he'll learn eventually... I hope."

 

Kate stared at Doctor Jane's outfit in confusion. "I don't mean to offend you, but you are a nurse, right?"

 

Doctor Jane smiled at her. "Well, yes. I'm just a very experienced nurse who's earned the right to be addressed as Doctor instead- at-least when talking to other doctors and nurses, that is. I rarely tell patients about my Doctor title because it can get quite confusing for them, as you just found out. But it doesn't matter anyway; you guys are welcome to call me Jane."

 

I hummed curiously. "Jane, huh? I don't suppose your last name is Doe, is it?"

 

Jane rolled her eyes as she unlocked a door and ushered us into the room. "No it isn't, thank god. And I swear, if I had a dollar for everytime someone asked me that-" she looked up in thought for a moment, "I'd probably have enough money to buy several Salted Caramel Mocha's from the Bean Hip Cafe."

 

I snorted at that and filed the information about what I could only assume to be her favourite coffee drink away for later, should I ever need to use it. "Well Jane, you certainly deserve one for having to deal with an asshole like Doctor Stone back there."

 

She grumbled under her breath while rummaging around in a cabinet, "You can say that again..." then she cleared her throat and held out multiple plastic cup-like containers for us to take. "Now, for me to test you for the presence of GHB, I'm afraid you're gonna need to pee into these. There's a bathroom right across from here you can use. And because the tests are going to take a while, you're welcome to stay in room 903 just down the hall until I get the results."

 

Kate wrinkled her nose. "Um... do- do we have to do that? Isn't there any other options?"

 

Jane hummed in consideration. "Well there's two other ways to test for it; I could use a hair sample like the one Doctor Stone gave me from your friend-"

 

Victoria instantly scoffed at that. "That's definitely not happening."

 

Jane shrugged and finished with, "Or... I could take a blood sample instead."

 

This time it was my turn to object as I stepped backwards almost on instinct, while my voice came out at a much higher pitch than I'd intended. "No!- uh, n-no thanks... I kinda need to pee anyway."

 

I think Jane brushed it off as just a fear of needles – fuck knows that's a legitimate fear I have now anyway – but from the looks that Kate and Victoria were giving me, they probably suspected something more than that... which would explain why they both decided to accept the offered pee cups without any further complaints.

 

As we trudged out into the hallway, I suddenly remembered something and turned back to Jane. "Oh- please could you let reception know that we might have some people visiting us soon, and to tell them which room we're staying in when they arrive?"

 

Jane nodded. "Of-course! I'll be sure to give them a heads up. Now get goin', the sooner you pee, the more accurate your results will be."

 

Once the three of us were alone in the bathroom, we split up into separate stalls, followed by the most awkward silence I've ever endured. Nobody was speaking, or seemed willing to be the first to start peeing, and I got the distinct impression that we were all huddled on the toilet while pondering what the fuck our lives had become.

 

Until eventually, one of us broke it- as Victoria loudly groaned to herself in the stall to my left. "Ugh, this is so fucking disgusting. If you'd told me I'd have to pee into a cup for this, I never would've come."

 

I rolled my eyes. "Oh, don't be such a baby, Victoria- you do wash your hands when you go to the bathroom, right? Then this shouldn't be any different."

 

She scoffed at that. "But it is different, Maxine. I'm more likely to piss all over my hand, than get it inside this stupid fucking cup! At-least the guys have the luxury of being able to see – and aim – where they want to pee, all while making as little noise as possible by shooting for the side of the toilet bowl. But all we can do is... sit there and have to endure the ridiculously loud spashing sounds which lets everyone within ten miles know what you're doing. It's embarrassing, and humiliating, and... excuse me- what the fuck do you think you're laughing at, Miss Holier-Than-Thou?!"

 

Kate quickly stifled her giggling. "Sorry, sorry- I couldn't help it. I've always disliked peeing for that exact same reason, but I assumed I was the only one and was being weird about it, you know?"

 

I hummed in agreement. "Well I guess that makes three of us, though mine's more because of my anxiety, but still- yeah, it sucks. And hey, who'd have thought that the one thing we all have in common is that we think peeing is simply the worst?"

 

There was a beat of quiet, and then Victoria replied, "Nope. That's second to worst. You're forgetting about the periods, Maxine- I mean, did you know that most of the girl's dorm is synced up? It's why the dispenser in the shower room is always empty, because everyone rushes to stock up all at once like a horde of really slow and grumpy zombies."

 

I winced at that, and instinctively crossed my legs, as I groaned, "Ugh, touche. But I always thought that syncing stuff was a myth?"

 

She snorted. "So did I, until I moved into the Blackwell dorms and had the displeasure of experiencing it for myself. Trust me, if you two newbies haven't synced up yet, you soon will. It's literally the one time where Rachel and I have an agreement on something, because it's no fun beating each other down when your own body is able to do a better job at it than your enemy. And so on the first of every month, which is typically when everyone who's synced up starts their periods, because thats move-in day I guess, instead of fighting like we always do, we work together on stocking up our own supplies – paying out of our own pockets, might I add – to make sure those who couldn't get anything from the shitty dispenser in time can still come to one of us, no questions asked. In-fact, it's the only thing I call a ceasefire on with the entire dorm, that way people know I won't bite their heads off just for knocking on my door over it- I might be a bitch to you all, but I'm not a monster."

 

I raised an eyebrow to myself in surprise. "That's... surprisingly mature of you, Victoria. And I guess I'm more-or-less synced up already then, since mine was supposed to have started a couple of days ago, but apparently it wants to come late this time, which means, on top of everything fucking else, now I also have to wait for this damn thing to hit me when I'm least expecting it. So that's just great."

 

Whatever Victoria might've been about to say to that was interrupted by the sudden sound of peeing coming from the stall to my right, and I called out in concern, "Hey, you doing okay over there, Kate?"

 

Her response came out as a shy mumble. "Oh, uh... sorry- I couldn't wait any longer. Now shush, I'm trying to concentrate here."

 

Victoria laughed at that, but I swiftly cut her off. "Be quiet, Victoria. You're going next."

 

She scoffed. "Like hell I am. Didn't you tell Jane that you needed to pee? Then go ahead."

 

I rolled my eyes again. "Yeah, and she's probably wondering why we're taking forever- so how about we do rock-paper-scissors to decide? Best of three, and the winner goes last."

 

There was a distinct sound of knuckle-cracking, followed by, "You're going down, Lamefield."

 

I seriously considered using my rewind to cheat because of that, so I could knock her ego down a peg or five, but I decided to be honorable and kick her ass fair n' square, as I shot back with, "We'll see about that- now, on the count of three. One... two... three!"

 

I went straight for rock, while Victoria chose paper. Damn it.

 

And she wasted no time in gloating. "Ha! What did I just say, huh?."

 

I groaned under my breath. "Ugh, shut up. Let's go again- One... two... three!"

 

This time I picked scissors, but she was stupid enough to stick with paper, so I won that round.

 

Victoria instantly let loose a string of curses that would no doubt be keeping poor Kate up all night. "-such fucking bullshit!"

 

I snickered. "Oh, boo hoo. This is your last chance, Victoria- You ready? One... two... three!"

 

Since I knew there was no way she'd go for paper three times in a row, this one was a fifty-fifty gamble for me; ultimately, I chose paper myself, and in a reversal of the first round, she screwed up by going with rock. Eat shit, Vicky. That's a 2-1 victory for me!

 

Interestingly, she didn't immediately react to her crushing defeat at my hands like I thought she would, though I definitely heard her breathing heavily, and could practically feel the fury radiating through the wall between us, so I decided to push her buttons by using a little something she'd said to me back in the original timeline. "Hey Vicky, guess what?"

 

She growled back through gritted teeth. "...What?"

 

I made sure to raise my voice for full effect. "Go fuck yourselfie... Bitchtoria."

 

She responded a little more violently than I'd anticipated by hitting the stall wall several times, but hearing Victoria's temper-tantrum was absolutely worth it, and I was unable to stop myself from cackling like a madwoman.

 

After the sore loser had beaten all her anger away, Kate unexpectedly spoke up, and I think we'd both forgotten she was there for a second, though that probably made it less awkward for her do her business anyway. "Come on, it's just peeing, Victoria. If I can do it, so can you. Now, a deal's a deal- just pee already, so we can get this over with, please."

 

When Victoria eventually relented, I breathed a sigh of relief, because I totally hadn't been holding mine in this whole time to make sure I went last, but as soon as she began peeing, it was impossible to stop my own floodgates from opening in solidarity. And I'll be damned if trying to pee into such a tiny little cup wasn't every bit as disgusting as Victoria had claimed it would be- saying that it really fucking sucked just didn't do it justice.

 

Once we'd both finished, the three of us simultaneously exited our stalls, and after thoroughly washing our hands, we peeked out of the bathroom door to make sure the coast was clear – because who the fuck wants to get caught carrying their own urine around – then all but leapt across the hall, back into the lab where Doctor-slash-Nurse Jane was still waiting.

 

She turned around as we shut the door behind us. "Ah, there you are. You were gone for longer than I expected, and I was starting to think you girls had done a runner. Did you have any problems, or...?

 

I snorted. "Nah. Someone was just being a little stubborn, that's all."

 

Victoria rolled her eyes. "Say whatever you want, Maxine. It was gross. I know it, you know it, Kate knows it, and I'm willing to bet that Jane does too."

 

Jane nodded at that. "Well, you'd be correct. But hey, it's not my fault that you refused to let me take some of your hair instead. Anyways, I started processing your friend's sample while you were gone, so just put your cups on the counter over there and I'll get straight to work on them, too." When we'd done so, she added, "Oh, and by the way, those visitors you mentioned? They walked in as I was in the middle of informing the receptionist- perfect timing, if you ask me. I had them sent up like you asked, so they should be waiting for you in Room 903 by now. Just go right to the end of the hall, and then turn left, you can't miss it. And once I'm all finished here, I'll come by to let you know the results, though like I said before, it's gonna take a while- probably at-least a couple of hours, so you girls might want to get comfy while you wait."

 

I frowned in surprise. "They're both already here? Damn, we really were in the bathroom a while, huh?"

 

She smiled at me. "Yup. You were peeing for almost ten minutes- I was keeping track." Then she shook her head, silencing the apology on the tip of my tongue. "It's fine, don't worry. I know how stressful these things can be. Now please shoo, so I can work in peace."

 

Kate, never the one to pass up the opportunity to be polite, waved at her as we turned to leave. "No, it really wasn't that bad! To be honest, you actually made it a lot less stressful for me, just by being so nice- so thanks for helping us out with this. And it was a pleasure to meet you, Doctor Jane!"

 

While we exited back out into the hallway and shut the door, she shouted back with a muffled, "Likewise, girls!"

 

As we followed the instructions that Jane had given us and walked down the hall, Kate asked me, "So Max, do you have any idea what you are going to say to Mr Madsen and your cop friend?"

 

I hummed in thought. "Not really. I'm just gonna wing it and see what happens- I should be able to use my powers a bit more now anyway, if I need to."

 

Victoria frowned at me. "You're not going to tell them about that though, right? Your powers, I mean."

 

I shrugged at her, as we reached the end of the hall. "I don't want to, but how else do we expect them to believe that we managed to outrun assassins-for-hire in the middle of the night with only a minor injury?"

 

She scoffed. "Well, enjoy being thrown in the psych ward, because that's definitely what'll happen if you do."

 

As we turned the corner and arrived outside Room 903, I silently rolled my eyes in response.

 

I could hear voices talking on the other side of the door, but my brain hadn't really registered who they belonged to until I'd already turned the handle and opened it, suddenly coming face to face with the one person I abso-fucking-lutely couldn't handle seeing right now.

 

To say that I froze up like a deer caught in headlights would be the understatement of the century, as the events that had transpired a mere eight hours ago returned to hit me at full force, catching me completely off-guard, while I weakly stuttered in confusion, "J-Joyce? But... w-what... what are-"

 

That was as far as I got before my throat seemed to lock up, and I suddenly found it hard to breathe. Fuck, I couldn't be here. I couldn't do this, not now- David was one thing, but Chloe's mom? I'd rather swallow razorblades than face Joyce after getting her daughter killed.

 

So I did the only thing I could in this situation; I ran, ignoring Joyce as she worriedly called after me- and I didn't stop until my legs abruptly gave out – I'm surprised I was even able to make it half-way down the hall, considering how much they were shaking – at which point I simply curled up into a ball, while my brain shut down to protect itself.

 

I'm not sure how long I was laid there on the freezing-cold floor, since my sense of time had been completely thrown out the window in the process- but it can't have been more than ten seconds, before I felt a pair of hands roughly grabbing my shoulders and forcing me to sit up. And as I slowly blinked back to reality, I was expecting to see the face of some random doctor or nurse that'd stumbled across me, but no- it was actually David, of all people. I guess I shouldn't be so surprised really, if anyone in that room would've recognised the signs of an anxiety attack, it'd probably be the war veteran who suffered from PTSD.

 

I frantically glanced around the hall to see who else was there – or more specifically, for Joyce – but apparently the only other person that followed him was Kate, who seemed to have qone quite pale, and I was only vaguely aware of how tightly she was holding onto one of my hands.

 

David must've figured out who I was looking for, as he assured me, "Joyce isn't here. I had Miss Chase stay with her so that she didn't come and make things worse. You'll be okay, just breathe. Copy me- slow, deep breaths. Like this, see?"

 

If I had the wherewithal to roll my eyes, I would have. I get that breathing is a perfectly valid way of dealing with this shit, but it wasn't for me. Since I'm one of those people who, depending on how bad my anxiety attack is, focusing on 'just breathing' usually results in me getting even more stressed out, because when I try to do it, my brain easily gets stuck on the fact that I'm failing at doing such a basic thing correctly. Even the whole 'search for five things you can see' trick would have better results, though again, depending on what triggered the attack, that could still end up making things worse instead.

 

What I'm trying to get at here is, none of the standard methods for grounding myself are very effective- such are the perils of pretty much anything and everything being capable of making my anxiety hit the stratosphere. Fairly early on I found that there was only one thing that reliably worked for me, and that was physical contact with someone else – eventhough I normally hated it – which in the past had been from Chloe- she was always my anchor, but now that she's dead... well, just fuck me, right?

 

Still, I had to give David credit for helping at all, I suppose. And I did breathe a little – if only to make sure my brain understood that it was possible and I wasn't actually going to die – but Kate was doing a much better job at calming my anxiety down at the moment, especially when she started stroking the back of my palm using her thumb, without realizing she was doing it.

 

As I sluggishly shuffled around to face Kate, David frowned in confusion, but when he saw me using my free hand to grab her other one, he understood and backed away. "Ah, wrong technique? Sorry. I was going to try contact first, but... well, I didn't think you'd want- I mean, I know that I'm not exactly the friendliest person, so..."

 

He was right about that, though I still appreciated the gesture, so I tried to give him a smile, yet it probably came across as more of a grimace. "Yeah... but s-still, thanks for t-trying, David."

 

Oh, Kate... you poor, sweet, innocent, ball of energy... she clearly hadn't experienced herself or anyone else having an anxiety attack before, so it was no surprise that she didn't know what was happening here, as she whispered, "...Max? Are you okay?"

 

I was able to pull off a half-snort at that. "R-Really, Kate? Do I look o-okay to you? Just... uh, k-keep doing what you're d-doing. Please."

 

Kate's eyebrows knitted together at first, not getting what I meant, until she looked down at our joined hands and mumbled, "Oh! Um... alright, I guess- if... if it helps."

 

And now for some reason she was refusing to look at me... What the hell, Kate? I know I probably look like a total disaster but come on, it can't be... wait a second- is she blushing? We're only holding hands! Why would this make her- oh. Oh. I see... Well then, lets not go opening that portal-to-hell sized can of worms, okay Max? No seriously, we're on the same page here, brain- yes? Good. Now stop zoning out, you idiot.

 

Once I turned my attention outward again, I noticed that I was actually breathing a lot easier now, so the combination of Kate's hands, and the distraction of realizing that she might be, um... not exactly straight... seems to have soothed my anxiety a lot faster than usual. Huh. I guess I'll take that as a good thing?

 

And to stop myself from dwelling on that and re-spiking my anxiety all over again, I turned to glare at David, where he was now standing awkwardly against the opposite wall, as I asked rather angrily, "Would you care to tell me why the fuck Joyce is here?"

 

He narrowed his eyes at my tone, yet rather than lecture me on my language like I expected, he simply put his hands out to placate me. "I texted Rachel to let her know she was coming, and when I got no answer I just assumed that meant you were okay with her coming-"

 

Ah, well that explains it. Rachel still had her phone on her when she went into surgery, so there was no way of knowing she'd be here, though before I could tell him that, he continued, "It's not like I was planning to bring her, but she caught me trying to sneak out of the house- I swear, when she wants to be, that woman can be an even better interrogator than the ones I served with back when I was deployed. And as soon as I mentioned your name, she forced me to bring her along, despite the fact I tried telling her it could be dangerous. She... uh, said something about... not wanting to lose two daughters?"

 

Oh, you motherfucker! Is an anxiety attack not enough for me? Do you want to give me an actual fucking heart attack, as-well?!

 

Luckily I didn't say that out loud, but I did spontaneously burst into tears instead, because I really couldn't take much more of this today- and those words had managed to stab me right in the feels. Just when I'd started to let my guard back down too, damn it.

 

After awkwardly ugly-crying on Kate's shoulder – because I definitely wasn't doing it on David's, that's for sure – and purposely ignoring how hesitant she was being to actually hug me properly, I knew there was no more delaying the inevitable; Joyce was here, albeit completely unexpectedly, but I still had to face her. It was bound to happen eventually... I just wish I had more time to figure out what the fuck I was supposed to say. Chloe was dead because of me- because I couldn't be satisfied with choosing her over the town and instead kept messing around with time, just to give her a better outcome by making sure Rachel survived, even if that meant I'd lose her... And I sure did lose her, didn't I? Only it wasn't in the way I'd been prepared to accept...

 

Also, as an added fuck-you from the universe, it seems like Jefferson still managed to get all his 'subjects' in the end, including Rachel, and this time even myself- but lets try not to think about that, yeah? Which means I failed at every single fucking thing I was trying to achieve, except for literally just keeping Rachel alive. And the bullshit thing is, maybe if I hadn't tried to save her, then the butterfly god – or whatever the fuck it was supposed to be – wouldn't have gotten involved, so rather than me being trapped in this nightmare timeline all alone, Chloe and I would be safe and sound right now, holed up at my parent's home in Seattle after the storm. Even with a dead town on my conscience, that had to be a better outcome than this. It just had to be.

 

But since that bastard butterfly had made it clear that it won't let me change things to go back there again, that meant I was stuck here, for better or for worse, and left to pick up the pieces that Chloe had left behind- or for as long as I could bear to live in a world that didn't have her in it, anyway...

 

Although I knew it was pointless, I still made a half-assed attempt at shaking my head clear – I could tell that particular thought wasn't going to be leaving me anytime soon – then climbed unsteadily to my feet and reluctantly stumbled my way towards Room 903, with Kate and David in tow. Welp, here goes nothing. Time to pile on a whole lot more heartache and pain, because that's apparently my sole reason for existing now!

Notes:

So, I just wanna say, that if anyone has an issue with periods being discussed in the bathroom scene: Grow up please~ Because we need to normalize talking about periods already. Yes, it's awkward, and gross, and what-the-fuck-ever, but it's a natural bodily function ffs. That's one of the reasons why I added that little piece in the first place. And as for the syncing stuff, I dunno if that's truly a myth or not, but in this story I'm making it a real thing, 'cause lets be honest, it's probably the only way to stop Rachel and Victoria from tearing each other's throats out every five seconds. *steps off soap-box*

Also, if you think Max's anxiety attack wasn't accurately represented (FYI this is like the fifth time I've had to write one, and it never gets any easier), then I officially request that you fight me, since it's actually based off how my own shitty anxiety works. Yep, I did a sneaky self-insert. What'cha gonna do, stab me? Wait, no- put those pitchforks back down!

*hides away in her writer's panic room until next week* :)

Chapter 8: Hospital Horrors; Part 2 - The Ambush

Summary:

Max is forced to face her fears; it doesn't go how she expected.

Victoria struggles to maintain her usual air of cold-hearted indifference while trapped in such an emotionally-charged situation...

Max's powers are demonstrated; the adults are fully debriefed on the event that occurred at midnight.

Victoria's brain finally cracks under the pressure and rebels against her at the worst possible time...

Notes:

Hey ya'll! It's time for Part 2 of the 'Hospital Horrors' mini-arc! This one's a little exposition-heavy though, and about half-way through you might notice a bit of a difference in how it's written; that's because most of this chapter was originally supposed to be continued on from the first one and had to be edited from Max's POV to Victoria's instead. I couldn't make it look any better without deleting and rewriting the whole thing, but you guys know how lazy I am- so that wasn't an option. Oh well.

Enjoy! :)

(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)

Chapter Text

Chasing Amber (Through Fields & Marshes)

 

Chapter 8: Hospital Horrors; Part 2 - The Ambush

 

Victoria Chase had spent the last few minutes standing with her ear pressed against the door so that she could listen in on Maxine's conversation with David the military hard-ass turned rent-a-cop – but also to avoid having one of her own with Joyce, since she was the only other person in the room with her – because like hell was she gonna talk to the mother of Rachel's dead punk bitch of a girlfriend. Besides, Joyce knew what she was like and had never been her biggest fan anyway, so if Victoria so much as dared to give her some sort of fake condolences, she'd probably get bitch-slapped instead. And since she'd already suffered the indignity of that happening once today, this time it simply wasn't a risk she was willing to take, hence the eavesdropping.

 

Just when I was about to start pulling my hair out from the suffocating silence, I eventually heard footsteps coming up the hall, only for them to stop just short of the door itself. But knowing how shy Maxine was (or used to be until today?), I decided to yank open the door and drag her inside – kicking and screaming if I had to – so that she didn't have the chance to keep stalling.

 

Once I had done so, I wasted no time by growling in annoyance, "Seriously, you two are going to talk this out right the fuck now, otherwise I'm gonna go insane. Maxine, I don't care if you're not ready- sit your ass down, or I swear to god-"

 

Now, I fully expected Maxine to put up a fight, or an argument, or something- but just this once, to my utter surprise, she listened and promptly sat her ass down into one of the two terribly uncomfortable-looking wooden chairs in the room, before I could even finish my mini-tirade.

 

Though what she said afterwards sure did feel like a slap in the face, as she shot back with, "Well jeez, I'm sorry if my anxiety attack inconvenienced you, Vicky. Did you really hate Chloe that much, that you couldn't even be alone in the same room with her mother for more than five goddamn seconds?"

 

My natural instinct to fire back with some kind of scathing retort about Chloe seemed to unexpectedly die in my throat, as I suddenly realized I was still willing to trashtalk someone who'd been dead since this afternoon, and I was unable to stop myself from hanging my head in shame, because that's certainly a new fucking low for me.

 

After a moment of agonizing quiet, and in a rare moment of weakness that I will deny ever happened, I muttered under my breath, "I didn't hate her. I was jealous of her."

 

Maxine scoffed at that, having clearly heard it. "No shit, sherlock. Does that mean you're jealous of me, as-well? Because you've had it out for me ever since I started at Blackwell."

 

My head abruptly shot up at that, as I spat, "Like fuck am I jea-" then I swiftly cut myself off mid-sentence, before reluctantly admitting in another rare moment of weakness, "Alright, maybe I am... But this isn't about me, it's about you and Joyce- so stop avoiding it, for fuck's sake."

 

Maxine internally rolled her eyes. "Fine, but the cat's out of the bag now, Vicky. We're definitely gonna continue this conversation later."

 

Then before I could tell her to stop fucking calling me that, Maxine finally turned to face Joyce, who had been silently sitting in the corner of the room next to the bed and waiting patiently until she was ready to talk.

 

Maxine opened her mouth to say something – presumably to blubber an apology of some kind – but the only thing that came out of it was a pathetic croak.

 

So Joyce decided to take that as her cue to go first instead, and she simply said, "I see you're still having those anxiety attacks, huh?"

 

Maxine didn't seem to trust herself to speak at this point, because she just stared at her shoes and nodded in embarrassment.

 

Joyce sighed at that. "Come on darlin', don't look so ashamed. It's me, remember? I haven't forgotten the ones you had as a tween- granted they were never as bad as the one I just saw, but still- I get it. Especially after... well, after-"

 

Maxine must've not been able to take it anymore, because despite the fact that the words looked as if they felt like sandpaper in her throat, she practically forced herself to blurt out the lamest and most ridiculous apology I've ever heard in my life. "I'm sorry, Joyce. I'm so, so sorry... it's- it's all my fault, and-"

 

The glare that Joyce gave Maxine made her jaw slam shut so fast that she probably chipped a tooth, as she received what I could only assume to be the dissapproving mom look, that I'd only seen on Joyce's face once before, after she kicked my so-called rude ass out of that crappy diner of hers, all while sternly scolding me in that universally hated mom-voice as she told me to grow up and stop acting like a spoiled brat, which I refuse to admit gave me nightmares for a week. "Maxine Caulfield you darn well better listen to me, because I'm only gonna say this once- I do not, I repeat, do not blame you. Do you understand me? What happened to my baby girl is not your fault. And even if it somehow was your fault, I don't care. Do you know why?"

 

From Maxine's reaction, she definitely did blame herself for what happened in the bathroom and clearly thought that Joyce was wrong to think otherwise, but rather than try to argue about it, Maxine just shook her head, allowing Joyce to continue. "Because you came back, Max. Yes, you left at the worst point in Chloe's life, and you might not have had the chance to reconnect in the month you've been in town – yes, I knew you were back, even if she didn't – but the point is, you were there when my girl needed you in the end. For the last five years, Chloe thought that the entire universe had turned against her, and that included me; yet in her final moments, you were there by her side- for which I'm eternally grateful, because I know that if Chloe could only pick one person in the entire world to be there with her when she died, it would've always been you. So thanks... for making sure my baby girl didn't die thinking she was alone and forgotten by the world."

 

Holy fuck, hearing that actually made me feel a tiny bit emotional. But I'll be damned if I was gonna shed a tear in-front of everyone else. Nope. Not a fucking chance in hell. Though if Maxine had been having a mini-breakdown a minute ago – since I could hear her crying from all the way down the hall – then what she was doing now could only be described as bawling her eyes out like a little bitch, as she there in that shitty-ass chair with her arms wrapped around her knees- honestly, I'm surprised her tear-ducts were still functioning at this point.

 

After a few seconds, Maxine glanced up and looked like she was torn between staying right where she was, or getting up to give Chloe's mother a hug, though Joyce must've suspected that because she made the choice for her by coming over to hug Maxine herself instead. And then the inevitable happened... Joyce, who has always been known around town for being stronger than a freaking rhino, abruptly broke down for the second time in five years. First she lost her husband, and now she's lost her daughter. Even I couldn't help but feel bad for the poor woman, and it was pretty damn obvious at this point that Maxine had also been through a lot more shit than she's let on so far, thanks to her time powers- which I still thought was unbelievably fucking ridiculous and I totally wasn't jealous that she could do something like that when I couldn't...

 

And while the two of them were in the middle of having their shared breakdown, there was a loud knock at the door. But since David was too busy rubbing Joyce's back, and I was more-or-less frozen on the spot as I felt extremely uncomfortable with this emotionally-charged situation I had gotten myself stuck in, that meant Kate was the only one of us available to answer it.

 

So, when Kate pulled open the door, I was still far too enthralled by watching Maxine and Joyce bear-hugging each other, to bother tearing my eyes away long enough to see who was there, as she asked, "Um... can I help you?"

 

A strangely familar voice responded with, "Ah, excuse me- I was told Max Caulfield would be here. Do I have the wrong room?"

 

Kate stumbled over her words while she replied, "Yes- I mean no! Uh... she's here, hold on- Max!"

 

Upon being summoned, Maxine finally managed to wiggle her way out of Joyce's grasp and once she noticed who was at the door, she exclaimed in surprise, "Oh, Andy- it's you. Kate, let him in."

 

Kate stepped aside in confusion, and as Andy – the cop friend I assume Maxine was talking to on the phone back in the truck – slowly walked inside, only now did she seem to realize that he hadn't actually been here yet when we'd first entered. And after being ambushed by Joyce, she must've completely forgotten that he was supposed to be coming. Whoops.

 

Andy glanced around the room, and he no doubt felt very out of place standing there in that hideously bland-looking off-duty hoodie rather than his official police uniform – he was probably only expecting Maxine to be here, not everyone else – as he awkwardly cleared his throat. "Right... sorry I'm late, Max. That paperwork took longer than I thought."

 

Maxine raised an eybrow in mock-amusement, which looked very weird when her cheeks were currently tracked with tears. "Uh huh. Are you sure it wasn't because your coworkers were distracting you by begging for information on your new side-piece?"

 

Andy grimaced. "I'd very much like to pretend that never happened, please." Then he spotted Joyce, who'd gone back to sitting in the corner, and gave her a sad smile. "I'm sorry for your loss, Joyce- you too, David. Chloe may have been a pain in the ABPD's ass a lot of the time, but she was a good kid. She didn't deserve what happened to her."

 

Maxine scoffed at that. "You're damn fuckin' right she didn't."

 

Joyce silently nodded at him, while David just looked at Maxine and asked, "So, Max... would you mind telling us why Rachel summoned me to the hospital for you, and why you apparently called Berry here? Also, what is Miss Marsh and Miss Chase doing here- and actually, come to think of it, why isn't Rachel with you?"

 

She sighed heavily. "Well, we're here for a couple of reasons... Number one being that Rachel's in surgery right now."

 

Everyone's reactions were pretty much what I'd expected; Andy raised his eyebrows, David frowned, and Joyce shot straight up out of her seat again, while shouting, "What the hell- why is she in surgery?!"

 

Maxine winced, and waited for her to sit back down as she rubbed her face, no doubt in anticipation of the questions that were about to come, before casually stating, "Because she got shot."

 

This time it was David's turn to speak, as he muttered, "Oh, Christ... How'd that happen?"

 

Clenching her fists, she growled in anger. "The Prescott's, that's how."

 

I had to physically bite my tongue to stop myself from saying something stupid then, because I knew that everyone in this room hated the Prescott's for some reason or other, fuck- the whole town did, and for the most part I privately agreed with them, but Nathan was my friend. Coming from a similar background of wealthy parents who only gave a shit about their so-called family legacy, I'd always felt like it was my job to help him as much as I could. So even if he did actually kill Chloe and it wasn't in self-defense or something, I'd still blame his father, not him- that piece of shit is the reason Nathan is so mentally unstable, and that's why I had no issues so far with believing that he'd send people to kill Maxine simply for being there in the bathroom during whatever it is that happened. Still, I could tell that opening my mouth right now would only end in disaster, so I reluctantly stayed quiet and watched to see how Maxine's explanation of things played out.

 

Unsurprisingly, Andy's face turned serious upon the Prescott's being mentioned, and he crossed his arms. "You'd better start from the beginning, Max..."

 

She gave him a pointed look. "Sure, but first, just so we're clear- Andy, you gave me your word earlier about making sure the Prescott's paid for what happened to Chloe, remember? Well, now I'm holding you to that. But if you're in, then you're in all the way- you understand me?"

 

Andy frowned for a moment, and then nodded his head. "Loud and clear. Besides, if what you say is true, then the Prescott's just made one hell of a fuck up, because James Amber is going to crucify them for hurting his daughter. Now as I said, start from the beginning- how did the District Attorney's daughter get shot?"

 

Maxine sighed heavily. "Well, lets put it like this; it'd only been eight hours since Nathan murdered Chloe, and his father apparently already had three hired goons lurking outside Blackwell to take out the witness, aka me, as soon as I left campus. And the insane thing is, they clearly didn't care about collateral damage, either- because when they ambushed me – with silenced fucking pistols, no less – Kate and Victoria were both there, as-well as Rachel. We would've been screwed, if it wasn't for the fact that Chloe's truck was still parked right around the corner, which is where we were heading in the first place, so we made a run for it and managed to escape, with Rachel being the only one of us to catch a stray bullet. Luckily, it was just in the shoulder, though."

 

David stared at her with a troubled expression. "Right, let me get this straight... you girls managed to avoid three would-be assassins in the middle of the night, on foot, with nothing to defend yourselves with? I don't want to call you a liar, but... well, if I had been in your shoes, I don't think I would've been able to survive an ambush like that, even with my extensive military training and the gun I carry at all times. They're called ambushes for a reason, Max; the enemy takes you by surprise, and by the time you're able to react, it's usually too late to stop the casualties. So for all of you to get out of there with just Rachel taking a very minor gunshot wound is quite frankly unbelieveable."

 

Maxine gave me an infuriating 'I told you so' look, then stood up from her chair. "I was expecting you to say something like that. While it might seem unbelieveable, that's the official story we're going with, because the unofficial – and real – version involves something that's even less believeable than that. But before I tell you how we actually escaped death, I need some assurances from all of you. Number one being-"

 

I couldn't resist interjecting. "That you don't try to put her in a psych ward."

 

She rolled her eyes in exasperation. "Damn it, Victoria. That's not gonna happen. But I suppose it can't hurt to make sure... so number one; no psych wards. I'm not going insane or crazy or having a nervous breakdown because Chloe's dead – okay I probably am, but that doesn't count for this – and I can prove it if I have to. Number two; what I am about to say does not leave this room. Do not mention it to anyone who doesn't already know- if someone needs to be informed for whatever reason, I will tell them myself." Then she made eye contact with Joyce and David before adding, "And lastly, number three; because I know you'll be thinking about asking me if I can do a certain something, let me say now that- no, I can't. If I could, I guarantee you I would have done it already, so please do not ask me to try. Now, do you all agree to my terms?"

 

The three adults in the room glanced at each other in confusion before nodding at her.

 

Well, this ought to be interesting, let's see what happens...

 

Maxine took a breath before non-chalantly saying, "We survived the ambush because I have the power to rewind time."

 

As they all silently blinked at that revelation, Joyce was the first to mutter, "Well, I certainly didn't see that coming..."

 

Predictably, David crossed his arms. "Do you really expect us to believe that?"

 

She sighed to herself. "Not really. So I'll just say this- David, I know you planted spy cameras in your house. Don't bother denying it, I've seen the CCTV monitor in your garage myself."

 

While my eyebrows might've raised at that, David's jaw definitely hit the floor. "What? But... you've never even been inside our house, never-mind the garage, so how-"

 

Joyce narrowed her eyes at him. "Forget about the how, David. I want to know if what she just said is true."

 

Before she could tear into him for it though, Maxine stopped her. "It is, Joyce, but hold on. You have every right to be pissed, yet I didn't say that to get David into trouble-" Then she turned back to him and continued, "I think we all know that if Chloe were still alive and here right now, she'd have ripped you a new asshole for violating her privacy like that- but she isn't, and as much as she'd probably want me to do it for her, the only reason I'm not going to, is because I need your help to make sure those responsible for her death are brought to justice. Think of it as a chance to atone for making the last three years of her life a living hell. Agreed?"

 

David gulped. "But I... okay- we both want the same thing here, Max. Though you didn't answer my question, how do you even know about that?"

 

Maxine shook her head in frustration and wiggled her fingers at him. "Weren't you listening? I can rewind time. The specifics of how I know aren't important right now, only that I do. But if I need to prove it with something a little more... impossible to deny, then I will."

 

After David pretty much just admitted those spy cameras were real – how the hell Maxine knew about them, I had no idea – I could tell that Joyce was still skeptical, though she seemed willing to play along without demanding that Maxine prove it further.

 

Unfortunately, Andy wasn't. "Please, Max- go ahead. I'm gonna need something concrete before I accept that you're able to-" He raised his hands to perform an exaggerated set of air-quotes, as he finished his sentence, "rewind time."

 

She simply shrugged at him. "If you insist."

 

Then before any of us could even blink, she'd vanished on the spot.

 

Kate and I were slightly more familiar with how Maxine's power worked, having already seen it in action, so our eyes didn't pop out of our heads like the other adults in the room.

 

Or, at-least mine didn't until Maxine grumbled from her new position right fucking behind me. "Ugh, these beds are fucking terrible."

 

As expected, there was a collective gasp as all heads in the room turned towards where her voice came from, but that was nothing compared to the embarrassingly high-pitched yelp which escaped my mouth, as I scrambled to my feet – having been sat on the edge of the bed that she was now laid on – and yelled, "What the fuck, Maxine? Don't scare me like that, you bitch!"

 

When she just laughed at my reaction, I was barely able to refrain myself from punching her because it felt like my heart had just leapt up into my throat, though rather than do that, I looked at the adults to see how they were taking things.

 

Andy seemed to be glancing between where Maxine had just been, and where she was now, struggling to wrap his head around what she'd done, as he whispered, "What the... but... you were over there- I was looking right at you, and then you vanished and reappeared... over there on the bed..."

 

Maxine nodded in confirmation. "Yup. And no, before you ask, I didn't teleport across the room. That's not what I can do- I simply walked over here after you asked for proof, then rewound time a few seconds. The end result is that it just looks like I teleported, since my body doesn't get rewound back to where it was meant to be like everything else. Now, are you finally satisfied that I'm telling the truth?"

 

Andy scratched his chin for a moment before relenting. "It shouldn't be possible... but yes- after witnessing that, I think I've seen enough to believe you."

 

To be completely honest, even I'd still had doubts about it. I mean, seeing it happen during a stressful situation like being shot at by assassins was one thing- I could've maybe hand-waved that away as some sort of hallucination, but not here in such a brightly-lit room, where everything seemed more-or-less normal again. So now I was fully convinced that Maxine could do the impossible, and I was undeniably jealous about it. Fucking hipster bitch- getting to have all the fun... who does she think she is?!

 

Maxine bounced off the bed and back to her feet. "Good. Then I can finish explaining how we really survived an assassination attempt. I'll keep it brief- but basically, the first time around, those bastards managed to shoot everyone except for me before I even knew what was happening. Only when they stepped out of the shadows and approached me at gunpoint, did I realize they must've been hired to take me out. I rewound before they could pull the trigger, and warned the others to run- after that it was just a matter of watching how things played out, rewinding whenever one of them took a bullet and intervening just enough for them to avoid it."

 

Shit, so Maxine did save my life. And if I'm counting all the time-fuckery she had to do that I don't remember along the way, then it was probably a lot more than just once... Ugh, I never in a million years thought I'd ever owe a debt to Maxine Fucking Caulfield- damn it!

 

Before I could vocalize my immense displeasure aloud, Joyce frowned and asked, "If you were, uh... rewinding time to stop them from getting hurt, then why is Rachel in surgery with a bullet wound?"

 

Maxine winced and sighed at that. "Because my power has limits to how much I'm able to use it, before my brain basically implodes – its not exactly designed to traverse time itself, y'know – and by the time we got near the truck, I was already running on fumes. Remember, there were three attackers on our tail- I'd managed to disarm the first one early on, but the second followed us into the woods as we tried to avoid the gunshots, while the third must've figured out where we were going because when we eventually reached the truck, he was already waiting across the road from where it was parked. I had to watch him shoot Rachel twice- the first bullet was just a flesh wound in the shoulder, but the second was pretty much a kill-shot-"

 

When Maxine visibly shuddered at the memory of having to watch Rachel getting murdered in cold blood, I suddenly no longer envied the power she had. Well- not as much, anyway.

 

She was quick to shake it off though, and continued, "The problem is, when I rewound to stop him from straight-up executing Rachel, the second guy who was still chasing us began firing blindly at the others as they piled into the truck, and he ended up hitting the engine, which stranded us all there and guaranteed our deaths. I was stuck between a rock and a hard place at this point, because I only had enough left in the tank for one more big rewind, otherwise I'd have probably passed out, and then we'd have definitely been screwed. So in the end, my only option was to warn Rachel about what was coming, hoping that she could... uh, avoid the second shot, I guess... while I kept the remaining guy distracted until they were safely inside the truck and could start it up. Then I used my final drop of energy on disarming him at the last second, and jumped inside- we were able to escape and brought Rachel straight here. That's what really happened, but of-course, we can't exactly say we survived because I have super-powers, so... we just got incredibly lucky."

 

Unbeknownst to everyone else, Kate and I traded confused glances. So, she's not telling them about Rachel's powers, or what Maxine – and especially Rachel – ended up doing to stop those guys from killing them- probably a good call, but why would she mention everything else and not that? Eh, whatever.

 

Andy stared at her in disbelief. "What the hell, Max. You explained all that like it was no big deal- how are you so calm right now?"

 

She shrugged at him. "Well... lets just say that I've had to endure a whole lot more shit than that thanks to my powers... if I linger on any of it for too long, I'll probably shatter into tiny pieces, so instead I just... uh- what's that word? It starts with a C..."

 

David's gruff voice answered her. "Compartmentalize? That... uh, was the only thing that kept me functioning when I was overseas."

 

Maxine snapped her fingers, and I suddenly realized that David and her probably had a lot more in common than I ever thought was possible. "Yes, that's it. I simply piled it all away into a box, shoved it down as far as I could, and kept moving-" Then she sniffled, and was probably willing herself to not start crying all over again, as she mumbled, "Though now that Chloe's dead... I promised to never forget her, so I- I can't do that to her like everything else... and the box is probably way too fucking small for that, anyway-"

 

David scoffed. "You've got that right. If it wasn't for Joyce, I'd have stormed the station and murdered that rich punk with my bare hands a dozen times over by now."

 

Both Andy and I shuffled awkwardly at that, for entirely different reasons, I'm sure.

 

Though before either of us could say anything about it, Kate hesitantly spoke up. "Uh... so, now that they know the truth... what happens next?"

 

Maxine cleared her throat to get everyone's attention again. "Oh, right- well, I might have powers over time, but as I said, they have limits... which is where you come in, David. We need your skills as head of security, so you can act as our protection detail, or whatever. Don't worry, if anything actually ends up happening, I can probably still avoid it, but I want you nearby at all times, just in-case. The Prescott's cannot get away with killing Chloe- and knowing how they work, I'm all that stands between her being labelled as the suspect, rather than the victim."

 

I frowned at that, but managed to hold my tongue.

 

David hummed for a moment before agreeing. "That works for me- Besides, I have to keep myself occupied, so watching out for enemy combatants – real ones for once, rather than the fake kind my paranoia makes up – should be a good distraction."

 

Maxine smiled gratefully, then turned to Andy. "And I need you to do exactly what you gave me your word on- make sure that Nathan, and now his piece of shit father, don't get away with what they've done. You can begin with canvassing the road outside Blackwell – or whatever it is you cops do with a crime scene – starting from the walkway between the main campus and dorms, all the way to the abandoned parking lot down the street. Just be careful, they might be trying to clean up after themselves, if they haven't already. Though with all the shots they fired at us, I doubt they'll be able to get everything, so you'll probably find some bullets lodged into the trees along the way."

 

Andy nodded sharply. "Gotcha. It looks like I'm putting in for a shit-load of overtime then, because I'm keeping my word, Max. You can count on me, this is going to be the end of the Prescott's in Arcadia Bay, if I have a damn thing to say about it- so I'd best get started on searching for evidence now, before they can sweep it all under the rug like they always do." Then he winced, and added, "And assuming you're staying here all night, I'll be back at some point in the morning because don't forget, I still need to take you down to the station for your witness statement... so I'll let you know if I find anything when I return."

 

Maxine groaned under her breath at that, and once he'd gone, David turned to Joyce. "Well, it seems like I'm staying here on guard duty, but I'd rather you went home, Joyce. You're exhausted, get some rest."

 

Joyce shook her head adamantly. "I'll sleep when I'm dead. Trust me, you do not want to argue about this, David... I'll win. Max and Chloe grew up together, and she was always like a second daughter to me- I may have lost Chloe, but I'll be damned if I'm gonna lose her too. You and Max are all I have left now, so if you're stayin' to protect her, then so am I, 'cause as long as I'm still standin', that ain't fuckin' happenin'."

 

Well, shit- I know enough about Joyce to understand that she's deadly serious about something when her southern accent managed to slip out... and god fucking damn it, now Maxine's crying again.

 

And what was worse, is that I knew she was about to latch onto me – since I was the closest person to her – a mere few seconds before she promptly flung her arms around my neck, engulfing me into a very tight and uncomfortable hug.

 

I assume Maxine was fully expecting me to shove her away in disgust, and that's exactly what I was about to do. I tensed up, and went to go push her back, but in that moment, for some fucking reason, my brain just... stopped functioning- it refused to let me!

 

The only reason I could come up with to explain such an unexpected betrayal, is that for years my default emotions have always been some form of anger, or internalized anxiety that manifested as ruthlessness- because things like crying, being sad, allowing yourself to be vulnerable; they were all signs of weakness that could be exploited and used against you, at-least according to my Father, who had relentlessly drilled that into me. So to go from the stress of not knowing if I'd been drugged like the others, to the fearful adrenaline rush of being shot at, and now to be around the emotionally broken state that Maxine has been in since this afternoon... well, let's just say I was so far out of my comfort zone here, that my brain had no idea how it was supposed to react anymore. It just wasn't used to this kind of shit.

 

And by the time I'd been able to force my brain to work through figuring all that out, to my horror, I realized that my arms were no longer frozen at my sides- no, they had instead wrapped themselves around Maxine, returning her hug against my will. What the fuck are you doing, brain?!

 

Of-course, it was no surprise that Maxine couldn't resist voicing her opinion on my strangely out-of-character reaction, as she whispered, "Okay, who the fuck are you and what've you done to Victoria Chase the rich-bitch mean-machine, because you're definitely not her."

 

Well, it's not like I could say that my brain was actively working against me, so the only thing I could do in this situation was swallow my pride and roll with what it was forcing me to do. "Oh, I'm sorry, would you rather I punch you in the face instead? Because I will absolutely do that if you don't shut up. And I swear, if you breathe a word about this to anyone- I will deny it. Then I will kill you in your sleep... Are we fucking clear?"

 

She snorted at that, her breath annoyingly tickling my neck. "Aww, so you do actually have emotions after-all! Don't worry, Vicky- your secret is safe with me."

 

At that, I hissed into her ear. "Oh my god, Maxine- I already regret this. Just shut the fuck up!"

 

Maxine simply snickered at me. "Alright, alright- I'll do as I'm told for once, because hey- why ruin a good moment? After-all, it's not everyday that you're allowed to hug the Queen Bee of Blackwell, Victoria Chase herself, without getting your eyes gouged out!"

 

I swear, this bitch was lucky that my furious scream was only internal, otherwise she'd likely have permanent hearing damage- that would be the least of what she deserved for putting me in this terribly compromising position. And I really wished I had Maxine's power to rewind time right now, so that I could stop myself from doing such a ridiculous thing in the first place. Seriously, what could've possibly possessed my brain into thinking it would be a good idea to return a hug that was initiated by none other than my eternal photography rival- and the better question is, why the fuck weren't either of us pulling away yet?!

 

Ugh... this was so fucking awkward. And with every second that I – for some bullshit reason that I couldn't figure out – kept holding on, the closer it got towards dangerously creepy territory. I mean, I can understand why she was clinging onto me for dear life, the wet spot on my shoulder made that obvious, but why the hell was I? I don't even want to hug her... I hate her, she's a pretentious hipster bitch! Oh for fuck's sake- brain, just let go already!

 

Thankfully, before my existential crisis could go nuclear, one of us finally – fucking finally – disengaged from the hug. But infuriatingly, it was Maxine, and not me. So now I looked like the clingy one instead of her. Great fucking job, you idiot...

 

And now that Maxine's stupid hipster haircut wasn't obscuring my vision, I glanced around the room to see that Joyce and David had both left, so I voiced my confusion. "Uh... where'd they go?"

 

Kate answered from where she was lazily sprawled out on the bed – rather than where she'd stood across the room a minute ago – as she said, "Mr Madsen is outside guarding the door, and Joyce insisted on accompanying him. I think that if anyone tried to get in here, they'll be more scared of her than him- hell hath no fury like an angry waitress, apparently."

 

Maxine snorted at her. "You can say that again. I can count on one hand the number of times I've seen her lose her temper. It never ended well for the other person... which was usually me and... Chloe."

 

I sighed, trying to brush away the lingering feeling of weirdness that remained. "So, now that shit is over with, what are we supposed to do while we wait for our test results to come back?"

 

Maxine shrugged. "How about we talk, like normal people- you do know how that works, right?"

 

I huffed indignantly at that. "Yeah, but it's not like I have much in common with you two. Kate's religious, I'm not. You're a hipster nerd, I'm not. And I'm just a bitch who bullies you both for being those things."

 

Blinking in surprise at my own stupidity, I mentally slapped myself a couple dozen times for admitting that out loud. Hang around with them for like, an hour, and I'm already going soft- what the fucking hell is wrong with me?!

 

Kate rolled over to face us. "Wow, I didn't think you were capable of that level of self-awareness." Then she gasped and covered her mouth. "Sorry! That was rude of me. What I meant to say is... you do have a point. Max and I became good friends during the month we've been at Blackwell, but I avoided you as much as possible – for obvious reasons – so all I really know about you is that you're... well, not very nice."

 

Before I could tell her to go fuck herself, Maxine nodded and said, "I might have a slight advantage here because of my powers, since I'm aware of a couple of things Victoria would really prefer to keep secret, which I won't reveal otherwise she'll probably try to kill me- but besides those, all I know is that your family owns the Chase Space gallery up in Seattle."

 

I narrowed my eyes at her. "Uh huh... and just what is it that you think I'm hiding, Maxine?"

 

She raised an eyebrow at me. "I don't think this is something you'll want me to say in-front of Kate, but I'll give you a hint- it's a thing hidden in your room..."

 

The smirk that followed made it crystal clear exactly what she seemed to be referencing, without her needing to say it. And even if Kate didn't understand what she was talking about... somehow, Maxine definitely did. Fuck- this was incredibly humiliating for me, and if she wanted to, she could totally destroy my reputation now.

 

I had to swallow a few times to get my voice to work. "How... how do you know about that? Wait- did you go through my room, you bitch?!

 

Maxine simply shrugged at me. "Yes, but not yours- another you, in a different timeline. Though your reaction tells me that you both have it. So a little word of advice for you, Vicky? If you don't want people to find out, don't leave it out in the open where everyone can see it, and definitely don't leave your door unlocked when you're not around, dummy."

 

Completely ignoring the implications of multiple timelines, I frowned in confusion. Huh? I never, ever, leave it out in the open, for that very reason. So what is she talking- oh, wait... she probably meant the figurine on my desk, didn't she? Well it's not like I was really trying to hide that, nobody would know what it's supposed to be from anyway. But the other thing? Thank fuck she didn't find that, because if she had, I really would've killed her. If the Blackwell rumor-mill found out about it, that'd be the end of my status as the untouchable Queen of the Vortex Club, and I'd probably be forced to drop out of school as a result.

 

Still, I couldn't let her know there were even more secrets hiding in my room, so with this being the lesser of two evils, I had no choice but to play along. "Damn it. I'm surprised that you know what it is. Taylor and Courtney certainly didn't."

 

Maxine shook her head. "To be fair, I wouldn't have paid it much attention, if I didn't notice the packaging in the trash. At-first I just assumed it was some cheap little action-figure and wondered why you'd buy something like that when you've constantly made it a point to boast about always buying the most expensive shit. But then I saw the language on the box, and... well, after that it wasn't hard to figure out you're secretly an anime geek."

 

Shit. I really hoped she wouldn't say that out loud. Not even Taylor knows about my anime obsession, and she's the only one at Blackwell that I considered to be a true friend. So even if Maxine didn't know about the other thing stuffed deep into the back of my closet, being outed as an anime geek by the hipster bitch herself was more than enough to make my cheeks turn bright-red from the sheer humiliation.

 

So as Maxine started laughing at me yet again, I was totally expected Kate to ask what anime was, but to my shock, she apparently already knew... and came to my defense. "Max, stop it- don't be so mean. Victoria, there's no need to be ashamed for liking anime."

 

Now it was Maxine's turn to be surprised. "Wait, you know what anime is?"

 

Kate rolled her eyes. "Not before I came to Blackwell, no. My parents sheltered me for eighteeen years, and looking back, during that time, the only thing which could even remotely be considered anime was, uh... Veggie Tales. Blackwell was supposed to be my chance to finally escape from my parent's clutches, and... well, besides you, the only other people I became friends with were Alyssa and Stella- the latter of which is also a fan of anime, believe it or not. It was Stella who introduced me to the real thing, and while some of the ones I saw were... a bit too much for me, I'm still not going to judge her, or Victoria, for watching it. And neither should you."

 

Maxine genuinely looked scolded for a moment there, then she groaned and said, "I wasn't judging her, I was just teasing. I mean, you have to admit, Victoria being a fan of anime is strange considering how much of an evil bitch she is all the time-" I scoffed at that, though she kept going before I could hit her with a fitting comeback. "And this may come as a surprise to her, but my favourite movie of all time is Final Fantasy: Spirits Within, which is... kind of an anime, I guess. So... yeah."

 

My eyes went wide at that. "No fuckin' way. Seriously? You've watched Spirits Within?"

 

She snorted. "Duh, yeah? Only like, a hundred times. Why? And if you say that it sucks, I swear to dog I'm going to kick you in the lady-bits."

 

I put my hands out to placate her, unable to believe that this was happening right now. "No, no- I was going to say that... uh, it's actually... one of my favourite movies, too."

 

Kate giggled at us. "See, it turns out that we do have things in common, after-all!"

 

I took a deep breath to calm my nerves, then sighed. "Well, at-least we have something to talk about now, I suppose..."

 

Yeah... that's definitely something I never saw coming. Needless to say, we ended up spending the rest of our time nerding out over anime while waiting for our test results to come back. Also, since I wasn't surrounded by those fake fuckers who wouldn't hesitate to usurp me the moment they saw weakness back at Blackwell, it seemed that the usual urge to treat Maxine and Kate like just another piece of dirt stuck under my shoe was dwindling fast, which is yet another thing I wasn't used to at all. And so for the first time ever, I... kinda really enjoyed talking to Maxine- shit, even Kate, if I'm being totally honest... Ugh, what the hell is happening to me? This is bullshit, and absolutely not how I planned on spending my night!

Notes:

FYI I'm still in the process of writing the next chapter so I'm not sure when it will be released; it might be next week, but it might not. What I will say is, it's gonna be from a brand-new POV that I've never done before, and it's shaping up to be a self-contained chapter of its own, rather than a specific continuation of this one. Don't worry, there's still going to be 4 Parts to this mini-arc, but the next chapter might be marked as an 'Interlude' (which is what I did once back in Time Warriors) instead of Part 3. So technically there's going to be 5 Parts, I guess? Whatever, I'll decide that once it's actually finished- we'll just have to wait and see.

Until next time! :)

Chapter 9: Hospital Horrors; Part 3 - The Mother

Summary:

The Dorm Mother's services are requested, by someone she didn't expect.

Dana makes a critical error, while trying to enlist the help of a sleeping Taylor.

Despite never having spoken before, they find it strangely easy to have an honest conversation.

The two of them set out on a quest, to fetch supplies for their classmates ominously waiting at the hospital.

Notes:

Hey, ya'll! I'd just like to point out that this chapter's release is solely dedicated to SecondSeraphim; your persistence paid off, apparently. :P

Jokes aside, I apologize for leaving you guys during a multi-part plotline. Which is definitely now going to be extended to five parts, since its turning out to be longer than I thought it would. As I noted in the previous chapter, originally this chapter was going to serve as an interlude in the middle to keep the Hospital Horrors arc as a four-parter, since it's from the POV of a character that I've never done before and is happening outside of the hospital- but it got so long that I had to split it up early and switch the POVs again. So I simply decided to say fuck it and integrated the whole fluffy rollercoaster into the rest of the story arc. *shrug*

Oh and before I forget; with today being the release of the remastered versions of LIS and BTS, I hope those of you who intend on playing them have fun re-experiencing the PLISD in HD! I bought both from day one, yet my personal opinion at the moment is that I'm really not impressed with what I've seen. Regardless of the inconsistencies between the trailers and official screenshots, the characters simply don't look like the ones I've come to know and love over the years. Some of them do look better, but better doesn't neccessarily mean good, because most of them have been changed in a way that completely alters the presentation of their character- the attempt at increasing realism clashes horribly with the original art style, especially for the remastered LIS where those super-specific design choices were an important part of what made the game so great. I mean... Chloe doesn't look angry anymore. Kate doesn't look depressed anymore. Rachel no longer has that subtle makeup style that makes her appear flawlessly beautiful without even trying. Warren somehow manages to look even creepier than he did before (lmao). Other characters have that uncanny valley effect, and all of them seem to have those awful glossy glass eyes, both of which completely ruins the immersion. I dunno, maybe I'm just not a fan of change, but I was expecting Deck Nine to have handled the remasters better than this. Hopefully everything will get fixed in patches, though I highly doubt it. Whatever, that's enough of me being a downer, you can go read the new chapter now!

Enjoy! :)

(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)

Chapter Text

Chasing Amber (Through Fields & Marshes)

 

Chapter 9: Hospital Horrors; Part 3 - The Mother

 

It was in the very early hours of the morning when Dana Ward was finally able to fall asleep, having spent most of the evening ruminating on the terrifying event which had happened that afternoon, not to mention being rudely woken up earlier at midnight by Max Caulfield screaming her freaking head off- but unfortunately, she had only just closed her eyes when her phone – that had been held in her hands a moment ago – began silently vibrating from where it'd landed on her chest.

 

While grumbling incoherently under my breath, and with my brain very much still on auto-pilot, I started sleepily swatting at my chest, trying to get rid of the offending item so that I could finally catch some shut-eye. The only thing I managed to accomplish though, was pushing it further underneath my sleep-shirt, where I couldn't reach it.

 

Groaning in exasperation, I raised my head and blearily opened an eye to see what it was; and only then in the darkness of my room, did I realize from the light illuminating the underside of my shirt, that it was my phone doing the vibrating. So I forced myself to sit up, allowing it to slide all the way down and out the other end, before grumpily picking it up out of my lap and squinting at the harsh glare from the screen.

 

Once the momentary blindness had worn off, I peered at the time at the top, which indicated that it was damn-near 3am, then took one glance at the Caller ID and almost threw my phone across the room in a fit of exhausted frustration. Why the fuck was Victoria Chase calling me in the middle of the night, instead of battering down my door like she always does when Her Bitchiness demands my attention? Ugh!

 

I took a few more seconds to furiously rub some of the sleep out of my eyes, then right before it could go to voicemail, I accepted the call and angrily hissed at her before she could get a word in. "What the hell is so important that you have to wake me up at three in the morning? I swear to god, Victoria- you'd better be dying right now, otherwise I'm hanging the fuck up and coming to kick your damn door down!"

 

There was a few seconds of quiet, before she spoke. "I need your help."

 

I scoffed at her. "Oh, look- I saw that coming a mile away! It's constantly, 'Dana do this, Dana do that, Dana run half the fucking Vortex Club because I'm too lazy and Nathan's a useless shithead', with you. Well guess what? No! I might be in the Vortex Club, but I'm not one of your stupid minions who's always at your beck-and-call 24/7- and waking me up in the middle of the night – especially with a phone call rather than knocking on my door – is crossing the freaking line, Victoria. So if you need your ass wiping, then go ask Courtney!"

 

I expected to recieve a verbal shit-storm in response, but all I got was a groan, followed by, "No, this isn't like that. I need your help, Dana."

 

I rolled my eyes in frustration. "Yeah, I got that- I heard you the first fucking time. The answer's still no. I'm hanging up now-"

 

Before I could do that though, there was a growl on the other end of the line, as she muttered, "Are you seriously going to make me say it?"

 

I sighed at that and resisted the urge to hang up anyway. "Say what?"

 

There was a long beat of silence, and for a moment there I thought she'd hung up on me instead, but then she uttered words that I never thought she'd lower herself down enough to say. "Dana, as my Dorm Mother, I am officially requesting your services... no questions asked, and no judgement- at-least, that's what you offered to us all, if we ever truly needed your help, right?"

 

Yeah... I might've dropped the phone in shock, and mouthed the words 'what the fuck' several times, upon hearing her say that. Because it was indeed the thing I told everyone when they moved in at the start of September – whether they were new or old students, and my personal opinions aside – if any of them needed someone to turn to in confidence, for whatever reason, my door would always be open. I take my role as the self-appointed Dorm Mother very seriously, I can't help it- I care too much. So, despite the fact that I hate Victoria's guts, when I made that offer it applied to her just as much as it did to the other students... though at the time she'd made it perfectly clear that she would never get herself into a situation where she'd willingly call me and say those words. Well, until now, apparently.

 

I took a moment to recollect myself, then picked the phone back up. "Shit, unless this is a crazy-ass dream- if I heard you say that, then you really must be dying."

 

She wasted no time in exclaiming indignantly, "Bitch, you said no judgement!"

 

After pinching myself to double-check that this was actually happening, I winced at the pain while replying, "Yes- you're right, I did-" Then I jumped out of bed and mentally facepalmed, because apologizing to her – and actually meaning it – was something that I didn't want to repeat twice. "I'm sorry, Victoria. If I wasn't wide awake before, I certainly am now- so what exactly do you need my help with at this time of night?"

 

She let out a relieved huff. "Fucking finally! Okay, uh... first thing's first, I need you to promise me that you'll keep your mouth shut and won't go spreading any of this around Blackwell."

 

I rolled my eyes at that. "Victoria, you know I don't give a shit about the Blackwell rumor-mill, that's more Juliet's thing anyway. And no, before you ask, I won't tell her, either. So whatever this is, I promise you can trust me- after-all, discretion is the Dorm Mother's middle name."

 

Victoria hummed uncertainly for a moment, then relented. "Alright. But before I explain what I need from you, I want you to wake up Taylor for me."

 

I frowned into the phone. "If this is something Taylor can handle, then why the hell didn't you just ask her in the first place, rather than bug me?"

 

She scoffed in return. "Because what I want from you – both of you – would go a lot faster with two people, and Taylor is literally my only true friend at Blackwell and the one person I trust to have my back in an emergency. Courtney's good for running errands, but she's just a fake bitch like all the rest. And the reason I'm asking for your assistance is obvious; you offered to help if we ever needed it- besides, you seem to genuinely care about others – sickeningly so – and I'm just capitalizing on that."

 

I groaned at the fact my kindness had officially come back to bite me, before asking, "Fine, whatever... and once I've grabbed Taylor, then what?"

 

There was something that sounded like a door opening as she tersely replied, "After that, you both go somewhere you can't be overheard, and call me back."

 

Then she abruptly hung up the phone without even so much as a goodbye. Typical fucking Victoria. Her usual grouchiness aside though, whatever she was tasking me and Taylor with must be important, and considering she had to call me, I doubt she's actually on campus right now. So we were probably getting sent on some sort of freezing-cold late-night excursion, which meant that I had to get dressed again. Ugh- I just took my damn bra off, too!

 

After mentally debating whether or not it was a good idea to go without one at all, I reluctantly decided on wearing my comfiest bra, rather than the push-up I usually wore – shh, don't tell anyone – because there's no way in hell I'm putting that fucking thing back on at this time of night. Then I grabbed the warmest clothes I could find, which wasn't much- most of my wardrobe was virtually identical at this point, just thin t-shirts, low-cut tops, and jean-shorts. I guess that's the price you pay for being a cheerleader; you gotta get your body used to the cold or whatever, 'cause it turns out having frostbite isn't much of a crowd-pleaser...

 

Still, I'd rather not freeze my ass off when I'm not at practice, so I opted to wear the sweatpants I normally reserved for the rare occasion I went jogging, along with randomly throwing on one of my t-shirts, since the low-cut tops were basically useless without my push-up bra to 'accentuate things'. Those, combined with a distinct lack of make-up and an exhausted zombie-face, meant I was looking far from the picture of perfection that us cheerleaders were required to be, but hey- it's 3am, so if anyone has a problem with it, they can go fuck themselves for all I care.

 

With my crappy outfit taken care of, now all I had to do was wake up Taylor – without gaining the attention of anyone else in the dorm – and that's probably easier said than done... So once I'd poked my head into the hall to check the coast was clear, I quickly snuck out, covering the short distance towards Taylor's room, which was luckily right across and down one from my own.

 

I paused outside her door for a moment while contemplating whether or not knocking was even worth it, then grabbed the handle to see if it was locked – unsurprisingly, it wasn't- for some reason, nobody locks their doors here at Blackwell – before I crept inside and closed it behind me as silently as possible. Unfortunately, other than the moonlight shining slightly through the window, her room was practically pitch-black, and since I'd never actually been inside it until now, I had to be extra careful not to walk into anything that might make a noise, as I made my way towards the sleeping silhouette of Taylor.

 

Thankfully, I managed to traverse the room incident-free, except for almost tripping and breaking my neck over what I assume were a pair of shoes along the way. And as I now stood there looming above her like some sort of axe murderer, I wondered what would be the best way to wake her up.

 

Eventually, I settled for simply whispering, "Taylor... wake up, it's Dana... Taylor? Damn it- Taylor! Ugh."

 

Of-fucking-course she was a heavy sleeper. Go figure. Well, I guess it's time for the nuclear option- but since I didn't have a bucket of water at my disposal, I had to settle for doing the next best thing.

 

So I grabbed hold of the covers she was laid under, and promptly yanked them away in one fluid motion, exposing her to the coldness of the room. That should do the trick.

 

And it certainly did- however, I very quickly realized that I'd made a terrible mistake, because my eyes had adjusted to the darkness just enough to see that Taylor apparently slept naked... and by that, I mean completely naked... Oh, fuuuck!

 

Okay, in hindsight, I should've known better- still, remind me later to thank every god in existence for giving me such impeccable cheerleading reflexes, otherwise I never would've been able to jam my hand over her mouth in time to stifle the abrupt yelling that erupted from it right as she woke up in a blind panic.

 

I wasted no time in hissing, "Taylor, chill! It's just me, Dana- Sorry to wake you up like that, but I need your help with something, without anyone else knowing about it. So I'm gonna remove my hand now, please don't scream, okay?"

 

Her panicking had mostly reduced to an embarrassed glare, now that she understood it was me and not some creepy guy, which considering the circumstances I absolutely deserved, because in my haste to wake her up I might've thrown the covers halfway across the room, so she had no way to properly hide herself from view. Oops.

 

I internally groaned at my stupidity and slowly withdrew my hand away from her mouth, while trying my best to keep my eyes from wandering too much, not that it made a difference, since I could still see quite a lot in my peripheral vision that I wasn't supposed to.

 

Once her mouth was free, Taylor instantly growled, "What the fuck, Dana?!"

 

I winced at her tone. "I'm so sorry, Tay- I... uh, didn't know you slept naked."

 

She was quick to bite back with, "Clearly! Well, now you do. So what did you wake me up like that for, other than to scare the ever-loving shit out of me?"

 

I rolled my eyes in the dark. "Like I said, I need your help with something- Dorm Mother business... for Victoria."

 

She scoffed at me. "What the hell is that supposed to mean?"

 

I sighed. "It means that she just woke me up with a fucking phone call and begged for my help – as in, from the Dorm Mother – you know, the whole 'come to me in confidence if you need help' thing that I offered to you all at the start of the semester? Though she wouldn't tell me what she actually needed help with, and normally I wouldn't divulge any of this info to you, but she specifically asked me to involve you without anyone else knowing, only then would she explain what she wanted from us. So there you go, that's why I had to sneak in here like a ninja."

 

Taylor hummed at that, and reached over to switch on a lamp on the table next to her bed. "If she had to ask you for help, then it must be something bad..." Then she seemed to remember that she wasn't wearing anything, and glanced down at herself before snapping her fingers at me. "Hey! My eyes are up here, you perv."

 

Hah- how kind of her to assume I was staring when I absolutely wasn't – okay I was, but the added light made it down-right impossible not to – and so I put my hands up in surrender. "Oh come on Taylor, in my defense, it's not like you didn't get an eyeful of me once before- when you and Victoria pranked me in the showers, remember that? Because I sure fucking do. So I'd say this is more than fair, wouldn't you?"

 

Eventhough the lamp-light was quite dim, I could still see that she was blushing like crazy. But I couldn't tell if that was a result of her being entirely naked in-front of me right now, or because I'd just brought up the fact that she saw me naked in the damn shower and totally wouldn't stop staring until Victoria had physically dragged her out of the room.

 

After a beat of awkward silence, she groaned. "I'm... uh, sorry about that, Dana. It was Victoria's idea to prank everyone who took a shower on the first day of class, not mine. I didn't want to do it, but you know its literally social-suicide to say no or disagree with her in any way- if I did, she'd just toss me aside and replace me with someone who's more willing to do her bidding..."

 

I raised an eyebrow. "So you really think you're just another one of her minions, huh?"

 

She shrugged at that. "Obviously. I mean, she treats me like one, so..." then she saw the expression on my face and asked, "What?"

 

I couldn't stop myself from smirking. "Oh, nothing- it's just... when she asked for my help, she made it very clear that she considers you to be her only real friend here at Blackwell. Courtney and everyone else are all fake bitches- those are her words, not mine. So if anyone could defy Victoria and get away with it, it'd probably be you."

 

Rather than respond happily like I'd expected, she just blankly stared down at her lap, and I frowned in concern. "...Taylor? What's wrong- I thought that'd be a good thing?"

 

She remained silent for several long seconds before sighing, "It is, but.. I, uh... fuck-"

 

I crossed my arms in confusion. "But what?"

 

She finally glanced back up at me. "If I tell you, can you please, please, keep it a secret? Don't go spreading it around-"

 

I huffed in annoyance. "Jeez, what is it with everyone thinking I'm gonna spill their secrets to the rest of Blackwell? I'm not fucking like that, Tay- chill out, whatever it is, you can tell me."

 

She went back to staring into her lap for a minute, then mumbled, "I... sort of have a crush on her- Victoria, I mean..."

 

Well, I'm not sure what I was expecting her to say, but it wasn't that.

 

I leaned back to get a good look at her – not in that way – and simply stated, "Oh. I see. And... I kinda ruined everything by telling you that she's basically friendzoned you, is that it?"

 

When all she did was nod, while being unable to look at me, I stood there for a moment to absorb that revelation, and then it hit me- Taylor just admitted to having a crush on another girl. Holy shit, I definitely didn't see that coming.

 

And I was unable to stop myself from voicing my curiosity. "Wait a second... don't take this the wrong way, but... I thought you were straight? I mean, you're always talking about hot guys whenever we hang out with the rest of the Vortex Club."

 

She snorted at that. "Well, duh. I do that on purpose, so nobody suspects that I'm... uh- that I'm..."

 

I cautiously took a seat on the bed next to her and tried to help her finish. "That you're... what, gay?"

 

But she was quick to correct me. "Bi." Then she immediately slapped a hand over her mouth and almost gave herself whiplash from how fast she turned to look at me in horror. "Wait, no- shit, please forget I said that."

 

Before she could get herself too worked up, since she was already starting to hyperventilate, I grabbed her shoulders and looked her in the eye. "Nope- welcome to the outside of your closet, girl. Now, all I have to say is, so fucking what if you're Bi? I know it might be scary, but there's nothing wrong with that, Tay."

 

She just blinked at me in confusion. "Huh? So you're okay with me being... Bi?"

 

I barely resisted rolling my eyes. "Of-course I am. Why wouldn't I be?"

 

Taylor started wringing her hands. "Because... uh- I tried coming out to my dad years ago, and... he didn't take it well. We had a really good relationship before then, but he basically fucking disowned me on the spot and never spoke to me again. My mom and dad split up like a month later, but I don't think he ever told her the real reason why, and after the way he reacted, there's no way I was gonna risk coming out to her. So... I guess I just expected you to hate me, or laugh at me, or... something."

 

I angrily blew out a puff of air at that. "Okay, well, first thing's first; your dad's a fucking piece of shit. Simple as that. Second; I don't hate you. I'm actually very proud of you for having the guts to admit that to me after the way your dad took it. And third; So that you know I won't go spreading it around, I'll let you in on a secret of my own-" then I leaned forward to whisper in her ear, "You're not the only closeted person in the room, Taylor."

 

As I withdrew, I watched her eyes go wide. "Hold on, does that mean you're..."

 

Despite how nervous I was to say it aloud to someone who could easily tell Victoria, and thus the entire school, I tried to act non-chalant as I confirmed, "Also Bi? Yup."

 

She had to work her mouth open and closed a few times before she was able to respond to that. "But... I thought that you were straight! I've only ever seen you show interest in guys- like Logan, for example. Aren't you with him?"

 

At the mention of that dickhead's name, I was unable to stop the disgust from showing on my face, as I spat, "Fuck no, not anymore. Getting with that bastard was a huge lapse in judgement- as for only showing interest in guys, well... it's the same as you, nobody bats an eye at it, do they? Besides, most guys – especially the ones here at Blackwell – are terrible when it comes to being romantic. They only care about sex, which, hey- I'm more than down for, at-least I know what I'm getting myself into when I do. But with another girl? Although I've never been with one, I assume the romance is a lot more of a priority, and I'm admittedly just as clueless as the guys when it comes to that sort of thing. So sticking with guys and sex was just the safer option... or it was until Logan."

 

Taylor recoiled slightly at my unexpected rant, before humming in agreement. "Well, you're not wrong there; the guys at Blackwell are all brain-dead morons who constantly think with their dicks, which is frustrating when you want an actual fucking relationship, so I get what you mean- though obviously I've never been with another... girl before either, but... yeah." then she blinked and questioned, "If you don't mind me asking, what did Logan do to piss you off so much?"

 

I did mind actually, because I hadn't told anyone about what he did yet, not even Juliet- but I couldn't hold in the bitter scoff that escaped my mouth. "What didn't that fucking douchebag do?"

 

Taylor winced. "Ouch. That bad, huh?"

 

Ugh- if I was really going to talk about this, I couldn't do it sitting still, so I sprang up off the bed and started pacing agitatedly. "Okay, so you know how I said I was down for the sex when it came to being with a guy?" When she nodded, I continued, "Well, I don't know if you knew this, but Logan had been pining over my for three freaking years, and I finally figured what the hell- I might as-well give him a shot, since there was nobody else lined up in the wings. But as expected, he was so bad with the whole girlfriend-boyfriend romance shtick that I decided to skip it altogether and go straight to the sex. And naturally, he was entirely on-board with that idea. Anyway, long story short, we were both a little drunk when the time came, and he thought it'd be a good idea to do it without a condom, but... he promised me that he'd pull out."

 

Taylor's eyes widened. "Oh shit- and... I'm guessing you still let him, didn't you?"

 

I groaned at my own idiocy. "Yep. Like a dumb-ass, I believed him. Although I was less drunk than he was, so I'd like to think I would've seen the red flag eventually and told him to stop... but I didn't get the chance, because guess what? He didn't even last five god damn minutes, no surprise there- and he certainly didn't pull out... like, at all. Oh, and do you know what he said to me when I went off on him about it? He had the balls to say 'It's fine, you're on the pill.'- yeah, that shit-for-brains just assumed I was on it, when I definitely fucking wasn't!"

 

Risking a glance in Taylor's direction, I don't think I'd ever seen her looking so furious, as she venomously spat, "What a fucking asshole !" then she blinked in horror. "Wait. Oh god, if he... you know- then does that mean you're... um-"

 

I finally stopped pacing and turned to face her with a heavy sigh. "Yes. I am- or I was, but... not anymore. I... uh, took care of it y-yesterday, and you're the only one who knows about what happened, so..."

 

Taylor abruptly stood up. "Dana, I swear to god, I won't tell a soul. But fuck- did you really go through that on your own?" When all I managed was a weak hum in the affirmative, she hesitantly walked toward me. "Shit... can I give you a hug? You look like you need one."

 

I raised my eyebrows at her, before awkwardly glancing away. "Uh, Tay- have you forgotten that you're still... y'know, naked?"

 

She blushed slightly and looked back down at herself for a moment, then shrugged. "No, I just don't care, because I really want to hug you right now. So shut up and let me, you bitch."

 

I snorted at that and reluctantly decided to allow it. "Well, if you insist..."

 

As she stepped into my personal space and wrapped her arms around me, I tried my hardest not to think about how tightly everything was pressed against me... but it wasn't enough. I mean, I've always thought she was kinda cute, but damn it- this was too much, and... oh crap, I'm starting to have a crush on her, aren't I?!

 

Taylor held on for a little longer than I was comfortable with, but when she did pull away, I had to take a second to compose myself and really hoped that I wasn't blushing like a thirteen year old, as she asked, "Better?"

 

Abso-fucking-lutely... though of-course I couldn't say that, so I just smiled gratefully. "Sure, I guess. Thanks... But in-case you've forgotten, I didn't come here to unload all my baggage on you, so you might want to get dressed and stop giving me a show – not that I'm complaining or anything – it's just that Victoria's probably dead in a ditch by now because we're taking so long."

 

Taylor grunted at that and switched on her overhead light so that she could see what she was doing, effectively allowing me to see every little detail as she wandered over to her closet to find an outfit. "Right, what am I supposed to be wearing?"

 

I shrugged, despite her having her back to me, which oddly enough, had a trail of freckles going halfway down her spine – I didn't even know she had any freckles until now – but holy hell were they adorable and- jeez, you need to calm your tits, girl! "Ahem... uh, if I had to make an educated guess, I'd say Victoria's gonna send us into town or some-shit, so you'll want to wear the warmest clothes you have."

 

She nodded to herself, before grabbing some fresh underwear out of a drawer, then pulled a thick pair of jeans and a flimsy t-shirt, that looked even thinner than the one I was wearing right now, out of the closet.

 

As she started putting those on, I couldn't refrain from commenting. "Really, Tay? Going bra-less is a bold choice, especially if you're only wearing a t-shirt. Not even I dared to do that."

 

She turned around to roll her eyes at me, while said t-shirt was stuck half-way over her head. "I like to let my body breathe during the night, Dana. Why do you think I sleep naked? And I'm not ruining these puppies' schedule for anything- not even Victoria." then she pulled the t-shirt down the rest of the way, covering 'those puppies' from view, and snickered at my reaction. "The show's over, bitch. You can stop staring at me now."

 

Shit, was I really that obvious? Ugh. I thought I was being careful!

 

There was already an awkward apology on the tip of my tongue, but she just waved a hand dismissively. "Anyway, I'm not dumb enough to go out in just this t-shirt, but the jacket I have is really fucking warm so I'm not putting that on until we're actually leaving the building. So, I suggest you call Victoria back before she starts getting suspicious."

 

I shook my head at her. "Not here. She said to go somewhere that we wouldn't be overheard by others."

 

Taylor hummed for a moment. "Well... how about the TV Lounge? Nobody goes in there during the night, and it's separated from the dorm hall by, like, three doors. I doubt anyone would hear us in there."

 

That was probably our best bet, so I nodded in agreement and turned to leave. "Works for me. Come on."

 

The two of us exited her room and tip-toed towards the entrance to the dorms, managing to get past it without being caught. Then instead of going through the door to the ground floor stairwell, we turned left and went through the one leading to the TV Lounge, followed by another which served no purpose really- Blackwell simply loved putting doors every five paces to be as annoying as possible.

 

After making sure the door was closed properly behind us, we took a seat on one of the many incredibly-comfortable couches dotted around the room and I breathed a sigh of relief, before pulling out my phone. "You ready?"

 

Taylor groaned. "Nope."

 

I raised an eyebrow at her. "Are you nervous?"

 

She shrugged. "Maybe... I know she thinks of me as a friend now, and that's great, but I still have a crush on her- it's not like I can just turn it off, y'know? Ugh, this sucks."

 

I nodded at that. "I get it. Just be yourself- or however it is that straight closeted Taylor Christensen acts around the almighty Queen Victoria. Alternatively, you can let me do the talking instead."

 

She rubbed her face in exasperation. "I think that might be best- you doing the talking, I mean. Because I'll likely end up saying something stupid, and outting myself to her without realizing it."

 

I quickly reached over to give her an awkward side-hug, before calling Victoria and putting it on speaker-phone so that she could listen.

 

Unsurprisingly, Victoria answered immediately and was clearly not happy. "There you are! What took you so long? I only asked you to wake up Taylor, for fuck's sake- how hard can that be?!" There was a voice in the background I couldn't quite make out, followed by Victoria grunting, "Uh, sorry... but is Taylor even with you, or did I spend the last 15 minutes biting my nails for nothing?"

 

I winced at that – Victoria's never bites her nails, they're always immaculate – so now I really was concerned. "Yeah, she's here. And it's not my fault that-"

 

Victoria cut me off. "Sweet-T?"

 

I rolled my eyes in frustration and looked at Taylor, who gulped and said, "H-hey Vic. Um... don't be mad at her, seriously- it's my fault we took so long. I couldn't believe that you'd actually ask Dana for help, and she had a hard time convincing me otherwise. I'm sorry."

 

Wow- rather than throwing me under the bus, she lied and stood up for me... that's never happened before, so I shot her a smile while mouthing the words, "Thank you!"

 

Meanwhile, Victoria sighed. "Don't be sorry, Sweet-T. I know I made it perfectly clear something like this would never happen, so that's on me- I'm just... really fucking stressed out right now, and glad to hear your voice."

 

Taylor frowned, and hesitated before whispering, "V, you took me to visit my mom when you didn't have to, so I- I'm here for you... whatever you need. But uh, what do you need from us, exactly?"

 

Victoria's response was simple. "Clothes. I... need clothes."

 

Taylor and I traded worried glances, before she asked, "If all you needed is clothes, then you could've just called me instead of Dana. Why involve her?"

 

There was more muffled voices in the distance, which Victoria huffed at before saying, "Because I'm not the only one who needs them, Sweet-T."

 

Upon hearing that, I leaned closer to the phone. "Right... well, I can tell we're on speakerphone, too- so who else is there with you that needs clothes?"

 

There was a voice in the background which sounded a lot like Kate Marsh shouting 'Hi Dana!', and then another that I could only assume was Max Caulfield also yelling something similar, before Victoria spoke up again. "I don't know if you heard them, but that was Maxine and Kate saying hi- they're a little... uh, busy right now though, so they can't come chat. And Rachel's here as-well, but she's... in another room at the moment. So yeah, we all kinda need clothes. That's why I told you it'd go a lot faster with two people, Dana."

 

I stared down at the phone in confusion. "Wait, all of you need clothes? What the fuck is going on- and where even are you right now?"

 

She scoffed at that. "Correct. We all need clothes, because we're at the fucking hospital, okay? And no, I'm not telling you why over the phone. We'll explain when you get here with clothes that we can actually fucking wear!"

 

I was about to push further and ask why she was at the hospital with them, when Taylor held out a hand to stop me, before saying, "Okay, V. Is there... anything in particular that you guys want us to get for you?"

 

There was more inaudible discussion between them, and then Victoria replied, "We literally do not care, Sweet-T. We're gonna be here all fucking night, so grab whatever looks like our comfiest clothes. Just make sure you bring us each one of everything, okay? And by that, I really mean everything - underwear and bras included. Got it?"

 

Shit, that didn't sound good at all... what the hell happened to them?!

 

I cleared my throat before speaking. "Loud and clear, Victoria. Don't worry- we'll take care of it, and we'll be there as soon as we can... Dorm Mother to the rescue."

 

Surprisingly, that got a laugh out of her. "Ugh. Oh, one more thing, and I'm being deadly fucking serious here- when you leave campus, be very careful. I can't explain why, just... be on your guard, both of you. And if you have anything to protect yourselves with-"

 

Max's sarcastic voice interjected in the distance, "I doubt they keep guns in their dorm rooms, Vicky."

 

She grunted at that, and carried on. "Obviously not- but listen, if you have anything at all, make sure you take it with you, just to be on the safe side. Now hurry up and bring us our clothes, please... Au revoir."

 

When Victoria hung up, Taylor and I just sat there in silence for a minute, before I muttered, "I've got a bad feeling about this."

 

She hummed at that. "Me too. Like, there was this one time where I had to do an underwear run for her, after she got a little too drunk at a party last year and pissed herself – don't tell her I said that, she'll fucking kill me – but fetching fresh clothes for four people who are all at the hospital in the middle of the night? Yeah, that can't be good..."

 

I sighed. "Well, I suppose we'd better get to it, then. It's probably best if we divide and conquer by doing two each- You know Victoria better than me, so I assume you want to take her room?"

 

Taylor reluctantly shook her head. "I would, but... nah. I don't trust myself to stay objective while going through her underwear drawer, y'know?"

 

I snorted at that. "Ew! Jeez girl, you've got it bad."

 

She nudged me in the ribs in response. "Oh my god, shut up- stop reminding me. The point is I'm trying to let it go, and snooping through her underwear isn't gonna help! Besides, she said that she doesn't care what we grab, as long as it's comfy. So I don't think you need my expertise to figure that out."

 

I rolled my eyes. "Alright, if you say so- in that case, I'll take Victoria and... Kate, I guess? You can handle Rachel and Max, right?".

 

Taylor shrugged. "Sure. But do you really think we need to bring, like, weapons with us when we leave?"

 

I yawned and stood up. "Honestly? Normally, I'd say that Victoria's just being ridiculous- though after what happened this afternoon... it's better to be safe than sorry, so yeah."

 

She sighed and followed me to the door. "You're probably right. I don't really have anything useful, but I'll figure something out, and meet you back in my room when we're ready to go."

 

After that, we took a detour over to where the vending machines were, to snag some spare trash-bags from underneath a cabinet – one for each set of clothes – then we snuck back into the main hall and split up along the way. First up for me was Kate's room, whereas Taylor continued on towards Max's room instead.

 

Once inside, I closed the door behind me and flicked on the overhead light, immediately frowning at the messy state of the room. If there's one thing I knew about Kate, it's that she prides herself on keeping everything neat and tidy – part of her religious upbringing, no doubt – though looking at it now, you'd think a tornado had swept through the area. I could tell that she'd been feeling down this past weekend ever since the party, and I had a pretty damn good guess as to why, but this was... very concerning.

 

Dirty clothes haphazardly thrown around the room, an unmade bed, a trashcan full of tissues, and a giant piece of cloth draped over the mirror was more than enough to make the alarm bells blare in my head. Poor Kate... for someone who cares so much about others, I really should've put more effort into checking in on her after that horrible fucking video went viral. Surely my own shit could've waited an extra week... I mean, it's not like it would've been going anywhere... Ugh, come on, think happy thoughts- you've got a job to do, Dana. Focus!

 

Shaking my head, I stepped further into the room and headed straight for Kate's wardrobe. There was barely anything inside, which I wasn't all that surprised about considering I'd only ever seen Kate wearing that same old church-y outfit during classes, or those white and green pajamas of hers at night. The latter were easy to find, and I quickly bagged them up, entirely ignoring the multiple identical copies of her usual day-clothes. Religious or not, they were far from the definition of 'comfy'. Honestly, I don't know how Kate puts up with it, I couldn't imagine wearing that same outfit everyday- it looked tight enough to act like a fucking straight-jacket, which... was probably the point, now that I think about it.

 

Unfortunately, there wasn't much else to choose from, and I was just about to concede defeat and pick them out when a flash of yellow caught my eye right at the end of the rack. Moving the mass of empty hangers out of the way so I could get a good look at it, my eyes went wide when I realized what it was. A dress. Wait, no- not just any dress... it was a bright yellow sun-dress, complete with an intricate later of flowers embroidered into it. A classic summer piece that my brain admittedly struggled to imagine Kate wearing, even if I instantly thought it was the kind of thing that suited her perfectly. Perhaps a radical change in outfit could be exactly what she needs to cheer herself up?

 

Okay, fine, who am I kidding... I just really wanted to see what Kate looked like in a dress. And if it's between that or her church clothes, then fuck it- I'm picking the sun-dress, no contest. Besides, it still looked quite modest – by Kate's religious standards, at-least – and if I had to guess at the size, it'd probably flow all the way down to far below her knees, which should mitigate most of the bite from the colder weather. So, here's my plan; Kate can simply wear her pajamas for the rest of the night, and when they all eventually leave the hospital after... whatever-the-fuck they're doing there, she'll have something extra-special to wear during the day, because nobody wants to wander through town in their sleep clothes, after-all.

 

With my mind made up, I retrieved the dress and moved over to the dresser on the left, saying a quick hello to Alice first before searching through the drawers for Kate's underwear. And as soon as I found what I was looking for, I couldn't stop myself from rolling my eyes. Yup, she's definitely religious, alright. A drawer full of plain white underwear, which were borderline granny-panties if you ask me, and similarly simple white full-cupped bras to show the least amount of skin possible. While that probably wasn't Kate's thing anyway, it's still no fun. I'd be depressed too if I had to wear this shit- I wouldn't be surprised if her parents demanded it, even when she's out here at Blackwell on her own. They could've at-least let her wear black or something; don't they know that white is the worst colour possible for hiding what's underneath?!

 

Exasperated, I picked one of each at random since they were exactly the same, along with a pair of socks which were, unsurprisingly, also white. Jeez, I swear I have nothing against Kate being religious, yet there's seriously no reason she has to do that while looking so... boring all the time! I'm really gonna need to stage an intervention soon, aren't I? Sighing to myself, I closed the drawer and made sure Alice was stocked up, just in-case, because I didn't know how long Kate would be gone for. Then I switched off the light and headed next door to Victoria's dorm.

 

I'd never actually been inside the Queen Bee's royal throne room before – on any other day she'd have beheaded me before letting that happen – and I was unable to hold back a disbelieving scoff when the first thing I saw were three life-size portraits of herself on the wall above her bed. Honestly, I'd expected nothing less from a conceited bitch like her. How very... Victoria Chase.

 

Sorry, just because I was helping her doesn't mean I no longer wanted to cut her poisonous fucking tongue out for being such a mean piece of shit. Huffing in frustration, I strode over to her wardrobe. Fifty bucks says her entire closet costs more than the dorm building we're residing in.

 

And it's a good job nobody was there to take that bet, because when I flung back the sliding door, I had to do a double-take. The bet would've been more accurate if I'd said that my pathetic closet collection was more expensive than the entirety of Victoria's wardrobe, because from what I could see, it probably was. The only things hanging inside were the stupid cashmere clothes that everyone at Blackwell universally associates with her- granted, I'd been expecting at-least a dozen of them, though there were just a few separate versions currently hung on the rack.

 

Or to be more specific, there were a total of three cashmere sweaters; one red, one cream, and one white with a flower pattern that I'd never seen her wear before. Accompanying them were the matching floral-embroidered button-up shirts which she always wore underneath; one gold, one grey, and one was plain black that must've been for the outfit she never used. Then there were the faux-leather buttoned mini-skirts in various shades of black and grey which completed her fancy-ass clothes. And I also knew she had a fourth cashmere outfit, the one she'd been wearing to classes today – or rather yesterday now – that if I recall correctly, consisted of; a black sweater, a yellow shirt, and a black mini-skirt.

 

Other than those, the two last remaining items in the closet were presumably Her Highness' sleepwear, which turned out to be a set of exceptionally fine silk pajamas, and an equally luxurious silk robe. Say what you want about her crappy cashmere, but I'll be damned if I wasn't a tiny bit jealous- I'd been perfectly happy with my bland tank top and sleep shorts... until now. I'll admit, I was incredibly tempted to try them on, yet simply touching them made me feel inadequate and unworthy. No wonder Victoria always looked flawless... she probably slept like a freaking baby in this stuff. It was just so, so incredibly smooth...

 

Reluctantly returning my attention to the other contents of Victoria's closet, I went ahead and picked out the white flowery cashmere outfit that she clearly hadn't worn much, if at all, due to the severe lack of interesting alternatives, and tucked them into the second bag- being careful not to do anything that could result in Victoria skinning me alive. Then before I could accidentally drool all over her silk pajamas, I forcibly closed my mouth with an audible click and gently placed them inside too. However, after a moment of indecision, I also reached out to include the silk robe... because maybe I was low-key hoping that Victoria would let me try one of them on later as payment for my assistance. I mean, I've never once asked for anything in return for my help when it comes to Dorm Mother stuff, but... to get a chance at wearing something like that? Well... there's no need for her to know that I'm breaking my own rules for a change, is there?

 

Groaning at my own moral dilemma, I went to shut the wardrobe, though something else caught my eye at the last second- sitting there on the floor of the closet, right at the back, was a sizeable-looking metallic box, which must've been hidden from view behind the lengthy robe that I'd just removed. Now, I wasn't much of a snoop – unlike certain other people in the girls' dorm – nor was I the kind of person who gave a shit about perpetuating the Blackwell rumor-mill, yet there was something inherently suspicious about this box that triggered a curiosity I didn't think I had.

 

So, against my better nature, I crouched down and dragged it out. One thing was certain; whatever was inside, the damn thing was heavy. And also not locked, as far as I could tell, other than a couple of large catches on the front ensuring it stayed shut. Taking a deep breath, I flicked them both upwards, and after another beat to steel myself, I lifted the lid- letting it open all the way. Needless to say, no amount of preparation would've been enough for the ridiculous insanity that was awaiting me...

 

Blinking in confusion at the contents, it took my brain a lot longer than I'm comfortable admitting for me to realize what the fuck I was actually looking at, and I gasped aloud once I did. Since, inside the box was a huge assortment of – if I had to make an educated guess – various different vibrators and dildos... and by that, I mean a freaking shit-load of them, all neatly arranged into dedicated foam molds. This was the kind of thing that even I hadn't yet drummed up the courage to experiment with, despite being eighteen now- the thought of ordering just one of these online was daunting, to say the least, and it's not like Arcadia Bay has a store that sells this stuff... trust me, I've looked. So for Victoria, of all people, to have an entire box full of sex toys, was something I never, ever, fucking expected!

 

I simply sat there for a solid minute in shock, with no idea what I was supposed to do now. I couldn't just close the box and unsee this. Especially not when I spotted a small handle sneakily poking out from one of the foam edges. Oh, fuck it- too late to turn back now, right? Taking great care not to touch the toys, I reached for the handle and tugged; the foam partition easily came away with it, revealing a second compartment underneath...

 

And holy shit, now I definitely couldn't unsee any of this, because the hidden section appeared to hold what I could only describe as kinky shit... or should I say even kinkier shit. Unfortunately, to my utter disgust, I meant that literally... considering there were more than a few buttplugs sitting inside. Okay, that didn't surprise me all that much when she had so many dildos and vibrators, but what really got me was that some of the buttplugs had... um, how do I put this... they had tails attached. That's right, tails! And not only that, there was also two pairs of fluffy-pink handcuffs tucked away, alongside... oh you've got to me kidding me- she has an honest-to-god whip, too? I'm sorry, what the absolute fuck, Victoria Chase?!

 

Nope! I'm out, screw this. Quickly slamming the box shut, I roughly kicked it back inside the closet, closed the door, then spun on my heel and stormed over to her dresser instead, searching for her underwear so that I could GTFO ASAP. And what I stumbled across was only slightly less surprisingly- an entire drawer full of fancy thongs and racy bras, with a stack of socks practically shoved into the corner. Insert eye-roll here. Grabbing a pair of the socks, I ignored the rest and moved to the next drawer down, which thankfully held her more casual bras, alongside matching everyday underwear; though I couldn't help noticing how those had been laid out by colour... to perfectly resemble a rainbow pattern... Y'know, if I wasn't already utterly convinced that Victoria was stuck in the closet like me and Taylor, that would've done the trick for sure. Can she even make it any-more obvious at this point? She's about as subtle as a freaking brick through the window!

 

It took me a moment to pick out an appropriate colour, but I ultimately decided on a set that was icy-blue. It just seemed... fitting, considering one of Victoria's other nicknames around campus is 'The Ice Queen'... and I don't think she's realized yet that means she's being compared to Elsa from the Frozen movie that's coming out in December- otherwise I doubt she'd be taking it as a compliment. Giggling at Victoria's obliviousness, I bagged everything and rushed to leave the room without a backwards glance.

 

Unluckily for me, that meant I ended up bumping straight into Taylor, who'd also chosen that exact moment to exit through the side hallway leading to Rachel's dorm. Fuck! Of-course that'd happen. Alright, Dana- play it cool, and whatever you do next, definitely do not tell her that Victoria is secretly some sort of kinky sex-demon in disguise. That won't end well for anyone, least of all you...

Notes:

So... Dana and Taylor. Who saw that ship coming in this fic? Not me. It was entirely unplanned, but I'm suddenly invested in it. Christenward has officially set sail!

Also, Victoria sure owns a lot of toys, doesn't she? Hmm, I wonder why...

See ya'll next time! :)

Chapter 10: Hospital Horrors; Part 4 - The Exam

Summary:

Taylor makes a mistake; Dana shrugs it off...

Taylor takes a risk; Dana reciprocates in the best way possible...

The two of them eventually arrive at the hospital; the situation is worse than they expected...

They spend the next four hours comforting their classmates as they undergo exams; neither willing to return to Blackwell afterwards...

Notes:

Hey, ya'll! This rollercoast ride ain't over just yet. And I hope you guys lost those pitchforks I told you to buy a while back, because you're probably gonna figure out where this is going now...

Enjoy! :)

(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)

Chapter Text

Chasing Amber (Through Fields & Marshes)

 

Chapter 10: Hospital Horrors; Part 4 - The Exam

 

Taylor Christensen had just finished her assigned task of rooting through Rachel Amber's immaculate dorm in search of an outfit worthy of Victoria Chase's ultimate rival; who unfortunately for her, happened to be the legitimate Queen of Blackwell – otherwise nicknamed the 'Fire Queen' by the rest of the student body – and was now silently creeping through the pitch-black hallways towards her own room, when she quite literally walked face-first into a solid object- a very squishy solid object, in-fact...

 

Stifling the scream that threatened to escape as I rebounded, my hand flew to my thundering chest while I peered through the darkness to see what I'd face-planted into- imagine my horror once I was able to make out the silhouette of Dana standing there in the shadows, which is when I came to the realization that I'd accidentally gotten a face-full of her chest, and I couldn't resist whisper-yelling, "Shit, Dana- you scared the crap out of me!"

 

Dana absent-mindedly rubbed at the spot where I'd managed to headbutt her, and awkwardly cleared her throat. "Uh... sorry, Tay. And how do you think I feel? I'm probably gonna have a bruise in the morning- is your head made of steel or something?"

 

I winced in sympathy. "I'm so sorry! I didn't see you there, and... um- at-least you cushioned the impact for me, I suppose?" then I shook my head and added, "Anyway, did you get everything we need?"

 

She huffed at that. "Lucky you. And yeah, I did. You?"

 

I nodded and padded my way down the hall. "Yup. Max didn't have a whole lot to choose from, nothing but simple t-shirts and a dozen freaking hoodies, big surprise there. I mean, really- how many does she need?!" I snorted to myself and continued, "Well, she did have one cool-ish outfit at-least, and I know they wanted comfortable clothes, but... fuck that. If this is the only time I ever get to pick what the hipster wears, it damn-well isn't going to be yet another hoodie. She'll just have to deal with it."

 

Dana chuckled quietly. "Hmm, I might've done something similar with Kate, so it looks like she's not the only one in need of an intervention; there'll be no boring church clothes for her this time... They're both probably going to hate us, you know. And what was Rachel's closet like- lemme guess, flannel shirts everywhere?"

 

I rolled my eyes at the reminder. "Pretty much. Seriously, she has, like, a million of them- pick a colour and I guarantee you that she has it in flannel. No pajamas as far as I could see, though... so she probably sleeps naked like me."

 

Unless I was imagining it, her breath seemed to hitch then, though I pretended not to notice it. "O-oh... well, that's good to know- I'll be sure to keep it in mind, just in-case I get the idea to do to Rachel what I did to you..."

 

I hummed in response. "Somehow, I get the feeling she wouldn't even care- she'd probably just roll over and go right back to sleep."

 

Dana snorted as we reached the crossroads between our two rooms. "Wouldn't surprise me, that's for sure. So, have you given any thought to what, err... weapon you're gonna bring with you?"

 

I groaned and fished a hand into my pockets, pulling out a set of keys to show her. "The only thing I have is one of those tiny-ass keychain pepper spray things. Fat lot of good it'll do if we run into trouble."

 

She tilted her head in consideration. "I dunno, pepper spray hurts like a bitch. You just have to not hit yourself with it, that's the tricky part."

 

I resisted the urge to roll my eyes again at the blatant sarcasm. "No shit, sherlock. So what do you have in mind then, huh?"

 

Dana smirked and beckoned me to follow. "Come and see for yourself."

 

She lead me into her room and headed towards a set of drawers, puling out the top-most one and reaching towards the back to retrieve something that appeared to be hidden underneath her spare cheerleading outfits.

 

When I saw what she held in her hand, I was unable to stop myself from gasping in surprise. "Is that... a fuckin' tazer?! Where the hell did you get that from?"

 

Dana twirled it around in her palm, showing off. "Oh, just one of the perks of having a journalistic snoop as your best friend. She lets me borrow it when she's not out trying to get leads for her articles."

 

I blinked in confusion. "But why, what could you possible need it for?"

 

She gave me a look that screamed, "Seriously?" before elaborating. "Basically, I've had to resort to taking it with me to cheerleading practice. Because believe it or not, but having a bunch of immature horny jock assholes watching you prance around in a skin-tight outfit isn't always as fun as it sounds. Don't get me wrong, I love it, but it can feel downright disgusting when the entire Bigfoots team is sat there leering at your tits. Ugh, sometimes I really hate having to 'enhance' them just to give a better show- constantly wearing a push-up bra to maintain the illusion of that for them even outside of practice is freaking exhausting. Case-in-point, if you haven't noticed, they're not exactly spilling out of my shirt at the moment."

 

My gaze reflexively flicked straight to her chest, though I quickly glanced away while muttering, "I wasn't sure if I was meant to bring it up, but yeah- I certainly noticed." then I cleared my throat and added, "D, I hope you don't take this the wrong way, when I say that... I definitely prefer them – you, I mean – this way. It suits you much better. And if those assholes can't accept that there's a difference between ordinary Dana and cheerleader Dana, then that's their problem, not yours. You shouldn't feel obligated to 'please' them off the pitch, fuck that. You deserve better."

 

From the way her jaw dropped, I could only assume she'd been genuinely floored by my compliment, which was further proved when she mumbled, "Shit, I... think that's the nicest thing anyone's ever said to me. Thanks, Tay. I'll be sure to take it under advisement- who knows, maybe when classes restart next week I might just keep the natural look. Anyway, the point I was trying to make is that most of those perverted jocks don't know what the word boundary means even if it kicked them in the balls. So if they ever actually try to fuck with me, this bad boy here will give them a reminder that they'll never be able to live down amongst their so-called friends. And in Logan's case, make sure he never has kids again..."

 

I blew out a puff of air in mock disbelief. "Okay, you know what? That settles it. I need to see you practice for myself. If only for the chance to watch you tazing someone in the dick."

 

Dana snorted at that as I brought her back across the hall to my room. "Sure, and get myself expelled immediately afterwards for assaulting another student, of-course, because Wells is... well, he's Wells. Drunk as a skunk and twice as incompetent."

 

I shrugged, undettered. "Meh, it'd still be totally worth it, if you ask me. Just give me a sec to grab my coat, yeah?"

 

She nodded, and I was consciously aware of her watching me as I strolled over to my own closet, reaching in deep before pulling out a thick black winter jacket, complete with a hood and fuzzy wool edges. And like I'd mentioned to her earlier, I knew it'd be warm enough to practically cook me alive, yet it was also incredibly comfortable, so at-least I'd roast in style. That wasn't my favourite thing about it, though...

 

Then I glanced back at Dana and her ridiculously thin layer of clothing, while reaching into the closet once more, as I grumbled, "I'm sorry, there's no way I'm letting you go outside like that. You might be a warm-blooded cheerleader and all, but you'll freeze to death before we reach the hospital- lucky for you, I have a spare coat. Here, take it."

 

After gingerly accepting my offered coat, she hummed appreciatively at the feel of it. "Damn, these are really soft. Where'd you get them? I think I might buy one myself."

 

I anxiously rubbed the back of my neck as I turned around. "Uh... I ordered it online. Look at the design on the inside and you'll see why."

 

Dana raised an eyebrow at that, and opened the coat outwards, holding it up to the light- though I wasn't sure if she knew what she was supposed to be seeing, so I helpfully added, "Yeah... so, I might've splurged a little and bought a coat that shows off the colours of the Bi flag when you wear it inside-out... um- what are you looking at me like that for?"

 

She cleared her throat in a way that made me regret asking. "Because... last I checked, this isn't the Bi flag, Tay."

 

Blinking twice, my eyes went comically wide and I immediately snatched it out of her hands, before thrusting the other one into her arms instead, as I stupidly hissed under my breath, "Oops, wrong one..."

 

I was already starting to withdraw into myself, much like I'd done when I came out to her earlier, and she must've gotten a sneaking suspicion that there was more to it, because she stepped a little closer while speaking softly. "Hey, T- listen to me. If you want me to drop this and pretend it never happened, just say so and I will. But if there's anything else you want to tell me right now, then I'm all ears, 'cause I'm pretty sure I recognized which flag that actually was, so..."

 

Cautiously glancing back up at her, I scratched absent-mindedly at my arm and choked out a whispered, "Yeah, it's... the Non-Binary flag..."

 

Dana nodded slowly. "Ah, that's what I thought. So, does that mean-"

 

I rapidly cut her off with a frustrated huff. "No! Sorry- I mean... look, I don't know, okay?"

 

She held up her hands to placate me. "Relax, Tay. I'm just saying, there must be a reason why you bought it, right?"

 

I frantically raked a hand through my hair. "Honestly? I only got it as a spare because I liked the colours of the flag. I didn't have any idea what it represented at the time. It was only after it arrived that I looked into it and... lets just say I went down a bit of a rabbit hole. And now I've kinda been... questioning... things, ever since the start of the semester. Although, I'm still no closer to figuring it out one way or the other, so please keep this between us, Dana- literally nothing has changed... yet. If it even does, you'll be the first and probably the only one to know about it."

 

Dana mimed the action of zipping her lips and throwing away the key, then pulled on my super-secret Bi coat and let out a heart-stopping moan of pleasure. "You really need to send me a link to the site you bought these from, holy fuck."

 

I couldn't resist bitting my lip then, and growled under my breath, "If you make that noise again you can keep the damn thing..."

 

Any hope I had that she hadn't heard it was shattered by her sharp intake of breath, and for a split-second I thought she was actually going to do exactly that. And maybe perhaps other things. To me. Ugh, get a hold of yourself... now isn't the time to start thinking about her throwing you against the wall, and- oh for fuck sakes, Taylor! Focus, damn it... Help Victoria first, and save your brand-new sexual fantasies for later!

 

However, from the way Dana shook her head like she was trying to clear it of cobwebs, I got the distinct impression that she'd been thinking along the same lines as me. Yet before either of us had the chance to do anything about it, I forced myself to take a slow deep breath, then reluctantly stepped past her- pulling on my own aptly-named Enby coat, while she followed me out of the room and down the brightly-lit stairwell.

 

Needless to say, I was eternally grateful for the coat's stuffiness right now, since the added warmth should've hopefully been enough to mask the intense blush that was no doubt marring my cheeks. And I suddenly realized that I was starting to feel the same kind of torturous butterflies around Dana, as I did when I was usually near Victoria, which could only mean one thing... Yup, I was crushing hard. How the hell was that even possible when we've barely spoken more than two sentences to each other until tonight?!

 

Thankfully, there was no time for us to talk once we stepped out into the cold October air, since we had to focus on sneaking our way past the Blackwell Security curfew patrols. Which on the other hand, unfortunately give me plenty of opportunity to think about my new-found feelings for Dana, and what that truly meant; considering I've had a thing for Victoria for years but never acted on it due to the fear of rejection and public humiliation... yet now I'd missed my chance and been relegated to the friendzone. I didn't want that to happen twice, so what was that latin phrase that Vic loved to say sometimes... Carpe diem? Fuck it, I'm not gonna risk staying quiet again- we just gotta get off-campus first...

 

Unfortunately, the potent combination of worrying about how Dana might react to what I say, mixed with the general unease of trying not to get caught outside during curfew, and especially the ominous warning Victoria had given us to be careful, meant that by the time we'd reached the alleyway between the dorms and the central quad, my anxiety was already spiking through the roof.

 

Which also meant that after we stepped onto the sidewalk that ran parallel to the front of the main building, it was impossible for me to contain the frightened yelp that I emitted, when I was abruptly blinded by a beam of light which swept across me from the left-hand side, as the person holding the flashlight aggressively called out, "Hey, you- freeze!"

 

Before I could even try to process and obey the command, Dana instinctively jumped into action upon hearing my shout of surprise. However, since I was still partially blinded by the light in my eyes, I felt more than saw as she placed herself in-front of me- shielding my body from view while she rapidly advanced towards whoever had ambushed us, and she must've been quick on the draw with her tazer because I could already hear the unmistakable sound of electrodes buzzing in a warning to back off.

 

Not even a second later though, was that followed up by her exclaiming, "Oh, shit!" and the next thing I knew, she'd literally launched herself backwards away from them so hastily, that she ended up landing painfully on one of my feet.

 

As I rushed to blink the residual spots out of my vision, I soon understood why; apparently we were currently being held at gunpoint, and not only that- she'd been a split-second away from pressing her tazer into the chest of what I could only presume was an off-duty cop, judging from the way they were holding the two objects together with such precision like you see in the movies. And my heart instantly warmed at the fact that she didn't even hesitate to protect me, but jeez... talk about a close call.

 

Dana carefully put her hands in the air, making a show of loosely holding the tazer while she did so, and the cop slowly lowered his aim once he saw we weren't a threat, at which point he swore visciously. "Fuck! You girls almost got yourselves shot- what the heck are you doing, creeping around here in the middle of the damn night?"

 

I side-stepped slightly so that I could see over Dana's shoulder, and figured it was best to just tell him the truth. "Sorry! We're, uh... well, some of our classmates and friends are at the hospital right now- not sure why, yet they wanted us to bring them a few things. Like a change of clothes, and that sort of stuff, so... yeah."

 

His expression turned thoughtful, which appeared quite eerie in the shadows of the flashlight. "The hospital, you say- I don't suppose this has anything to do with Max Caulfield, does it?"

 

Dana nodded. "I think so. I mean, Victoria Chase was the one who called me, although Max was in the background, too. How did you know?"

 

The cop shrugged. "Because I just came from there." he sighed and completely holstered his gun, before continuing, "In that case, you best get going. And given the circumstances, I'll pretend you didn't just threaten me with a tazer- provided can put it away somewhere that I can't see it in the next five seconds."

 

Quick as a flash, Dana shoved the tazer into the coat I'd given her – thank god for huge inside pockets – and retreated before he could change his mind, hurriedly dragging me away without saying anything else. Not that it was necessary, since he seemed to be content on keeping his word, and simply turned his back on us to keep doing... whatever it is he was doing out here, while clearly being off-duty.

 

Only when we'd gotten halfway down the sidewalk in the direction of the parking lot where my crappy little car was parked, did I dare to speak up. "So, Dana... I wasn't aware that you'd been appointed as my knight in shining armour..."

 

She simply waved her hand like it was no big deal. "Ah, well... if we'd gotten in a fight back there, you're the one who has the longer-ranged weapon- my tazer is melee-ranged, so it made more sense for me to go first, that's all."

 

From the way she was avoiding my gaze, I knew she was lying, or at-least that wasn't the whole truth. "Uh huh. You protecting me like that with zero hesitation was actually really cute though, so... thanks."

 

Dana bashfully coughed out a, "You're welcome, Sweet-T."

 

My stomach lurched heavily upon hearing her call me by Victoria's nickname, and I couldn't help but sigh. "You know, it's strange how we haven't hung out together until now. We're both in the Vortex Club- sure, you don't take that as seriously as I do, yet we've had plenty of opportunity to chat, and just never have. But talking to you tonight has been like a breath of fresh air; it's weirdly easy to have a real conversation with you."

 

She hummed in agreement. "Yeah, I know what you mean... And I truly wish this didn't have to end so soon, though I know Victoria won't allow you to be spending time with someone like me, instead of her. That's why I hadn't bothered speaking to you much before. I simply didn't see the point in trying, since me and Victoria rarely see eye to eye as it is, and you're basically like her right hand..."

 

I grabbed hold of her arm, gently yanking her to a stand-still so that I had her full attention, and gave her a proper smile. "I don't want it to end either, D- I've very much enjoyed talking to you. And... you said it yourself earlier, that since Victoria considers me to be a friend, it means I'm probably the only one who could survive defying her." then I breathed away my lingering nerves and decided to confess before I lost the chance. "So for once, I'm going to do exactly that, and say it doesn't have to end- screw whatever Vic has to say about it. I think you're cool, and... I- I honestly really like you, okay? There, I said it..."

 

The beat of silence that ensued felt like torture, until she casually raised an eyebrow and asked, "You... like me?"

 

I audibly gulped and nodded, refusing to break eye contact as I confirmed it. "Yes. I do. I like like you. Ugh, that sounds so childish-"

 

Dana's eyes widened and she abruptly cut me off. "No it doesn't. Because I like like you, too. I know, it's crazy how this has sprung up so fast out of no-where, but... I can't deny the truth now that you've admitted it first..."

 

It took me far too long to pick my jaw up off the floor as I sputtered, "Woah, wait... what- seriously? You're not joking, are you?"

 

She took a single step towards me, closing the distance between us, and that was the moment when I knew she definitely wasn't joking- which was confirmed by her saying something that completely stole my breath away. "Tay, let me put it this way; I'm being so serious right now, that if you asked me to kiss you... I would."

 

Well, I'd be lying out of my ass if I said that I wasn't screaming internally after that, and when her gaze dropped down to my lips, I could tell she absolutely meant what she'd said. We were so close now that it'd be so easy for me to lean in and do it myself. And damn it, I really wanted to, but... shit, not like this. Not here, where people could see us... ugh!

 

The hesitance must've been written all over my face, because when I nervously glanced around us, she paused as her own doubt started creeping in. "Crap. Sorry, I'm not normally this forward- I came on too strong, didn't I? If you don't want to, we don't-"

 

I silenced her with a throaty whine. "I do. Fuck, I do. It's just... people could see us here, and... and..."

 

Dana exhaled slowly. "Oh. Right- yeah, I understand. Um... how about your car?"

 

I dumbly blinked at her in confusion. "Huh- what about it?"

 

She slyly raised her eyebrows. "Well, have you ever made out in one before?"

 

I almost swallowed my tongue hearing that, and I squeaked out a hight-pitched, "N-no..."

 

Dana gave me a devious smirk then that made me shudder in anticipation. "Neither have I- though there's always a first time for everything... So, what do you say?"

 

I simply had to look at the expression on her face, and I was already one-hundred percent on-board. Dana's eagerness was down-right infectious... To the point where I responded to her proposition by wrapping a hand around her forearm, and quickly tugging her all the way to the parking lot- much to her amusement.

 

When we got there, after much frantic fumbling with my keys, not to mention several giggling fits later, I finally managed to unlock the damn door and sat in the driver's seat. Expecting to see Dana already waiting on the other side of the car, I turned towards the passenger door, only to realize that she was still standing next to mine with a mischevious glint in her eyes. And the next thing I knew, she was leaning across me – no, scratch that, she was literally crawing across me – and the purposely drawn-out contact made it impossible for me to breath, while I waited for her to cross over the central console. However, she stopped short of doing that, then surprised me by suddenly shifting around until she was sitting securely in my lap. Jeez... I totally should've seen that coming!

 

Dana grinned down at me, and tilted her head towards the open door. "Hey- fancy seeing you here. So, um... I want to make it clear that this is your last chance to back out. As soon as you close that door, you've sealed your fate..."

 

Despite my back being pressed against the seat, her face was still inches away from mine, and I audibly gulped in response, as my eyes flicked towards the door. I was absolutely unprepared for this level of intimacy- it was way outside my comfort zone, though honestly... I couldn't have said no to this even if I wanted to. Not with her straddling me like that. Any resistance I might've had, it vanished the instant I looked into her eyes and saw nothing short of pure adoration, causing my stomach to do a series of aggressive backflips in response.

 

It wasn't until the door clicked shut that I was even aware of my arm moving- locking us both inside and sealing not just my fate, but hers too, as she breathlessly whispered in my ear, "Very good. You made the right choice, Sweet-T..."

 

Not one to be outdone when it came to a little teasing, I found my voice long enough to fire back. "Is that so? Because you're the one who's actually trapped in here with me."

 

Dana snorted at my fake threat. "Oh, I wouldn't have it any other way... You're not as scary as you think you are, Taylor Christensen- now shut up and kiss me already."

 

I took a moment to calm my beating heart, then leaned forward before either of us could chicken out.

 

As soon as my lips pressed lightly against hers, she let out a gasp that had me self-consciously pulling away, and she huffed impatiently. "Is that all I get?"

 

I bit my lip, the feeling of hers already imprinted on my mind, as I mumbled, "Are you... are you sure you want to do this?"

 

Dana rolled her eyes. "Of-course I am. In-case you haven't noticed, I'm sitting in your freaking lap right now. I don't think I can make this any clearer, Tay. What do you need me to do to prove that I really want this?"

 

I was already itching to kiss her again when I blurted the first thing that came to mind. "I want you to kiss me. Properly. Like you mean- mmph!"

 

She didn't even give me a chance to finish before diving down and capturing my lips with a ferocity that I never would've expected from someone as kind-hearted as Dana. The heat that poured through basically turned my brain into mush, and all I could do was follow her lead. I was entirely at her mercy, as she deepened the kiss even further, her tongue probing the inside of my mouth. Holy shit, I thought she'd been exaggerating back on the street when she suggested we make out in the car. Apparently not... and I was definitely okay with it. As the seconds ticked by, I was losing myself more and more to the intensity of her roaming tongue, then she suddenly scraped her teeth across my bottom lip, and... fuck! That alone was enough to make the last of my inhibitions drop away, as I practically melted into her- my hands quickly found purchase on her hips, while my own tongue started dancing wildly with hers. And we continued like that until we both became so light-headed, that we were reluctantly forced to break apart for some much-needed air.

 

As soon as I had enough oxygen in my lungs, I couldn't stop myself from exclaiming, "Wow, just... wow. That was amazing!"

 

Dana's face turned bright-red, and I could only imagine how flushed mine was, as she stumbled over her words. "Y-yeah, it was. I- um... damn, Taylor. I don't know what to say-" she licked her lips before adding, "It's not often that something makes me legit speechless."

 

I burst out laughing, feeling way too giddy. "Hah- In that case, I'll take it as a compliment!"

 

She blew out a puff of air, then glanced down for some reason- making me realize that my hands were still idly stroking at her sides, and if I wasn't blushing before, I sure was now when she mumbled, "Right... if you don't let go, I'm gonna kiss you again. And then we'll be so late to the hospital that Victoria will decide to chop off both our heads."

 

That was enough to bring me back to reality, reminding me of the reason why we were here in the first place, although it did nothing to stop the disappointed pout once I removed my hands. "Unfortunately, you make a good point." I gestured to the passenger seat and continued, "So you better get your perfect ass over there before I change my mind- try not to scuff the leather, please."

 

Dana snorted, and surprised me by dipping her head for one more fleeting kiss, then turned to crawl her way across the central console, shaking her butt in my face like a taunt. "My perfect ass, huh?"

 

When she threw a teasing wink at me over her shoulder, the temptation to slap said perfect ass became irresistible- the resounding crack and shriek that she emitted was deafening in the silent night, as she tumbled roughly into the passenger seat. After managing to right herself, she turned around in shocked disbelief, and the open-mouthed death-stare that I received as I stuck my tongue out at her was priceless.

 

Dana narrowed her eyes into slits while I pretended to be oblivious and focused on started the car. "Bitch, you're gonna pay for that."

 

I shrugged and shot her a wink of my own. "I'm looking forward to it."

 

Carefully pulling out of the parking lot, Dana continued glaring daggers into the side of my head, as she let loose a breathy growl that promised retribution and made everything totally worth it.

 

As a compromise, I let her pick the music, then I relaxed into the seat and rested my arm on the central console; the euphoria of what we'd just done finally sinking in. And while I was in the middle of absent-mindedly tapping away to the beats, Dana surprised me once more, this time by hesitantly placing her hand on top of mine. Yet when I looked at her in confusion, I noticed that she was refusing to make eye contact with me.

 

Glancing down at where our hands were touching, I mentally facepalmed when I realized what she was trying to do. Rather than make a big deal about it and call her out for suddenly being so nervous, I simply rotated my hand palm-up so that our fingers could intertwine. And the shy smile that I got in return when she eventually dared to pull her gaze away from the window... well, it was enough to make my heart utterly melt all over again. Needless to say, I ended up driving one-handed until we reached the hospital.

 

Only when we found a spot in the hospital's parking lot did I reluctantly let go, and Dana groaned. "As soon as we get out of your car, we have to pretend nothing happened, don't we?"

 

I nodded sadly, wishing we didn't. "We're both still in the closet, Dana. I don't know if I'll ever have the courage to come out in public, after... everything that happened with my Dad. That doesn't mean I didn't enjoy the hell out of what we did, and I'd be down for doing it again if you wanted to, just... you know, in private."

 

Upon hearing the last bit, her face lit up at the prospect of still being able to kiss me again, then she gave a resigned sigh. "Y-yeah... I- I'd like that, Tay. But can we at-least be friends in public? I don't want to act like you don't exist anymore, it sucks..."

 

Judging by her reaction, she must've been expected me to go back on my word, so I shot her a determined grin. "Me neither. I meant what I said earlier- regardless of whatever Vic might think about it, I'd love to be friends. You really are cool to hang out with... And besides, the fact that we're both Bi bitches stuck in the closet means we now have something in common to bond over."

 

She barked out a laugh at that, as the remaining tension bled from her shoulders. Then she furtively inspected the surrounding darkness before leaning back across the central console to plant a sneaky kiss on my cheek. God damn, closeted or not, I could really get used to her doing that everytime she sees me. Fuck- I'm already so in love with her, aren't I?

 

While I sat there and stupidly touched my tingling cheek, Dana snickered and jumped out of the car, jogging around to the other side so she could open my door for me like some kind of reverse-chauffeur.

 

I giggled and stepped out as she shut the door behind me. "Well aren't you a perfect gentle-woman?"

 

She rolled her eyes. "Shush, you. As Rachel would say, I'm in a hella good mood right now. Hurry up and lets get inside before the freezing cold ruins it."

 

Considering she wasn't the only one of us in a 'hella good mood', I had no intention of staying outside, either. So I locked the car, and lead her into the warmth of the hospital- heading straight towards the front reception desk.

 

Following a terse conversation with the female receptionist, who we had to tell multiple times that we were here at the request of our friends to bring them clothes, she eventually pointed us towards the elevator. Though not without grumbling under her breath about so many visiting hour violations being ignored as we left the lobby.

 

After we got into the elevator, I pressed the button to take us up to the ninth floor. While we waited, Dana bumped my hip, as she casually rested her head on my shoulder, and I started squealing on the inside. Oh my gosh, it was so freaking cute! But then the elevator doors opened, and the moment was ruined...

 

We had to walk through a never-ending maze of hallways before we found what we were looking for- Room 903. However, when we knocked on the door and got no answer, we took a peek inside... only to be greeted by an unoccupied room.

 

Dana frowned in confusion. "What the hell- did that jerk receptionist give us the wrong room number on purpose or something? I get that it's, like... half past three in the morning and way past visiting hours, but still, why even bother allowing us come up then?"

 

I shrugged, about to suggest we go back down to give the bitch a piece of our minds – and not as an excuse to have more time alone with Dana, nope – when I spotted someone come around the corner that I never expected to see outside of Blackwell, nevermind at the freaking hospital at this time of night. David Madsen; Blackwell's Head of Security, stomped towards us like he owned the place, and without Victoria here to curse him out, I found myself shrinking under his watchful gaze.

 

Which Dana must've noticed, because she once more placed herself between us- protectively shielding me from yet another potential threat... And I suddenly really wanted to kiss her until I was blue in the face again, onlookers be damned. Ugh! Is this how Dana is with everyone, or is it just me?

 

David maintained his distance and impatiently crossed his arms. "Your classmates were moved to a different room right after Miss Chase called you. They're back this way- come with me."

 

Dana and I glanced at each other for a moment before complying, while she tersely replied, "Madsen. What are you doing here? What's going on?"

 

He scowled at us over his shoulder. "My job, Miss Ward. Sort of. As for your other question, that's not for me to say- you'll find out in a minute."

 

Since we obviously weren't getting any answers from him, we opted to follow in silence as he led us down a few more hallways, until we came to a halt outside a room that didn't seem to have a number as far as I could see. Ever the conversationalist, David nodded sharply towards the door, signalling that we were cleared go inside, while he appeared to take up position beside the entrance like he was guarding it or something- what from, I had no clue.

 

Taking a deep breath and steeling myself for whatever was on the other side, I shoved open the door. And was thoroughly concerned by the mass of curtains that were drawn shut, partitioning several sections throughout the room so that we couldn't see anything. Whatever the fuck had happened to them, this certainly didn't bode well at all...

 

Dana cleared her throat and called out, "Uh... hello, guys? The Dorm Mother and her sweet sidekick have arrived with the supplies that you requested."

 

Victoria's angry huff could be heard all the way from the other side of the curtains at the back of the room. "Ugh, it's about damn time!"

 

She was swiftly rebuked by Max's voice floating out from behind the central curtains. "Don't be such a grumpy-cat, Vicky. You woke them up in the middle of the night, remember? I can only imagine the nuclear meltdown you would've had if the situation was reversed."

 

I was fully expecting Vic to respond with something scathing, yet to my surprise she simply grumbled and stayed quiet instead. How odd...

 

The curtains closest to us were pulled back slightly, and someone that definitely wasn't Kate poked their head out – a nurse, if I had to guess – as they pointed off towards the corner of the room. "You can put their clothes over there for later. And then I'm afraid you'll have to leave."

 

I scoffed while we deposited our bags on the floor, finally managing to find my spine again. "Oh, hell no- I'm not going anywhere. Not until someone tells us what's going on here. Vic, talk to me. Please?"

 

The heavy sigh that she released made me wish I'd never opened my mouth. "We... were drugged, Tay."

 

Dana and I traded concerned glances, as she asked, "All of you?"

 

Victoria parroted her words. "Yes, all of us. Maxine, Kate, me- even Rachel..."

 

I frowned at that. "How- when? With what?"

 

Max answered for her. "Well, it seems we all tested positive for GHB. As for how... we're not sure- we have no, um... memory of what might've happened to us. The fact its still in our systems means it was recent, though. And we're 99% certain that Kate was roofied with it at the last Vortex Party, so..."

 

Dana gasped. "Oh, shit... the video... Victoria Chase you stupid heartless bitch! I told you, I fucking told you that-"

 

Even at this distance, I heard Victoria sniffle as she cut her off and hissed through gritted teeth. "Damn it, I know- okay? I know!"

 

Meanwhile, my heart felt like it was constricting inside my chest. That freaking video... Victoria might've taken it, but I was standing there right next to her... I could've stopped it and didn't.

 

My eyes latched onto the nearby curtains where Kate hadn't said a single word so far, and I was unable to stop myself from whispering, I'm so sorry, Kate. I... I-"

 

Her voice came out sounding small. "It's not your fault, Taylor."

 

I growled bitterly, swiping at the tear that threatened to fall. "Yes it is! I knew you weren't like that- I could tell something was off about how you were acting that night. I should've tried to help you, not... not point and laugh like everyone else."

 

Dana nodded at that. "And I'm sorry, too. You only went to that damn party because I encouraged you to. I practically fucking begged you to come- that made you my responsibility, and I didn't even bother to keep an eye on you. I was too busy dancing away my own problems in the VIP section to realize anything was wrong until the morning, when I saw the video being spammed all over my NodFace page..."

 

Kate sighed. "Look, the simple fact that you show remorse... means I forgive you. Both of you. Please just drop it- I've already gone through this with Victoria, and I'm too tired to do it again."

 

Another woman's voice yawned out from the other side of the curtained area where Max was. "Ditto, darlin'.

 

Max groaned. "I told you to go home, Joyce. Y-you really don't need to be here... I'll be fine."

 

Joyce scoffed in determination. "Not a chance in hell, Max Caulfield. Since your parents aren't here, I'm the next best thing. So I don't care how tough you say you are- I ain't leaving your side or letting go of your darn hand until this is done, you hear me?"

 

I gulped, not sure I wanted to know what was going on, as I asked, "Until what is done?"

 

The tense silence that followed made my palms sweat, and eventually it was Kate that quietly answered. "You guys saw the things I did in that video at the party... but I remember none of it. As far as I know, something even worse might've happened to me afterwards. The only thing we've been able to piece together is that, uh- when we woke up the next morning... we were all dumped in the same place. So anything could've been done to me – to them – during the night, we simply don't know, which is why we... we-"

 

The nurse that she was with was at-least kind enough to finish for her. "As a precaution, they all agreed to undergo an examination for sexual assault, just to be sure. We only got started with the kit, what... twenty minutes ago- so depending on how much they're comfortable with us doing, we may be here for quite some time."

 

I wasn't aware of Dana clutching my arm until her grip hardened and she swore aloud. "Shit- I really hoped it wasn't going to be that..." then she shuddered and continued, "Let me get this straight. Four Blackwell Academy students get drugged – one of them happening at our own fucking party, no less – and wake up in the same spot- do you think some sick fuck is specifically targetting students on campus?"

 

Max scoffed visciously, the abrupt vehemence startling both of us, as she spat. "I don't think, Dana. I know. I mean- it... uh, seems pretty damn obvious to me..."

 

Joyce sighed. "Right, well... if you two girls still insist on staying for this, then the least you could do is make yourselves useful. I'm just one woman, I can't hold three people's hands at once."

 

Victoria snorted. "If Dana so much as puts one pretty little finger past this curtain, I'll break it."

 

She glanced at me and rolled her eyes, before nodding towards where Victoria was and I audibly gulped, getting the message. "Don't worry, V- Dana's gonna hold Kate's hand instead, and I'll hold yours."

 

Then I took a deep breath and stepped across the room, tentatively snaking my hand through a gap in the curtains as she muttered, "Thanks, Sweet-T. I'm... glad you're here..."

 

I dared to squeeze her hand in response. "Vic, you were there for me and my Mom when I needed you, so... what kind of friend would I be if I wasn't here for you now?"

 

Victoria lightly brushed ger thumb across the back of my hand and I had to dig my fingernails into my free palm to stop myself from thinking it meant more than it did. "How is your Mom doing, by the way?"

 

I shrugged, not that she could see it. "Better after the back surgery, I think. We won't know for certain until she's finished recovering, though."

 

She hummed at that. "I'm sure that she'll pull through. She's a tough bitch- just like you."

 

I couldn't resist laughing at the absurdity, trying to keep her distracted from whatever was happening on the other side of the curtain. "Well, she had to be after my dad fucking ditched us. But me? Ha! You've seen how bad my nightly anxiety attacks can get, like- there's nothing tough about that..."

 

Her voice came out softer than I've ever heard it. "The simple fact that you have to deal with that bullshit every night and struggle to get maybe only a few hours of sleep, if you're lucky- yet still manage to put on a brave face in the morning and go along with my shit... says otherwise, Sweet-T."

 

Ah, there's the kind and caring part of Victoria which she rarely lets slip out; the real side of her that she only allows me to see... and is the reason why I ended up falling for her in the first place. Now it's the version of her I'll have to settle for just being friends with, but so be it. Victoria needs a friend by her side- she needs me. I can do this...

 

Then Dana cleared her throat on the other side of the room. "Oh, I almost forgot... why isn't Rachel in here with you guys- I assume she's being examined too, right?"

 

I heard Max suck in a breath. "Yes. Except on the way here to get tested for GHB, we ran into some... trouble. Rachel ended up being shot in the shoulder and needed to have the bullet removed first. I believe she got out of immediate surgery around 2am, yet they wanted to keep her sedated a little longer to recover, and we weren't allowed to visit until she woke up properly. Though before that could happen, we got her – and our – test results back, and then we decided to dive straight into doing this exam, while she has hers done separately from us, so... we haven't had a chance to see her since we brought her in."

 

My eyes went wide. "Woah, back up- Rachel got shot?!"

 

Victoria groaned. "It's a long story, Tay. And not one we're interested in re-telling at the moment. Suffice to say, now you know why I wanted you to take weapons with you when you left campus..."

 

Dana huffed. "I'm pretty sure we have plenty of time to hear the story, but fine- in that case, is Rachel having to go through this on her own? I mean, you guys have us to hold your hands- who does she have?"

 

Joyce answered that. "I... might've put in a call to her mother- her real one, anyway. She tracked me down a couple of years ago without Rachel knowing, and insisted on giving me her number- with strict instructions only to call her if it's an actual emergency, since she still didn't trust herself to be around Rachel, despite being clean for over a year." she snorted and continued, "Unfortunately for Sera's stubborn ass, her daughter being shot definitely counted as an emergency... and apparently, she's been living on the outskirts of Arcadia Bay for the last few months. According to David, she arrived shortly before you two did, so I'm giving her fifty-fifty odds on whether Rachel is glad to finally see her again, or furious with her for not bothering to contact her even once when she's been practically camping right in our damn backyard."

 

Max chuckled to herself. "Considering that Rachel hasn't tried to burn down the hospital in a fit of rage yet, my money's on the former."

 

I raised an eyebrow at that oddly specific sentence, though rather than comment on it, I asked, "What are you guys planning to do when this is done? Go back to Blackwell?"

 

Kate interrupted me with a surprising, "Hell no." then she sheepishly cleared her throat. "Um... after everything that's happened in the last twelve hours, there's no way I'd feel safe sleeping in the dorms."

 

Victoria grunted in agreement. "You can say that again. It's way too dangerous, and Blackwell Security is an absolute joke."

 

The nurse examining Kate offered a solution. "We have plenty of space on this floor of the hospital, since it's strictly reserved for VIP patients – such as Rachel – so you girls are welcome to stay together in one of the empty rooms here, while you wait for the results of these exams to be processed. Unfortunately, we don't have any multi-capacity wards on this level, so the best we can give you is a family unit with three separate beds, if you want it."

 

Max hummed in consideration. "Sure, thank you. Although, since Rachel will need a bed, that means one of us would be sleeping on the floor- oh well, at-least it's better than the alternative, I suppose... we'll figure it out."

 

At this point, we settled into an awkward rhythm of small-talk as the minutes ticked by at an agonizingly slow pace. However, the longer we remained in the room, the more agitated and deadly Victoria's verbal tongue-lashings became, as the exams gradually got increasingly invasive- eventually point-blank threatening to stab her poor nurse's eyes out with a pair of scissors that she was using. And despite all three of them being constantly re-assured that they could stop the exams whenever they needed to, none of them did. Not even Kate, who must've been defiantly holding strong – figuratively and literally – because the look on Dana's face told me that her hand was being squeezed like it'd been trapped inside a vice for eternity.

 

Thankfully though, after several anxious pee-breaks on my behalf, and over four hours later, the examinations finally came to an end... without Victoria actually going on a murdering spree. The kits were quickly sealed and taken away by the nurses- Joyce slipping out of the room with them, while Dana and I passed around the bags of clothes that we'd brought so everyone could get dressed. Luckily, nobody bothered to complain about the things we'd selected... well, except for Kate who let out a displeased groan when she saw whatever was waiting for her.

 

One by one, they stepped out from behind the curtains, relieved to be wearing their pajamas – though all of them looked like they'd been thrown into a never-ending wood-chipper – and Max gave us a strained smile. "Thanks for helping, both of you. it means a lot. I think we're gonna go find Rachel now, and then we'll probably crash immediately afterwards. But if you want to join us instead of going back to Blackwell, I wouldn't say no. And honestly, I'd prefer it if you did- there's safety in numbers, y'know?"

 

Dana and I traded glances again, having another conversation with just our eyes, until she shrugged. "Alright, we'll tag along. I can't say I was excited about returning to the dorms anyway, knowing what happened to you guys."

 

I nodded in agreement. "Yeah, me neither... Come on, lets get out of here already- I desperately need to stretch my legs..."

Notes:

Ugh, I struggled quite a bit with writing the second half of this chapter, for... obvious reasons. Originally I planned for this chapter to be from one of the other girls' POVs, because I wanted to focus a little more on the exams themselves but... well, I just wasn't comfortable writing what was happening to them. It was easier to simply allude to it instead. And I'm having a lot of trouble with the next chapter too - the final part of this mini-arc which is certainly not 'mini' anymore lol - since I kinda wrote myself into a corner time-wise regarding how much fluff I wanted to add vs the stuff that needed to be included for the plot, which means it may or may not be a super-long chapter unless I save the former for another day- either way, I refuse to turn what was supposed to be just a four-parter into a six-parter, damn it.

I'll see ya'll in the finale of the Hospital Horrors arc! :)

Chapter 11: Hospital Horrors; Part 4.5 - The Calm

Summary:

Due to a lack of bedspace, the six girls must pair up for the night. Rachel gets too close for Max's comfort.

During a bathroom break, Max catches Dana and Taylor in a compromising position. Max struggles with Rachel's touchy-feely nature.

Max is woken up from a nightmare in the most unexpected way, and she attempts to beat Rachel at her own game. Things get way out of control.

Kate reveals to the group that she can become quite sinful when forced to drink coffee instead of tea. She needs to eat a Snickers.

Notes:

Hey, ya'll! What's this- Part 4.5? No, no, you must be mistaken. I totally didn't find a way to cheat at my own rule of not going beyond five parts for this story arc. Nope, absolutely not!

This fluffy-esque chapter is the calm before the storm. Fair warning, it's also... kinda steamy? Well, not really, but it's more than I usually write. And I may or may not have needed a cold shower afterwards, so...

Enjoy! :)

(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)

Chapter Text

Chasing Amber (Through Fields & Marshes)

 

Chapter 11: Hospital Horrors; Part 4.5 - The Calm

 

Max Caulfield was in the process of blindly wandering around the ninth floor of the hospital, along with her entourage consisting of over half the Blackwell Dormitory's girls floor, while being flanked by the Academy's Head of Security, David Madsen- eventually discovering the new so-called family unit that they'd been given permission to use. Why the door marked Room 900 was literally as far away from the elevator as it could possibly get – when it was supposed to be the first room listed on the floor's directory – made no sense... yet at-least it meant that anyone visiting this level would have to get past an entire contingent of hospital security staff first, thanks to David's insistence, so the girls would be well-aware of any potential threat long before it ever reached their room. Not that it mattered when one of them could rewind time, but it's not like Dana and Taylor knew that, nor did they understand why all the guards were neccessary. Though with this timeline clearly taking a darker turn, Max was ironically running out of time to come clean about the truth...

 

Upon spotting Joyce standing at the room's entrance, next to another blonde-haired woman that was having an awkward conversation with Rachel – clearly her bio-Mom, since they pretty much appeared to be mirror reflections of each other – I groaned under my breath and approached with my arms firmly crossed. At this point, Joyce was looking like the textbook definition of 'dead on her feet', so I fully intended to tell the stubbornly over-protective waitress to go home once and for all.

 

However, before I could get a single word in, Rachel must've already heard us coming because she abruptly spun around and launched herself in our direction without so much as a warning- engulfing me into a snugly-warm hug, that I suspect had more to do with her fire powers than anything else. Somehow, she'd managed to keep her emotions contained enough to not set off the hospital's sprinkler system... which was down-right impressive, considering she'd no doubt just endured the same ordeal that we did.

 

Despite my lungs being crushed, I relaxed into her hold and asked, "How are you feeling?"

 

She sighed into my neck. "Hella better, now that you're here. Ugh, I didn't realize it was possible to miss someone who you barely know this much..."

 

Great, now my ears were burning... and it definitely had nothing to do with the excess heat pouring off her body. Which was barely being covered by the thin hospital gown she was wearing. And when I noticed that, I quickly pulled away in embarrassment.

 

Rachel huffed at the loss of contact, then glanced at everyone else loitering in the hallway. "Huh- what are Dana and Taylor doing here?"

 

The former gestured at what I was wearing and rolled her eyes. "We brought you all clothes. Taylor wasn't able to find any pajamas in your closet, though. Sorry."

 

She casually shrugged. "Thats 'cause I don't use 'em."

 

Taylor snorted and nudged Dana. "See? I told you so."

 

The woman that was the spitting image of Rachel cleared her throat, startling Rachel. "Oh! Right. Uh... everyone, this is... my bio-Mom, Sera. Mom, meet my annoying classmates."

 

Victoria scoffed. "Hey! Speak for yourself, bitch."

 

Rachel grumbled in annoyance. "And just like that, there goes the peace and quiet..."

 

Sera nodded at each of us, then tilted her head at Dana. "I recognize you... weren't you in that Blackwell production of the Tempest with Rachel a few years ago? From what little I was able to watch, I seem to remember you guys doing a damn-good job at it, too."

 

Dana bushed heavily from Sera's unexpected praise, and bowed dramatically in response. "That's right, thank you. It was one of the most successful plays Blackwell has done- nothing's come close since. Then again, that's probably because Rachel was the best of us, so when she gave up on her theatrical ambitions not long after we'd performed the Tempest... it all went down-hill from there."

 

Rachel threw a viscious smirk at Victoria, as she snickered, "Well, it's not my fault that my understudy wasn't as good of an actress as she claimed to be. Too bad you didn't have what it took to replace me after-all, huh Vicky?"

 

Oh man, if looks could kill... I'm not surprised that Rachel and Victoria hate each other's guts, but it seemed like this Tempest thing was a real sore spot- whatever happened between them back then obviously hadn't been forgotten or forgiven by either side.

 

Before they could start tearing each other's faces off, Sera intervened. "Ahem. Rachel, are you sure you don't want me to stay with you? Just say the word, and I'll set up right here in the hall if I have to- believe me, I've slept in worse places than this."

 

Rachel grimaced and shook her head. "Yeah, I'm sure." then she hesitated and added, "But... I don't want you to disappear on me. Please, not again. I don't care how clean you are... I deserve the chance to get to know my real mother- and I need you in my life, now more than ever."

 

Sera opened her mouth to argue, until she saw the glare Joyce was giving her, and she let out a ragged sigh. "Look, Rachel- I can't promise that I'll be in a good-enough headspace to risk seeing you face-to-face all the time... though I will try to stay in contact by phone. Joyce can give you my number. Call me whenever you're willing to chat."

 

She audibly gulped, before looking Sera straight in the eyes. "You had better actually answer that first call. Because if you don't, I will stop at nothing to track you down and make sure you haven't ghosted me again. And we both know what happened the last time I got that desperate to find you."

 

Sera flinched and stumbled backwards like she'd been physically slapped in the face, as Rachel jabbed at a barely-visible scar running along her upper arm to get the point across. "I will- I swear to you, I will."

 

Then she nodded at Joyce, turned on her heel, and swiftly walked away down the hall- yet it wasn't fast enough to stop us from hearing the sob that wrenched out of her.

 

Joyce frowned. "Was that really neccessary? At-least she's trying."

 

Rachel blew a stand of hair out of her face. "Is she? Because she hardly said a word while I was having my fucking exam done- hell, she said more to everyone else just now than she did to me in the last four hours combined!"

 

She rolled her eyes at that. "I don't think either of you would've wanted to have the 'hey I'm your birth mother, lets get to know each other properly' conversation that way. And honestly, the simple fact that she came after I called her – when she could've chosen to ignore me – proves she never stopped caring about you, darlin'. You can't rush these things, no matter how much you might want to."

 

Rachel gestured for the rest of us to follow her as she wandered into the family-room, and snorted under her breath. "Yeah? Watch me."

 

I let myself be the last person through the door so that I could turn around and give Joyce a determined stare. "Don't you even think about trying to stay here while we sleep. You need to rest too, Joyce. Go. Home. Once our test results are done, then if you want to, you can come back- but not before. Or I swear to dog, I'll call hospital security and have them drag you out. Do I make myself clear?"

 

Her face remained impassive for all of three seconds before it cracked. "You want me to go h-home, without David?" she frantically shook her head. "I can't- please, I can't go home t-to an empty house..."

 

I inahled sharply, fighting back the urge to cry all over again. "Of-course not-" I pinned her husband with my steely gaze next, and continued, "David, you're temporarily relieved of duty. Take her home. I'll let you know when I need your help again."

 

He nodded and took Joyce's arm, though not before asking, "Who's going to protect you girls while we're gone?"

 

I shrugged and lowered my voice. "Hospital security, duh. And failing that, my powers are back to normal now. If anyone comes through that door, they're gonna hella regret it."

 

Damn it, Rachel's vocabulary was already rubbing off on me- and as the two of them started to walk away, I called out on impulse. "Oh, and Joyce? I- I want to visit Chloe tomorrow. Could you please let someone know I have your permission- um... I do have it, right?"

 

Joyce choked slightly, then sighed. "I can't believe you even needed to ask that. I'd never stop you, Max. However, the hospital might- only f-family members are allowed inside the... the morgue, yet I'll see what I can do about getting access for you. And Rachel too, since she was also Chloe's girlfriend."

 

As they rounded the corner out of sight, I clenched my fists- because while Chloe may not have been related to me by blood, she was still my childhood best friend... my soulmate. And as far as I was concerned, we were sisters in all but name. So I'd like to see them try to fucking stop me; I'll tear this entire building to the ground if it meant seeing Chloe one last time...

 

Shaking my head clear, I closed the door- only to find everyone awkwardly standing around in the middle of the room, staring at me. "Uh... what's wrong?"

 

Kate tiredly waved a hand at the bed layout; which as expected, there was just three of them- all placed against a separate wall, with their bottom ends protruding into the central space towards each other, or in the case of the bed directly opposite, pointing at the door right behind me. "Nothing, we just figured we'd wait for you before deciding who gets to claim the beds."

 

Rachel shuffled over to the bed on the left side of the room. "As the person who's injured, I'm calling dibs on this. You guys can fight for the other two."

 

It took me a moment to understand why she'd picked that one, until I realized that the door swings open to the right, and the first thing anyone entering would see is her, meaning she had an unobstructed line of sight to strategically launch a fireball into their faces if it was needed. A sound tactical decision, which I would've made myself to ensure everyone else's protection, if she hadn't beaten me to it first. And there's no way in hell I was sleeping on the floor after... well, everything- so my next best option to do that was the bed straight across from the doorway.

 

Striding past the others, I sat on the middle bed with a yawn. "If I wasn't going to be allowed a bed, I doubt you'd have bothered waiting for me."

 

Dana snorted, then pounced on the remaining bed to the right before anyone else could. "Sorry, classes might be cancelled for the week but I've still got cheer practice tomorrow..."

 

Victoria glared around the room. "If you think I'm sleeping on this grimy fucking floor, you're all delusional."

 

Rachel grinned. "We could always share- there are three beds and six of us. There's enough space to double up."

 

Victoria glowered at her. "I'd rather throw myself out that window than sleep with you, Amber. Same with Max and Dana. So... one of you will simply have to move."

 

Kate rolled her eyes and stepped forward, seemingly taking charge. "Max-" she hesitated for a second before letting out an imperceptible sigh, "You should share with Rachel. And since Victoria is being so rude, I'll take your bed instead. If she really doesn't want to sleep next to Dana, then Taylor can... and she'll either have to settle for me, or the floor."

 

I'm pretty sure that was the last thing Kate really wanted- I was probably the only one here she trusted enough to share a bed with... though the determined glint in her eye stopped me from trying to change her mind, so I reluctantly accepted her plan and climbed off the bed to switch places.

 

As I moved towards Rachel, I spotted an odd flash of panic on Taylor's face out of the corner of my eye, until Dana gave her a single nod and patted the spot beside her- effectively making Victoria's choice for her.

 

Realizing this, she narrowed her eyes at Dana, and gulped at the smirk she got in return. "Don't be such a baby, Vic. I doubt Kate will slit your throat while you're asleep. Oh, and before I forget- me and Taylor didn't come here with our own sleep clothes, so... I'm gonna need to borrow the silky-smooth gown that I had the foresight to include in your bag."

 

Victoria scoffed, protectively clutching at her bag of clothes. "Like hell am I letting your grubby fingers touch that. Taylor can have it- you'll just have to sleep naked, bitch."

 

Taylor choked, and even in the dim light of the room, I could've sworn she was blushing when she dared to counter with, "Uh, n-no thanks, V. Unlike Dana, I actually prefer to sleep naked..."

 

She raised an eyebrow at that, yet Dana crossed her arms and shot Victoria a predatory smile. "Sorry Vic, I don't want to do this, but if you don't let me use your gown... well, lets just say that I found exactly what you're hiding from everyone when I was going through your wardrobe earlier. And since I'm not here as the Dorm Mother anymore, I'm no longer obligated to keep quiet. So unless you'd rather I tell these four the horrifying things I saw – that made me wish I could pour bleach into my eyes – then you'll hand it over."

 

Victoria froze on the spot. "I... have absolutely no idea what you mean. Nice try."

 

Dana hummed. "Are you sure you want to take that chance?" She followed up by making a weird whipping motion towards Victoria with her hand- the fake cracking sound she mimicked causing her to visibly flinch. "Now, Chase. I'm not bluffing."

 

Whatever she was talking about, apparently it was enough to make Victoria accept defeat and wordlessly shove her dressing gown – which I myself was admittedly drooling over – hard against Dana's chest, before stalking over to the bed that she was being forced to share with Kate- much to everyone's astonishment.

 

That seemed to be the cue for both Dana and Taylor to purposely turn away from each other so they could get undressed – the former putting on Victoria's gown afterwards, not bothering to hide the over-exaggerated groan of pleasure while doing so – and I quickly spun away to give them some privacy... only to come face-to-face with Rachel, who was also in the process of removing her own hospital-issued gown. Oh, dog- is it too late for me to sleep on the floor? I thought she'd at-least be keeping that thing on!

 

Rachel must've seen the expression on my face, because she winked at me as she flung it up over her head in one fluid motion. "Don't worry- I won't bite. Unless you ask me to..." then snorted when my jaw dropped in response. "Wow, try not to look so eager. Seriously though, I'm just messing with you, Max."

 

It's a good thing there was barely any light filtering through the window despite being past 8am – due to our room facing away from the rising sun – since I was definitely blushing from head to toe after that little exchange. Ugh, kill me now.

 

Rachel slipped under the sheets, holding open the other side for me to slide in. Seeing no way out of this situation, I very carefully got into the bed, making damn sure to stay as far away from her as physically possible. It was already going to be awkward enough without me touching her.

 

Of-course, she had other ideas... because after several minutes of fruitless tossing and turning behind me, she goaned. "Screw this. Max, I'm going to do something- please don't freak out, okay?"

 

Before I could even ask what she meant by that, the bed dipped as she shuffled closer- the next thing I know, her arm encircled around my waist, coming to rest against my stomach, and then her bare chest was suddenly flush against my back, causing me to let out a surprised gasp. "Rachel... w-what are you d-doing?"

 

Her face was so close that I could practically feel her eyes rolling. "What do you think? I'm cuddling you so I can fall asleep, duh."

 

I struggled to focus my brain on the conversation, and not the fact that I could totally feel her boobs pressing into me. "B-But you- you're... naked right now."

 

The deadpan response made my eyes widen. "So what?" then she blew out a puff of air that skirted across the top of my head where her chin was now perched, as she continued, "I thought you'd have realized by now I'm a naturally touchy-feely kind of person after the way we snuggled together when we were watching those movies in your dorm last night. And the only reason I didn't get naked after Kate left is 'cause I was so emotionally-exhausted that I fell asleep before I could actually get undressed. So try not to overthink what's happening – you might not be used to doing this, but I am – and I have no intention of trying to make a move on you or whatever, if that's what you're worried about; this is completely platonic, it doesn't mean anything- I swear."

 

It was incredibly hard for me to believe what she was saying, especially when she started entwining one of her legs with my own, steadily lifting her sandwiched leg higher and higher between my thighs until it got dangerously close to-

 

I hissed as her knee abruptly brushed up against my groin. "What the fuck- that's not platonic, Rachel!

 

She quickly lowered her leg and cursed. "Shit! Sorry, I forgot how short you are; that was an accident, I thought I'd have a bit more room to maneuver, since... I'm used to doing this with taller people, so... um, here- let me just-"

 

Rachel made a show of shuffling downwards a considerable distance until we were at the same height, then repeated the action of lifting her leg- this time coming to a stop before she ended up kneeing me in the crotch, though it was still located way too close for my rapidly-dwindling sanity, while she asked, "Okay, how's this?"

 

I bit the inside of my cheek, still reeling from the tingly after-effects of her brief contact with my core, and mumbled, "Um- do you really have to... be so close?"

 

She sighed heavily, her breath tickling the back of my neck in a way that amplified the mixed signals I was already receiving and causing me to shudder involuntarily. "When I'm hella stressed out, yeah. I... uh, need the intimacy that comes with human contact- it's the only thing that helps me calm down. And... I think it's the same for you, isn't it? I mean... if I'm wrong, just tell me to roll over and I will."

 

I groaned internally, because how did she manage to figure out the inner workings of my anxiety so fast? She wasn't even there when I had my breakdown with David earlier, damn it! So at this point all I needed to do was ask myself, which did I prefer- sleeping in Rachel's – admittedly comforting, if also strangely arousing – embrace, or sleeping alone? And, well... after everything that'd happened... the answer was obvious.

 

Taking a moment to steady my breathing, I audibly swallowed while cautiously placing my hands over the top of where hers sat on my now-bare stomach – my pajama shirt presumably having ridden up thanks to her moving around, no doubt – and whispered, "N-No, you're right... Rachel, please stay- hold me."

 

Rachel hummed, pleased with my answer, then suddenly her grip tightened and she casually dragged me back towards her, completely closing what little remained of the space between us. Which had the very unexpected result of my groin once more being firmly pressed against her upper thigh – yeah, not her knee this time, her freaking thigh – and it took all my willpower not to allow an undignified noise to escape past my lips. Especially when she didn't recoil away like I thought she would, nope... instead of doing that, she simply let out a contented sigh and sleepily nestled her head into the crook of my neck, leaving her leg right where it was. And as much as I wanted to call her out on it again, I was far too busy biting my tongue to risk doing so- yet as the seconds ticked by, it didn't take long for me to notice that I wasn't exactly interested in breaking the contact myself, either...

 

And to be honest, how the hell I managed to fall asleep in such a compromising position, I have absolutely no idea... but not even a minute had passed before we were both out like a light. At-least until I woke up like half an hour later, desperate for the toilet, anyways.

 

So with great difficulty – and perhaps more than a little reluctance – I inched my way out of her grasp, and slid out of bed without waking her up. Glancing back while I tip-toed towards the bathroom, I bit my lip at the peaceful look on Rachel's face; really hoping the butterflies I was feeling in that moment were a result of my almost overflowing bladder, and not something much more complicated...

 

I was so distracted by Rachel, as-well as my intense need to pee right-the-heck-now, that I didn't realize the hospital bed across from ours was suspiciously empty until after I'd barged through the bathroom door, quietly closed it behind me, and flicked on the overhead light. That's when a squeal met my exhausted ears, my head snapped up in surprise, and... oh dog, I was definitely not prepared for what I'd just walked in on. Yup, I'd caught Dana and Taylor red-handed – or I suppose the more fitting phrase would be that I'd caught them red-faced – doing something very naughty, which quite frankly... I'll never be able to unsee, no matter how much bleach I poured onto my eyeballs.

 

From their current state of undress – not to mention the way Dana still had Taylor tightly pressed up against the far wall (in a clear parody of a certain infamous porn video that I definitely haven't watched) – it was clear that they'd been busy in here for some time already; perfectly happy to go at it, hidden in the dark confines of the bathroom, and thinking nobody would disturb them- well, before I'd rudely spoiled their fun, that is.

 

I stupidly gawked in their direction, while they both stood there frozen like statues... then my bladder threatened to burst again, so I rushed across to the toilet without saying a word. Because as awkward and mortifying as this situation was, it would've been made infinitely worse for me if I'd accidentally pissed on the floor right in-front of them. No thank you.

 

As I collapsed onto the toilet with a relieved sigh, I was well-aware of the two of them staring at me with fearfully-wide eyes, so I sheepishly glanced up at them and casually mumbled, "Sorry, I couldn't wait. So... I'm guessing you guys were having trouble sleeping, huh?"

 

Even the normally chatty Dana seemed to be at a loss for words; her mouth had dropped open, yet nothing came out, while she continued to watch me like a hawk. What was this, a competition to make the other person as uncomfortable as possible? I get that Victoria's silk robe was barely hiding her naked body from view, and Taylor's was totally on full display right now, but... I'm literally trying to pee here, jeez!

 

Only when I'd finished my business and stood up, intending to get the heck out of dodge, did Taylor realize something needed to be said, since she wriggled her way out of Dana's death-grip and dropped to the floor with a grunt, then whisper-yelled, "Max, wait! Shit- um, please don't... don't-"

 

Correctly assuming what she was trying to say, I turned around and did my best to look her in the eyes rather than everywhere else, as I gave her a smile that I hoped didn't appear deranged. "Don't tell anyone? Why would I? Sure, I wasn't expecting to see what I just saw, though it's obviously not any of my business, so..."

 

Dana crossed her arms now that she wasn't using them to pin Taylor to the wall, and glared – actually freaking glared – at me. "Why wouldn't you tell anyone? Like, you might not be as evil as Victoria when it comes to spreading things around, but any gossip is good gossip at Blackwell, and this- us, I mean... would be prime time material for the rumor mill if it got out."

 

I tried not to let the hostility in her gaze upset me, I understood how it felt to be caught with your pants down – well, not personally, however... it's not hard to imagine when the evidence is standing right there – so I did my best to placate their worries. "Dana, Taylor... I get it, I do. Trust me, whatever it is that I interrupted in here... your secret will be safe with me. I won't tell a soul, I promise."

 

Taylor frowned at me. "Why should we believe you?"

 

Seeing as they weren't going to let this go easily, I rolled my eyes and against my better judgement, said something that only my original Chloe knew about. "Because while I might not go around advertising it, I'm... ugh, I'm gay. Okay? So I don't know what the extent of this is between you two; if you're just fooling around, or if it's something more, but I have no intention of spreading it around either way. My lips are sealed. And if you ever want to talk about... stuff... then my door is always open, not that I'll probably be much help when it comes to that." Then I walked over to the door and grinned over my shoulder. "Oh, and for what it's worth... I think you're freaking perfect for each other. Have fun!"

 

The last thing they saw before being plunged back into darkness was my embarrassing failure at winking, as I softly closed the bathroom door behind me. And along the way back to the bed I shared with Rachel, I hastily attempted to scrub as much of what I'd seen from my brain as I possibly could. Although, if it meant not being subjected to a repeat of that horrible nightmare I'd had last night, I'll gladly risk blushing through a few sexy dreams instead.

 

Approaching my side of the single bed, I let out a sigh of relief upon noticing that Rachel was still asleep... but when I climbed back under the covers, it turns out my assessment was incorrect, since she cracked open one eye and grumbled sleepily, "Fucking finally- I was dying from hypothermia without my snuggle-buddy to help keep my body warm. Get your cute ass over here before my damn nipples freeze and fall off."

 

I was in the middle of laughing at Rachel's dramatic over-exaggeration, when her hand unexpectedly shot out and a silent yelp escaped my lips, as she pulled me towards her before I even had a chance to roll over like last time. Which meant that instead of being spooned from behind, I was now face to face with her, and... yeah, you guessed it- my body was squished up against hers, too. Yet the worst part about this predicament was that she'd taken me by surprise with her stealthy manouever, so my hands had also become trapped between us... right at chest height. No, I'm not kidding. The universe is clearly torturing me at this point. It has to be, because this is getting utterly ridiculous.

 

So... you know how guy friends love to use the hover-handing technique – something I'm acutely aware of thanks to Warren's painful attempts at seducing me (if I can even call it that) in the previous timeline – to avoid touching you at all costs? Now I have to take that to the next level and somehow maintain my own hover-handing in such a tiny space that the slightest twitch would force my fingers to touch Rachel's bare chest. If there's a Guinness World Record for the amount of time spent hover-handing, I'm probably gonna win it tonight- asssuming I don't breathe, like... at all, or y'know... fall asleep. Dog motherfucking damn it!

 

Infuriatingly, Rachel giggled under her breath. "I can hear your internal screaming from here, Max. And I can literally sense your hover-handing. If you don't stop it, I'mma shuffle closer and make you. Got it? Just relax. I don't mind if your hands are resting on my boobs- so long as you don't try to grope 'em. I mean, I want to fall asleep... not get all hot n' bothered, ya know?"

 

I groaned in exasperation. "Not helping, Rachel! I swear, you're doing this on purpose, aren't you?"

 

The corner of her lips quirked upward. "That's for me to know and for you to eventually figure out." then despite her eyes being closed, I still saw her roll them, as she added, "But right now I only want to catch a couple more hours of my beauty sleep. So you have five seconds to let your hands go wherever they need to, or I'll close the gap myself, 'cause I wasn't joking about being hella cold."

 

Once she started counting down, I had no choice other than to bite the bullet; untensing my hands, I carefully allowed the back of my fingers to fall naturally, where they thankfully only landed at the top-side of her boobs. At-least they weren't directly touching her nipples like I feared. It's the little things that count, right?

 

I still hissed in surprise when they made contact, though. "Holy crap, you really weren't lying- you're freezing! I would've thought having fire powers would make you immune to that sort of thing."

 

She whined at that. "Ugh, tell me about it! For a fancy-ass VIP hospital room, it sure is hella drafty in here..."

 

Then, despite the fact that I'd already complied with her request to relax, she used it as an excuse to scoot closer again anyway... much to my infuria- ah, who am I trying to bullshit here? It felt nice, honestly. Awkward as hell, but nice. The only person I'd ever been this close to when sharing a bed with was Chloe, during our many childhood sleepovers. Granted, she was never naked... and her bedside teasing was super low-key unlike Rachel's, yet the reminder was oddly welcoming. So I simply let all the tension bleed out of me, while daring to actually lean into her embrace myself; hopefully seeing this for what it probably was... two girls comforting themselves after an emotionally fucked up day, and safely falling asleep in each other's arms...

 

Unfortunately, those nightmares from last night must've returned with a vengeance – not that I was aware of having them this time – because I was abruptly jolted awake two hours later by the feeling of lips being pressed against my own, followed by a sleepily mumbled, "Shh, s'okay... only a dream, Chlo..."

 

Yeah, that woke me up much more effectively than the nightmares ever could. But then my brain registered what happened right before it heard those words, and my eyes shot open in surprise. Oh dog- I didn't dream about that bit, did I? Rachel just kissed me in her sleep!

 

And she clearly realized what she'd done, since the first thing I saw was her horrified expression staring back at me with wide eyes. "Shit! Max, I didn't... I don't- I'm so sorry. I woke up a few minutes ago but I'm not a morning person and almost dozed off again when I heard you crying out in your sleep. My tired-ass brain is so used to comforting Chloe when she had her nightmares that I guess it thought you were her and acted on muscle-memory... it was just a reflex, and... uh, yeah."

 

Doing my best to ignore how my lips were doing a damn good imitation of memory-foam – 'cause I could still feel her lips on mine even-though she'd leapt as far away from me as the tiny bed would let her – I took a moment to calm my racing heart, and cleared my throat. "Huh... I can't say I've ever been woken up by a kiss before. So that's new. Though I can't help finding it funny how, despite all your relentless teasing a few hours ago, you're panicking almost as worse as I was then."

 

Rachel huffed in embarrassment. "Because it's not like I asked you to freaking kiss me earlier, is it?!"

 

Seeing her so off-kilter from a single kiss made me decide to take a page out of both her and Chloe's books, as I raised an eyebrow in her direction, while retorting, "Well, maybe you should have!"

 

She choked on her own breath. "I- wait, what? Are you being serious right now?"

 

I snorted at her reaction. "After all the teasing you've subjected me to, I'd say a little turnabout is fair play, m'lady- so I dunno, am I? Why don't you ask me to kiss you back and find out? I mean, at-least it would make things even."

 

Rachel narrowed her eyes. "I don't know who you are and what you've done with Max the shy hipster while she was asleep, but you're gonna regret trying to challenge the master of mind-games. I see your bluff and I'm calling it- go on, kiss me." then she smirked sarcastically and added, "Platonically, of-course."

 

Okay, in hind-sight... I probably should've seen this coming. Yet if I could work up the courage to kiss Chloe when she dared me to in the old timeline, then I can easily do the same with Rachel, since it's not quite the level of pressure as a triple-dog dare. And besides, this is nothing; I've already faced down a psychopath and lived... surely I can survive kissing her- plus, I did basically goad Rachel into asking me in the first place, so... fuck it. Let's see how she likes being beaten at her own damn game!

 

The moment I threw myself across the makeshift chasm she'd put between us to plant my lips on hers – for just a fleeting kiss, like she'd done to me – made it absolutely worth temporarily locking my anxiety into a box so I could get the task done, and upon spotting her shocked expression when I pulled away, I grinned. "Was that platonic enough for you?"

 

She quickly picked her jaw up off the floor. "That was... ballsy, Max- I'm impressed. It's a good job nobody else was in the room to see it, huh?"

 

I blinked at her words, then bolted upright in alarm as I scanned the room, and once I saw that we were the only ones here, I breathed, "Oh, dog- I forgot we weren't alone. Um... where did everyone go?"

 

Rachel snickered. "Lucky for you I was paying attention- I wouldn't have asked you to do it, otherwise. As for where they are... Dana and Taylor offered to stop off at the Two Whales to buy us all breakfast, they left about five minutes ago. Then I overheard Victoria and Kate kinda having a little argument about who should go get coffee for the rest of us from the food court a few floors down, since Victoria's not a morning person either and desperately needed a cafeine fix before she killed someone... yet Kate refused to let her wander off on her own, so they reluctantly decided to go together. It was actually really cute."

 

I let out a sigh of relief and laid back down. "Damn, I wish I could've seen-"

 

All the air was stolen from my lungs when she suddenly invaded my personal space again, but before I could question what was happening, she'd already hooked one of her legs over me, and was straddling my hips with a mischevious glint in her eyes, as her voice dropped several octaves. "Now... where were we?"

 

Then she placed all her weight down on the patch of skin separating my pajama top from the shorts, making me super freaking aware of the fact that she was still totally naked, and there was nothing stopping her crotch from making contact with my skin... which was most likely intentional, knowing Rachel. But the protest forming on the tip of my tongue died out when she threw the covers back and sat up straight, allowing the low morning light to completely expose her bare chest for me to see.

 

The only thing I could do was stare up at... well, all of her on display, and my mouth turned drier than the sahara desert, as my mind reeled from her unexpected forwardness. Considering how firmly she was straddling me, there's no way I could escape unless I used my powers – I knew she was stronger than me, and I was too much of a short-stack to be able to shove her off – so I was entirely at her mercy right now, and... I think I kinda liked it? Oh, dog... this is not good.

 

Rachel arched an eyebrow imperiously. "Like what you see, Max?"

 

I licked my lips several times, though no words would come out.

 

She noticed my struggle and appeared to be holding in her laughter as she smirked down at me. "Don't bother, your face is telling me everything I need to know. Although, if you don't calm down... your head's gonna explode.

 

Swallowing the impossibly large lump in my throat, I forced out a few words. "Rachel... why- and what... are you doing?"

 

Rachel's gaze darkened at that, while she slowly – almost torturously – leaned closer, her chest coming within an inch of mine... and unless I was imagining things, I swear I could see literal flames flickering in her irises, as she lowered her lips to my ear, before whispering seductively, "I warned you there would be consequences to challenging the master of mind-games... so now you're mine- I own you, Maxi."

 

Goosebumps flooded my body at the new nickname, and when she pulled back, she left the faintest of kisses on the corner of my lips that made my already-erratic breathing hitch. And for a split-second, I imagined myself giving chase... unfortunately, even if I wanted to, my limbs had turned to jelly and made that impossible. So I just laid there beneath her while she continued to straddle me; our unblinking eyes locked in battle to see who would crack under the pressure first. Presumably me, but I wasn't gonna give up easily. I learned from the best.

 

Rachel eventually narrowed her eyes and pursed her lips in frustration- that was the only warning I got before she finally decided to use her lower body to her advantage, and rolled her hips ever so slightly against my navel. If my senses weren't heightened to a thousand percent, I might've missed it or misjudged it as her simply making herself comfier, but nope... I caught it, and I certainly freaking felt it.

 

I tried to pretend it didn't affect me, yet the hiss that escaped betrayed me, and I furrowed my brows up at her. "Do you always do this kind of, ugh- sexual teasing... with all your other friends?"

 

She cocked her head to the side in consideration. "Truthfully? No. I meant what I said before about being naturally touchy-feely, and it's hella fun to tease people sometimes... though I've never taken it to this extreme with any of them. Then again, only one other person has ever given as good as they get when it comes to my games... and that was Chloe. I suppose since you grew up with her, it makes sense you'd gain some of her confidence by proxy. Maybe that's why..."

 

When Rachel trailed off, and uncharacteristically blushed for the first time despite the precarious situation we were in, I pressed further. "Maybe that's why... what?" She shook her head and attempted to climb off me, but I finally got my arms to cooperate and did something a bit daring- my hands latched onto her hips and held her in place as I urged, "Tell me, Rachel. Please."

 

She huffed awkwardly, and unsteadily braced her hands on my stomach, allowing her fingers to graze underneath the hem of my shirt as she muttered, "Maybe that's why I like you, okay? The thing is, until yesterday, not once did I notice you in classes, even-though we shared photography together... and I barely remembered your name. Yet from the moment I found out you were Chloe's long-lost childhood friend, I've felt drawn to you. I don't know why. At first I thought it was just because we were both grieving for her... but that can't be all it is; I've never felt this strongly connected to someone before, except for Chloe... although unlike with you, I wasn't this forward with her when we first met. So I- I don't know what's wrong with me..."

 

Well, damn... I wasn't expecting her to bare her soul to me – or admit that she 'liked' me, whatever that means – however, now that she'd mentioned it... I kinda understood what she was getting at, and I scoffed wholeheartedly. "There's nothing wrong with you, Rachel. You're grieving for someone you loved, and... so am I. Everyone copes in different ways; maybe part of doing this is yours, a-and possibly mine if I'm being honest, I dunno. I've always been too introverted and shy in the past to think about doing anything crazy like this. Chloe was always the one to pull me out of my shell, you know? But... just like you feel connected to me, I've felt connected to you, too. I would've probably run out of the room screaming like a banshee, rather than share a bed with you when you were naked... and I definitely wouldn't be even remotely okay with what's happening right now, otherwise. The only thing we haven't considered to explain this... this magnetism between us, is our powers, since I don't think you had yours in my timeline... so it must have something to do with that."

 

She hummed at that. "Good to know you feel it too, I guess. And maybe you're right about it having something to do with our powers- we know they seem to react to each other, sort of... thanks to that weird pins-and-needles tingling sensation we experienced when we met yesterday. Which really puts it into perspective how intense this thing has gotten between us so quickly, doesn't it? So... regardless of however it is that we're drawn to each other, maybe-"

 

A loud knock at the door cut her off, and we both froze in place, realizing that we were still in a very compromising position if someone was to walk inside.

 

Rachel recovered first, and cleared her throat with wide eyes, as she called out, "Um... w-who is it?"

 

The muffled voice of a male responded. "It's Officer Berry. I'm here to take Max down to the station for her witness statement- is she awake?"

 

I groaned exxaggeratedly and answered for her. "Unfortunately, yes. Could you, uh... give us five minutes to get dressed, please? We're not exactly morning people, Andy."

 

He chuckled tiredly. "Of-course. You're not the only one- I'll come back in a few."

 

When his footsteps receded, Rachel pressed a palm to her chest. "Phew, that was close. And as nice as this is..." She sighed under her breath and reluctantly continued, "I was literally about to say- maybe... you should let me go. I mean, unless you want Victoria and Kate to catch us like this? In that case, good luck explaining what your fingers are doing to me right now."

 

My lips formed an 'O' shape then, as I quickly caught onto the fact that I'd been idly stroking my fingertips down the sides of her waist for the past minute without realizing it, so I promptly dropped my hands... while my face heated up for the hundredth time this morning, and I stumbled over my words. "Oh! Right. Yes, sorry- you... you make a great point."

 

Rachel clambered off my hips with as much grace as she could muster and stood up to stretch, before rolling her eyes when she saw me failing to sneak a glance at her in the process. "What are you apologizing for, Max? You kissing me was an intentional part of my game- I was curious to see if you'd actually do it. As for the rest... well, I don't know what the hell that was. All I do know is, I should be the one saying sorry, not you. I took it way too far."

 

I awkwardly rubbed my neck and mumbled, "Yeah, except I wasn't exactly complaining... or doing anything to stop you, was I? For all your talk about keeping things platonic... if Andy hadn't interrupted us, I'm pretty sure you were about to begin dry-humping me- and I would've probably let you do it."

 

She inhaled sharply before spinning back around with her arms crossed, feigning disbelief even-though her flushed cheeks and high-pitched voice gave away the truth. "That's bullshit- no I wasn't!"

 

I was about to point out that she'd already started doing it before Andy had knocked, but the door to our room abruptly swung open and Victoria non-chalantly marched inside. "You weren't what, Rachel?" though when she noticed her standing in the middle of the room without any clothes on, her cheeks turned pink and she rapidly averted her gaze with disgust. "Ugh, never-mind. Kate, you might want to close your eyes when you come in."

 

Kate stepped around her in confusion, carrying a styrofoam tray holding four giant cups of coffee. "Huh, why? What's-" then her gaze landed on Rachel, and upon realizing that she was unable to shield her eyes with her hands full, turned beet-red while pinning me with her embarrassed stare. "Oh! S-Sorry. We... we probably should've knocked first..."

 

Victoria grunted in exasperation and plucked a coffee out of Kate's grasp. "Not really- this is our room too, you know." she gestured blindly at Rachel without looking. "Would you hurry up and put some fucking clothes on already?!"

 

Rachel rolled her eyes and moved to search through her bag of clothing that Dana and Taylor had brought last night. "Calm your tits, Vicky- I was literally about to get dressed before you walked in. Why else do you think I crawled out of bed?"

 

To stop yourself from dry-humping me, my inner voice desperately wanted to snark- sadly, I couldn't say that with them in the room now, so instead I asked, "I thought you guys only went to get us coffee- what took you so long?"

 

Victoria looked like she was trying to keep a straight face as she casually shrugged. "What are you looking at me for? Kate's the one who delayed us by making a scene, not me."

 

Kate groaned under her breath when I raised an eyebrow in her direction. "Ugh... Max, you know how much I love my tea, don't you?"

 

I failed to keep the amusement out of my voice. "Uh oh. Please, Kate... tell me you didn't get into another fight with the person serving you again because they didn't get it just right."

 

Victoria's jaw dropped. "Wait, you're telling me that's happened before?! Are you sure we're both talking about the same person here?"

 

Kate rushed to put the styrofoam tray down on my bed so I could grab my coffee, then she covered her face with both hands and whisper-yelled. "I wanted some tea, Max. Tea! Not coffee! But apparently the food court didn't have any. So yes, forgive me if I might've gotten into a small argument with the barista, okay?!"

 

Victoria snorted incredulously. "I wouldn't call it small. If the poor guy hadn't offered us a discount on our coffees, we would've probably been kicked out by hospital security."

 

Rachel finished pulling on a familiar red plaid shirt and grabbed the coffee with her name on it. "Really? What did sweet innocent Kate say to him?"

 

Kate glared at Victoria. "Don't you dare, Victoria! You promised not to tell them."

 

Victoria smirked. "I promised no such thing. Now, if I remember correctly... your exact words were, and I quote, 'I asked for tea, you... asshole!', and after he told us they didn't have any, I genuinely thought she was gonna leap over the counter and attack him, then she screamed, 'What kind of gosh darn hospital doesn't fucking serve tea as an option for its' patients and visitors?!'. End quote. She actually managed to one-up me, which is saying a lot, since you guys know how rude I can be to people who wrong me."

 

It's a good job I didn't take a sip of my coffee, otherwise I'd have spat it out in disbelief. "Hold on, you're telling me she actually swore at him? Twice! Oh, no- Kate Beverly Marsh, you're in big trouble, young lady... how could you do such a sinful thing without me being there to witness it?!"

 

Kate looked like she wanted the ground to swallow her up on the spot, though she still scowled back at me in mock-defiance. "Because all I wanted after last night was to relax with a nice cup of tea! Not whatever this is supposed to be-" she pointed at the remaining coffee cup like it was the devil himself. "Instead, I had to add a ridiculous amount of sugar to make it even slightly drinkable. In-fact, I bet there's more sugar in this than there is caffeine, for goodness sake!"

 

I couldn't help it, I burst out laughing. "Stop being such a drama queen, Kate- that's meant to be Rachel's thing. Now shush and drink your coffee, because we both know you have a secret sweet tooth. So maybe we need to buy you a Snickers bar to go with it?"

 

She pouted, and stomped her foot- it was freaking adorable. "This isn't funny, Max!"

 

That only made me giggle more, to the point where I almost spilled coffee on myself. And Rachel was cackling so hard, that she was struggling to focus on shimmying into a pair of skinny jeans without falling flat on her ass. Even Victoria's lips were quirked up in a faint grin, which she was no doubt actively fighting against. So once Kate figured out nobody was taking her complaints seriously, she huffed and glared daggers at me, as she painstakingly slowly retrieved her coffee – acting like it'd bite her fingers off if she so much as touched it – all while failing to hide the radiant smile on her face.

 

And then, as if a gust of wind had come along and blown it away, her expression turned serious. "Anyway... we ran into Officer Berry in the hall. You're not actually going with him, are you?"

 

I sighed heavily, and upon realizing I was the only one still in my pajamas, I began to search through my own bag of clothes while replying, "Not unless I absolutely have to. I'd rather deal with one thing at a time, and at the moment that's waiting for our kits to be processed. I need answers before I can give any myself, you know? And the longer I can delay talking about... about-" I growled and yanked my pajama shirt off a little rougher than intended, tossing it carelessly over my shoulder as I turned to face her. "No. I'm not ready for that- Andy will just have to wait. Besides, once he finds out what he missed last night, I'm sure he'll cut me some slack. He damn-well better."

 

When nobody immediately said anything, I glanced around to see they were all staring at me, and it took me a moment to realize that I'd forgotten I wasn't wearing a bra underneath my pajamas. Oops. From the looks on their faces, they hadn't been expecting me to be as bold as Rachel, and... well, had I taken a second to think about what I was doing, I would've remembered my lack of a bra and gotten changed in the bathroom instead. Oh well, I'd already started now, and it'd be even more awkward if I switched locations, so I cringed internally as I kicked off my sleep shorts. Thankfully, at-least I still had my underwear on and hadn't gone commando, 'cause I really might've died from embarrassment otherwise.

 

Despite being half naked, Victoria glared at me. "You know there's a fucking bathroom over there, right?"

 

Rachel snickered. "What's wrong, Vicky- can't stand it when there's a hot girl in front of you?"

 

I caught her gaze and blushed when I noticed her unashamedly staring at me – I suppose that's payback for me trying to do the same – as I rolled my eyes. "Oh, grow up, Victoria. We're all adults here, aren't we? I think we have bigger things to worry about right now than you getting an eyeful."

 

Kate nervously cleared her throat, and I spotted her watching me out of the corner of her eye. "Um. Max is right. So... you want to tell Officer Berry that we were all drugged- are you sure that's such a good idea?"

 

I froze in the middle of putting on what I'd dubbed my 'smart adulting outfit' – the one I wore in the old San Francisco mini-timeline – because I understood Kate's hesitance; she'd been conflicted about the same thing in my timeline when it was just her as the possible victim, and I couldn't say why I wanted Andy to know about it without telling them that Nathan was connected to it, which would mean I'd have to explain everything else. Shit.

 

Unaware of my internal panicking, Victoria nodded. "Yeah, we don't even know who drugged us. But whoever it is has to be close to campus, possibly even someone at Blackwell, since there's no way in hell they could've gotten away with drugging four students otherwise. Not in such quick succession that we all still had GHB in our systems. Look, I want this bastard caught as much as you do, Max – no, scratch that, I want him skinned alive, preferably by my own hand – yet we have fuck-all to go on, so the useless ABPD won't be able to do anything other than give us a headache with their pathetic attempts at investigating."

 

I began buttoning up my shirt to stall for time, trying to figure a way out of this without spilling the beans... though Rachel dashed any hopes I had of doing that when she made eye contact with me and crossed her arms. "If you won't tell them, I will. And you know that I know enough to make them have a shitload of questions for you. Which you promised to answer once I was no longer bleeding my ass off anyway- and oh, would you look at that? I'm no longer bleeding! It's time."

 

Groaning profusely, I slumped back down onto the bed. "Damn it, Rachel. Okay... alright, fine. But let me get rid of Andy first. Although he knows about my powers, most of what I need to tell you isn't something he should hear. Just be warned that I'm gonna mention a couple of things to him that may come as a shock to you- all you need to know is, everything I say is one hundred percent the truth... so please don't question it, or ask me how I know, until he's gone. Deal?"

 

Once they eventually nodded, with Victoria unsurprisingly being the most reluctant, it was simply a matter of waiting for Andy to come back...

Notes:

FYI, because this chapter was so long, I unfortunately had to cut some of the fluff. There was actually supposed to be another steamy scene after Berry interrupted Max & Rachel's morning stalemate, involving a shared five minute shower and Max abusing her powers for... ahem, extra time. But I was already pushing their relationship a little too much as it is, so I decided to save it for another time. I'm sure there'll be another opportunity for it to happen at some point. ;)

See ya'll next week for the actual real honest-to-god finale to this Hospital Horrors arc, where you will probably want to murder me with pitchforks! :)

Chapter 12: Hospital Horrors; Part 5 - The Result

Summary:

Breakfast is served, and the truth finally comes out- in more ways than one.

The exam results are much worse than the girls were expecting, which will have far-reaching consequences for them all.

Max visits Chloe's body in the morgue, where a new life-line is forged with Rachel.

Going forward, everything changes; the girls' lives will never be the same again...

Notes:

Hey ya'll! Here we go, the final chapter of the not-so-mini-more-like-gigantic 50,000 word long Hospital Horrors arc is upon us! I seriously never expected a trip to the hospital to become so huge; I could've most likely cut 75% of the content and still gotten to this point, but you folks know what I'm like by now- part of my schtick is trying to write character dialogues and describe their interactions as naturally as possible, which tends to bump up the word count really quick. After-all, people don't just say one sentence to each other and then leave the room in real life, do they? (Then again, what do I know? I'm basically a recluse with no social skills, so I probably would do that tbh.)

Again, this is another friendly reminder that I don't know how hospitals function, and my research could only take me so far before it started to conflict with how I needed the story to progress plot-wise, so you might have to suspend your disbelief slightly for this chapter. It couldn't be helped. Now, I doubt many of you will be pleased by the end, yet I'm gonna say the usual anyway:

Enjoy! :)

(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)

Chapter Text

Chasing Amber (Through Fields & Marshes)

 

Chapter 12: Hospital Horrors; Part 5 - The Result

 

Max was forced to sit around in an uncomfortable silence, while she sipped on her scalding-hot coffee alongside the other girls – sans Dana and Taylor – inside their shared hospital room, with nothing else to do to pass the time until Officer Berry eventually returned... which to them felt like it was taking forever, despite only being a couple of minutes in reality.

 

When Andy finally knocked on the door again, I almost cried in relief; the tension in the room had been nothing short of overwhelming, thanks to Rachel's lack of patience over me explaining the truth about... y'know, everything.

 

Kate quickly got up to open the door, and I grimaced at the sight of him. "Jeez, Andy- you look worse than I feel. Did you even sleep?"

 

He snorted. "You seriously expected me to be able to search a crime scene in the middle of the night, with nothing but a crappy flashlight to see in the dark, and still be done in time to grab a quick nap? Because I only just finished processing what little I did manage to find into evidence, and then I came straight here. And now I need to conduct your witness interview before I clock out of my overtime shift, so... if you're ready?"

 

Well, here goes nothing. "I dont think I'll ever be ready, Andy. However, while you were busy last night, we've had a bit of a... development here. You see, we didn't just come to the hospital because Rachel got shot, we were actually already on our way here when that happened... to be drug tested for the presence of GHB."

 

His eyebrows shot up. "And you didn't tell this to myself, or Joyce and David earlier, because..."

 

I shrugged. "We needed to be sure about it first. And... now we are, since all four of our tests came back positive for GHB. Joyce and David already know about it. You're the last to find out, because at this point there's no use making an official police report or anything. We have pretty much no memories that would help you catch whoever drugged us, and unless we have solid proof it'll probably just complicate the shit we're already dealing with right now."

 

Andy's jaw dropped. "Christ, all of you were drugged?!" When we nodded grimly, he hesitated before stumbling over his words. "Have you, err... I don't meant to suggest that anything could've... but did you take a-"

 

Correctly assuming what he was trying to ask, I held out a hand to stop him and shifted uncomfortably. "Yes. We all had kits done, as a precaution." I cleared my throat and added, "Which is why we're still here, waiting for the results of those... and that's why I can't come with you to do my witness statement yet. Not until I know."

 

He hummed in consideration. "That's... understandable. Luckily for you, I should be able to push it back again; my boss gave me some extra leeway for conducting the investigation into Chloe's death – most likely because he's on the Prescott payroll, so the more time he can give Nathan to sort his shit out the less chance there is of him instantly cracking under interrogation – which means we can get away with delaying it until... let's say, when my next shift is set to start, tomorrow morning at 8am?"

 

I nodded unenthusiastically. "Yay. Ugh... sure, that works for me. But if your boss really is working for the Prescotts, then I should tell you that, as someone who can rewind time, us being drugged is guaranteed to be connected to Nathan. And Mark Jefferson, our photography teacher at Blackwell. It's probably even tied to Sean Prescott, too. Don't ask me how I know, just... please take my word for it. Hopefully you can use that information to your advantage and throw Nathan off whatever game he tries to play. Preferrably enough to make him flip on Jefferson and his father."

 

Andy scrubbed his face in exhaustion. "Seriously? Damn it, now I get why you said it'd complicate things... Alright, well I guess I'd better act like I know nothing out of the ordinary and go catch some shut-eye, so... if you don't need me for anything else later today, I'll see you bright and early tomorrow, Max." He turned to leave, then paused in the doorway with a deep frown on his face. "Oh, and if you girls happen to come across any of that proof as to your mystery attacker's identity – something concrete I can actually use, I mean – feel free to send it my way, since as of this moment, all my other ongoing cases are on the backburner... except for Chloe's. I'll personally look into it for you, 'cause magic time powers or not, there's no way I'm gonna sit by and let a serial-drugging happen in my hometown now that I've caught wind of it."

 

Then he was gone before I could tell him how bad of an idea it probably was... and the deafening silence that followed made me acutely aware of Victoria's withering gaze burning a hole into the back of my head. Oh boy, this is going to be such a fun conversation. Not!

 

Ten seconds later, she erupted like I knew she would. "What the hell is your problem, Maxine- first you accuse Nathan of murdering Chloe, which I've tried not to actively object to considering how you fucking hit me for it last time; at-least the part about his father being out for your blood is something I can sort of believe... albeit only because I was there when it happened, but now you're pointing the finger at Nathan again to say that he – and also Mark – had a hand in drugging us? That's total bullshit! And I'm not going to listen to your pathetic attempt at dragging my best friend, or my childhood freaking idol, through the dirt like this unless you have some ironclad proof to back it up-"

 

She was interrupted by the door swinging open once more, as Dana and Taylor awkwardly poked their heads inside, with the latter asking, "Uh, is this a bad time? We come bearing gifts..."

 

Honestly, if they hadn't turned up when they did, I would've been seconds away from cracking and telling Victoria exactly how I knew that Jefferson was such a monster, so while I let out a few calming breaths, Kate jumped into action – always the mediator – as she waved them inside. "No, it's fine. Please, come in and show us what's on the menu! I doubt we'll be able to eat much of it, all things considered, but thank you. Really- you guys didn't have to go get breakfast for us."

 

Taylor cautiously walked inside first, very much aware of the tension in the room. "Trust me, we did. I've sometimes had to eat hospital food before, whenever I visited my Mom. I definitely would not recommend it, especially not if you're already feeling queasy. So instead, Joyce made you all your favourites. Or in your case, V- she made an educated guess from the one and only time you dared to grace the diner with your presence. Her words, not mine."

 

Rachel spluttered in disbelief. "The fuck? Joyce isn't supposed to be working – nevermind the fact it's not even her shift this morning – she should be sleeping right now! I swear, that woman is hella fucking stubborn, it's ridiculous."

 

I snorted sadly. "Duh. Where do you think Chloe got her thick-headedness from? 'Cause it wasn't William, that's for sure."

 

Dana began unloading the bags, which were full of various different sized containers, and the combined smells made my stomach grumble in protest. "Here you go, Max- Begian Waffles for you, just how you like 'em. A whole stack of fluffy Starfish Pancakes for Kate. Uh... these two are ours; I went for the Bigfoot Bacon Omelette, and Taylor chose the Apple Sausage Omelette. Let's see, what else is left... ah yes, a classic Bacon & Eggs for Rachel. And... apparently a Breakfast Burger for Victoria?"

 

When she raised a curious eyebrow, Victoria's cheeks turned pink as she groaned. "Don't give me that look- you know I like to go jogging sometimes... so I needed the greasy carbs afterwards! Simple as that. Why else would I have eaten at that damn peasant-filled diner, huh?"

 

Taylor hummed conspiratorially. "Because you're secretly a fast-food slob?"

 

Victoria reeled like she'd been slapped, the betrayal evident on her face- and this would've been the perfect opportunity for Rachel to take a snipe at her as-well... except when I looked over at the opposite side of the bed, the expression on Rachel's face radiated pain for some reason, as she sat there staring at her container of food in horror.

 

Ignoring the others, I gently nudged her knee and whispered, "Hey, what's wrong?"

 

She shook her head. "N-Nothing. I'm fine, it's just-"

 

Victoria must've overheard me though, since she'd stopped short on whatever retort she was about to fire back at Taylor, and swivelled towards us with a scoff. "It's not nothing, Amber. The fact you seem to be crying says otherwise."

 

Rachel frowned. "Huh? What do you-" she blinked for a moment and wiped the fresh tear running down her cheek before mumbling, "Oh- shit, it's stupid. Forget it."

 

I glanced down at the container, trying to figure out why it would suddenly make her fall apart, when I realized what was inside – Bacon & Eggs – and it hit me like a truck; it was the fucking bacon- bacon that Chloe would always steal from me... My heart clenched at the reminder, and I understood then that she probably did the same thing to Rachel, too. Damn it!

 

Swallowing the lump in my throat, I tapped the box to get her attention. "It's... it's the bacon, isn't it?"

 

Rachel nodded stiffly. "Yeah, Chloe... she loved to keep-"

 

I interrupted her with a soft smile. "Stealing it off your plate? I know... she used to do it to me all the time. I swear, she was the most infuriating bacon thief in the galaxy." Biting my lip, I hesitantly added, "If you want, maybe I could... continue the tradition for both of us? I can actually be quite the ninja, believe it or not."

 

She sniffled. "I... think I'd like that." Narrowing her eyes suspiciously, she quietly added, "So long as you don't use your powers to cheat."

 

I snorted and whispered in return. "Only if you promise not to burn the bacon to a crisp with yours to stop me from eating it."

 

Rachel chuckled at that. "Let's be honest, I'd be more likely to set your hair on fire by accident." then her laughter abruptly turned into a sob half-way through. "Fuck, I don't know what I'm gonna do without her, Max... it's the little things that hurt the most, you know? Like, this shitty town is covered with mine and Chloe's grafitti- around every corner I know there'll be a memory of her – of us – and it'll just remind me that she's... she's... gone."

 

From the thin line of her lips, I could tell that she was trying her hardest to keep the floodgates from opening in-front of the others. Yet as soon as I pulled her into a hug, they came crashing down. Screw everyone else, Rachel needed this. Heck, I needed it. And something tells me it'll be like that for... a very long time.

 

While we both clung to each other as if we were the only lifelines either of us had left, I blindly groped a hand towards Rachel's container of food so I could grab a piece of the bacon since she was distracted, then I tore it in half and shoved the largest piece straight into her mouth before she knew what was happening.

 

Rachel withdrew just enough to stare at me in shock, the bacon still sticking out of her mouth, and she looked so much like a hella confused puppy that I couldn't stop myself from giggling. "It's my peace offering before our bacon war begins. You're supposed to eat it, Rachel- you do know how to do that, right? I swear, I better not have adopted a pet who isn't already house-trained..."

 

When Rachel's cheeks flushed in embarrassment, and the sudden heat in her gaze felt like it was searing off strips of my flesh, I knew I was going to regret that comment one day soon. For now however, she opted for chomping down on the bacon extra hard just to spite me- and Victoria, who's snickering could still be heard no matter how loudly she chewed.

 

Once she'd had enough and swallowed it, she growled threatening in ear. "You're gonna pay for that... Maxi."

 

The way she said it was reminiscent of her earlier 'teasing' – as if it wasn't obvious from the new nickname at the end – and it screamed that I was in imminent danger of retribution. Thankfully not right now with everyone else watching, but imminent nonetheless. And a very small part of me was morbidly curious as to what that might be...

 

Reluctantly shaking off the effect Rachel seemed to have on me, I dove for my own food container, not that I was hungry. Although I definitely needed a distraction from where my thoughts had started to go. Ugh- damn you, Rachel!

 

The six of us settled down to eat our very own Joyce-approved breakfast, which was still as delicious as I remembered. Oddly enough, Victoria was practically devouring her gigantic breakfast burger with a speed that would've rivalled even Chloe; completely oblivious to the large amount of grease that was dripping from it. Dana and Taylor both ate their omelettes at a leisurely pace, silently chatting between themselves about... cheerleading, I think. Whereas the rest of us simply picked at our food, barely able to touch even a quarter of it. This was the only time I've ever willingly not inhaled the entire thing at once... which was literal fucking blasphemy when it came to me consuming Belgian Waffles, and it just pissed me off more than anything else.

 

After Victoria had suprisingly-yet-unsurprisingly finished her burger before all of us, she cleared her throat and I was grateful for the interruption – because if I had Rachel's fire powers I would've probably toasted the remains of my Belgian Waffles from the harsh glare I was giving them – except I instantly changed my mind when she agitatedly said, "So, Maxine... don't think I've forgotten what we were talking about when Dana and Tay walked in- I'm still waiting for you to prove it. Preferrably right the hell now before I lose-"

 

My food troubles now forgotten, I abruptly jumped to my feet while spinning on my heel towards Victoria; the deadly expression on my face was enough to send her jaw slamming shut, and I finally snapped. "You want me to prove it, huh?! Okay, how about the fact that I was there? I know exactly where they took us after drugging us- I know since I already had to live through it! And Rachel died thanks to them!" Exhaling slowly, I attempted to level with her. "Look, I get you don't want to believe what they're capable of, Victoria... yet that just made you blind to the truth. It was the same for me, even I never saw it coming... until it was too late. And I did warn you yesterday that the truth would flip your world upside down. So I'm going to make this perfectly clear for all of you: Mark Jefferson is a psychopath. Nathan is his unstable apprentice. And Sean Prescott is the one who gave them a secret place to take their victims so they wouldn't get caught. It's as simple as that."

 

Taylor raised her hand like she was in class. "I didn't understand half of what I just heard there, but... I'm sorry, did you say Jefferson – our freaking photography teacher – is the one who drugged you?"

 

Ah, crap. I'd kinda forgotten they were still in the room for a second while I got a little carried away with my rant... And I'm in no mood to keep rewinding it to navigate my way through the conversation without revealing something that didn't make sense to them. Besides, I suspected that I was now out of time for me to stall the explanation of my own timeline, which was most likely going to be required for Victoria to actually believe me about Jefferson, so... the only alternative was letting them in on all the secrets too...

 

I sighed dramatically. "Yes, I did. Him and Nathan. And before I can properly explain how I know that... I need to know if we can trust both of you." I glanced at Rachel, Kate and Victoria. "Can we?"

 

Victoria crossed her arms. "I'll vouch for Sweet-T, of-course. I trust her with my life."

 

Rachel shrugged. "From personal experience, I can say that Dana is an excellent secret-keeper, so I trust her. And if what you say is really true, Max... then as our Dorm Mother, she has a right to at-least know what's happening under her nose."

 

Kate tilted her head in consideration. "Hmm, Dana's been nothing but nice to me since we met. And Taylor... can be kind- when she wants to be. If they have your vote, they have mine."

 

I nodded. "Very well. In that case... Dana, Taylor- I'm a time traveller. Sort of. I can only freeze and rewind time, not go forwards; so I suppose that technically only makes me half of a time traveller... ah, whatever."

 

Rachel smirked. "I bet you ten bucks I know what they're gonna say next even without your power to rewind."

 

I silently rolled my eyes at her. Everyone always seems to ask me for proof. Like hell was I taking that bet.

 

As expected, by the time they'd stopped staring at us for any sign of it being a joke, the first words out of Dana's mouth were, "Prove it."

 

I rubbed my hands in thought. "Okay, I want to get this over with quickly, 'cause I've got a long shitty story to get through and I'm only going to be explaining it once. So, let's see... how about you two tell me something I shouldn't be able to know – like maybe an embarrassing secret you'd both prefer to keep hidden – then I'll rewind and repeat it back to you in a way that makes it clear I know what you were going to say, without me actually saying it out loud."

 

Dana and Taylor put their heads together for a minute or so, until Taylor eventually turned back to me and mumbled, "Oh, screw it. We – me and Dana, I mean – might've... kinda, sorta... kissed last night. Before we came here. In my car. And it was freaking amazing."

 

Considering what I'd witnessed in the bathroom between them, I wasn't all that surprised... since it had to have come from somewhere, and now I knew. Jeez, they were so cute together- despite Dana usually being the most open and outgoing person in the dorms, she was blushing like thirteen year old from Taylor's unexpected compliment.

 

Meanwhile, Victoria screeched, "Wait, what?! Bitch, how long have you been a dyke, and why the fuck haven't you told me before now? No, scratch that, why are you telling Maxine first instead of me?! If she rewinds the conversation, she'll be the only one to remember it- this is bullshit!"

 

Rachel scoffed. "Y'know, I think that reaction is exactly why she hasn't told you yet, Vicky. Not everything revolves around you, no matter how much you think it does." she smirked at Dana and added, "But I have to say, this certainly explains why you were so into cuddling with me several nights a week back in our Junior year, D. And here I thought it was just because you were stressing over the grade requirements for being admitted onto the Extended Senior Year Program..."

 

That made Dana groan into the palm of her hand, as Taylor nervously glanced at Kate, clearly worried about how she'd react to two girls kissing. Victoria's poisonous influence, no doubt. She had nothing to fear though; I knew Kate wasn't like that- even if she wasn't also secretly into girls herself, which from the way she'd reacted around me recently, I'd bet she definitely was.

 

As predicted, Kate clasped her hands together in her lap and smiled at them. "So long as you're happy, it is not my place to judge." she looked down for a moment, then peeked back up. "And from the little glimpse I've gotten so far, you both seem happy. Seriously, how could I disagree when you're looking at each other like that?"

 

She wasn't wrong, that's for sure. This wasn't a pairing I'd seen coming, but now that it has... well, all I'll say is, they're gonna be Blackwell's most adorable couple- assuming it gets that far. And I have no doubt it will, because if this was a cartoon, there'd be giant love-hearts in their eyes right now. No joke.

 

I cleared my throat to get everyone's attention. "Alright, I think I've let you all torture them enough. A quick question though: Can anyone tell me if Victoria's being her usual bitchy self, or is she genuinely trying to sound homophobic? If it's the latter, I'd like to know now so that I can go back and tell Taylor to never bother coming out to her in the future."

 

Dana snickered before Victoria could answer. "Trust me, she's just acting like a selfish jerk- if there's any 'real' phobia there, it's all internalized. Her gay ass simply doesn't know how to find her own closet door, that's all."

 

When Victoria choked at that, Rachel nodded in agreement. "Yup, I totally concur with D's assessment. She's hella gay. I'm pretty sure the entirety of Blackwell already knows and accepts it apart from her- the legendary Stephanie Gingrich had her pegged from the very beginning, but we're still waiting for the day Vicky decides to pull those balls out of her overly-expensive purse and finally admits it to herself."

 

Giggling profusely at the furious-yet-suspiciously-horrified expression on Victoria's face, I raised my hand to rewind faster than she could open her mouth to deny any of it. Sorry, not sorry- the truth hurts. And I already knew she felt the need to lash out at everyone to protect her vulnerable insecurities, but it honestly wouldn't surprise me if her being gay is the main driving force behind a lot of that insecurity. No idea why though, considering she's at a liberal art school and her parents are big in the Seattle art scene; artists tend to be some of the most accepting of the LGBT community... and like Rachel said, I doubt people at Blackwell would care. Even if they did, they wouldn't dare say anything when she could flay them alive with a single glare, so what gives?

 

Of-course, since I'm such a dumb-ass, I almost overshot my rewind target trying to figure that out, and I hastily let go of my pull on time right as Taylor turned back towards me after having just discussed her options with Dana... so before she could blurt it out again, I quickly held up my hand. "Stop- you don't need to say it, I just rewound."

 

Taylor's jaw slammed shut. "Oh. Right. So..."

 

The smirk on my face immediately caused her to trail off, and I shot them both a sneaky wink while cryptically replying, "The bathroom makes a lot more sense now that I have the car for context. Oh, and by the way- I really don't think you need to worry about the others finding out, 'cause their reactions were exactly what you'd expect."

 

Dana's eyebrows hit the ceiling. "Well, shit... I'll be damned- you were actually being serious."

 

I sighed heavily. "Yes. Unfortunately. And now that you've been convinced... I guess it's story time. Fair warning, I probably won't be able to get through it without crying at-least once... so please don't interrupt, otherwise it'll take me forever to finish." then I threw myself backwards onto the bed and groaned aloud. "Fuck, I really don't wanna talk about this..."

 

Victoria crossed her arms. "Well you shoudn't have gone and said something so utterly ridiculous without explaining it, Maxine. And I'm not going to let this go until you do. Nor will I say sorry for pushing you, unless you can give me a damn-good reason to."

 

If only she understood the meaning of I lived it... Ugh. Come on, Max. Time's up. You might not be prepared to speak about what happened yet, but they should know exactly what... Chloe d-died for. Her sacrifice needs to be honoured, so just get it over with already, and then you'll never have to relive it again. Do it for Chloe. Do. It. For. Chloe!

 

Swallowing the lump in my throat, I forced myself to sit up, as I slowly exhaled to calm my nerves. "I suppose I should start by mentioning that I'm not the same Max you've all gotten to know over the past month since I arrived at Blackwell in September. That version of me was, uh- overwritten is the best way I can describe it... basically a few seconds before Chloe was s-shot in the bathroom."

 

Kate's brow furrowed. "Um, what does that mean?"

 

I shrugged. "Honestly, I'm not completely sure how the process works, however the important thing is I'm still me; don't worry, I haven't forgotten about our weekly tea dates or anything. I just might remember them going differently, because I've kinda got alternate memories now- for example, about the events that happen this week in particular. Unfortunately, I only have my memories to go on, and none from the Max who lived this life up until yesterday. Which makes jumping across timelines incredibly disorienting, especially when this one has already completely diverged from how my own timeline went... so I'm basically flying blind in uncharted territory here, and I hate it."

 

Rachel's eyes widened. "Hold on, you can jump timelines too? You left that part out when you were explaining your powers to us in the truck last night!"

 

I rolled my eyes at her. "Well, you would've probably asked me why I needed to do that at all, and there's no way I was having this talk with you right out of the gate. But suffice to say, yes- I can jump timelines by... focusing on a photograph of myself – I know, that sounds stupid, I don't understand it either – and it lets me go further back in time than my regular rewind does, although it's a temporary measure, until I get snapped forward to the point I jumped from... only to find things different than I left them. How else do you think I was able to save you? That was when I first arrived here, and the simple fact I had to fake a blackout so the Max of this timeline was none the wiser while I was in control... for all I know, it could've changed a lot about her life in the six months since then, nevermind the act of stopping you from walking into Jefferson's clutches that night. Which absolutely backfired, didn't it? Every damn time I use a photo to change the past, it just makes things worse somehow... I never seem to learn, and this time I can't fucking fix any it!"

 

She grabbed my hand then, and I inhaled sharply at the abruptness of it, as she quietly asked, "And by that, you mean... Chloe, I assume? Why not?"

 

Something between a furious growl and a heartbroken sob forced itself out of my throat. "Because the cosmic cunt of a butterfly god that I supposedly got these powers from won't fucking let me! Apparently, Chloe dying was the 'traumatic event' that triggered my powers to activate- so I'm not allowed to use them to stop it from happening, otherwise it scews with fate and tears the universe apart or some other bullshit nonsense that I don't really give a shit about right now."

 

Victoria scoffed in disbelief. "Maxine, you're doing a terrible job of making this sound believable... I mean, come on- a butterfly god gave you the ability to time travel? Seriously?"

 

I glared at her. "I can prove it. When I snapped foward after saving Rachel, I got spat out into the bathroom from a photo I'd taken of that very same butterfly, which shouldn't have happened as far as I'm aware, since I've always come back through the same photo I originally used when jumping into the past, and I didn't use that one. See for yourself."

 

Then I dove to the edge of the bed so I could grab my ever-present messenger bag, almost toppling overboard if it wasn't for Rachel's comforting iron-grip on my hand. The problem is, most of what happened in the bathroom had been a blur for me; I don't remember actually picking up the butterfly photo at the time, but... I just knew there was no way I'd leave it behind. It was my only link to Chloe – to fixing her death – even if I wasn't allowed to use it, the photo was all I had left to prove to myself that the week we shared really happened. That I hadn't imagined it, or had a psychotic breakdown over watching my childhood friend get murdered, or fuck knows what else a shrink would say to explain away such a crazy delusion if I ever tried talking to one about it. Yeah, no- definitely not happening, thanks.

 

It didn't take me long to find the polaroid – sitting there on top of everything else, almost like it was taunting me – so I pulled it out and carefully placed it on the bed for them all to see. "I took this right before Nathan walked into the bathroom. And when I got spat out into this timeline, the damn thing somehow co-opted my own powers so it could freeze time, then it spoke to me. Which was weird as fuck, because it was... y'know, a freaking butterfly."

 

Victoria took one look at the photo, and to my surprise, grumbled her approval. "Circumstances aside, that's not a bad shot, Maxine. As much as I hate to admit it."

 

Taylor studied the image, while humming under her breath. "Huh... I think I recognize this butterfly- if I'm right, it's a Charaxes Xiphares – also known as the Forest King Emperor – and is meant to be native to Nigeria; what the hell one is doing in the US, never-mind the girl's bathroom of a private school in Oregon, I have no idea. It doesn't make any sense."

 

Rachel shrugged. "It does if Max is telling the truth about it being a god. That butterfly is probably the form it takes when it's... uh, I dunno- trying to blend in with our world, or whatever."

 

Dana raised an eyebrow at Taylor. "Sorry, Tay- are we supposed to ignore the fact that you seem to be a butterfly nerd? Because I definitely didn't expect that."

 

Taylor blushed slightly and ducked her head, as she mumbled, "Ugh. I sort of had a... mild butterfly obsession when I was a kid, okay? I've never had a chance to put that to good use before, so let's- let's not make a big deal about it, please..."

 

I noticed Kate was frowning at the polaroid and hadn't said anything yet, so I gently asked, "You okay, Kate?"

 

She blinked out of whatever thoughts she'd been having and sighed softly. "Not to be rude, Max... but can you just keep going with the story? My crisis of faith is already bad enough, without having to consider the implications of there being another god floating amongst us as a butterfly."

 

I winced and nodded. "Sure. So... this whole thing began on Monday, before the bathroom happened... when I fell asleep in Photography class-"

 

Victoria interrupted me. "Oh, I remember that- you almost fell out of your chair after you woke up."

 

I huffed in annoyance. "That still happened in this timeline? Huh... interesting, yet I'm talking about what happened in mine. Anyways, the reason that I almost fell out of my chair is because I had some kind of dream, or nightmare – although I think calling it a vision would be more fitting – of a giant tornado approaching Arcadia Bay. It felt so real; I could literally feel the electricity of the storm in the air... and it rattled me so much that I went to the bathroom after class to splash water on my face. I took the butterfly photo, then Nathan walked in, muttering to himself about owning the school and saying that he could blow it up if he wanted to. That's when C-Chloe barged in, though I didn't know it was her at the time, and... they argued, but then Nathan pulled out a g-gun. I was still hidden in the corner behind the stalls, absolutely shitting myself, and by the time I convinced myself to step in, it was already t-too late... he s-shot her. J-Just like he did y-yesterday-"

 

Rachel's fingernails dug into the back of my palm, so hard that she was probably drawing blood – not that I cared right now – although it succeeded in stopping me from dwelling on the memory, and allowed me to continue. "However, unlike this timeline... as I watched her hit the floor, time seemed to slow to a crawl, until it started going in reverse, and then all of a sudden I was back in Photography class, waking up from the tornado vision again. Except now I could apparently rewind time. So... take a wild guess what I did next..."

 

Victoria hesitated for a moment, before hitting the nail on the head. "You... stopped her from dying, didn't you?"

 

I clenched the hand that Rachel wasn't holding into a fist. "Of-fucking-course I did. How could I not? I saved her by breaking the fire alarm in the bathroom. And I guess because I'm not 'allowed' to do that, it set off a chain of events which caused fate to send that very same tornado I'd had a vision of, to wipe out the town on Friday. I only got to spend five days reconnecting with Chloe... and we spent all of it investigating the mysterious disappearance of Rachel Amber, who'd been missing for the last six months." I turned my attention to her and added, "It... it didn't end well; we managed to find your body, buried in the Junkyard- you'd been dead for quite some time already. And then the tornado's arrival blindsided us, and Chloe guessed that me saving her is what caused the storm, so she... she told me to go back and let her die. Either that, or let the entire town get decimated."

 

Rachel inhaled sharply. "Shit."

 

I snorted sadly. "Shit is right. It was an impossible choice. One that I couldn't make. Instead, I decided to try and save your life, since Chloe had once joked about the storm being your revenge on the town that you couldn't escape from. So I hoped saving you would maybe somehow stop the tornado from happening, and stop Chloe from having a reason to confront Nathan, so that the three of us would have a chance to become hella best friends forever... although thanks to the butterfly god, it turns out I didn't have a choice at all. Right after I warned you, it dragged me back to the bathroom in this timeline and forced me to watch Chloe die. Again. For good. And despite my intervention... you were still supposed to be dead, because I guess the butterfly god had to revert all the changes I'd made, to ensure the bathroom event played out the same way... only for some reason, you didn't die as it intended. Even the butterfly god hadn't been expecting that; it told me your survival was an 'anomaly', which now I suspect is because you also have powers, just like me."

 

Dana leaned forward. "Wait, Rachel has powers, too? You can't say that and not tell us what they are!"

 

Rachel rolled her eyes. "My power is fire. I'm basically a human fireball. And no, I won't show you. I don't want to set off the hospital's sprinker system, and I'd much rather focus on the fact that I'm apparently meant to be dead."

 

Victoria nodded in agreement. "Yeah. It feels like you've only given us the cliff-notes version about what happened in your timeline, Maxine. I'd like to know how Rachel died, and for you to explain how this all ties into Jefferson and Nathan supposedly being the ones who drugged us, since you've conveniently avoided mentioning them so far. Give us the damn details."

 

My fist slammed onto the bed as I growled, "Fine- you want details? Here's the fucking details! When Chloe and I were searching for information about Rachel, our sleuthing eventually led us out to an abandoned barn in the woods that was owned by the Prescotts. And underneath said barn, was a fully-stocked survival bunker, with state of the art photography equipment inside. It was an underground Dark Room, built and maintained by Sean Prescott. I guarantee you, that barn is where we were taken after Nathan or Jefferson drugged us. And do you want to know what they did while we were there? They took disgusting fucking photos of us, Jefferson especially, because he has some sick artistic obsession about capturing the moment innocence turns into corruption. How do I know this? Because like I said earlier, I fucking lived it!"

 

Taking a deep breath to stop myself from screaming in frustration, I reluctantly continued. "During the course of our hunt for Rachel, all the clues pointed to Nathan being involved with her disappearance; after we tracked him to the barn and discovered the Dark Room, we found photos of Rachel down there that led us to her dead fucking body, caused by an overdose, and we stupidly assumed he was the only one responsible. So naturally, Chloe wanted to confront him... and we walked straight into a trap set by Jefferson instead. He fucking m-murdered Chloe in the Junkyard, right in-front of me, then he d-drugged me. I- I woke up in the Dark Room tied to a fucking chair! Even just thinking about it, I can still f-feel the freaking tape on my wrists, and hear the click of his c-camera... So I wouldn't lie about this, okay?! And the only other way I could possibly prove it to you is by taking you all to where the Dark Room is located, but that's definitely not happening. I never want to go back there- please, d-don't make me go b-back there... I c-can't, not again..."

 

I hated how pathetic my voice sounded when I trailed off at the end, yet there was nothing I could do to stop it, or the tsunami of tears from flooding down my cheeks, as the sound of my sobs began to echo throughout the deathly-silent hospital room. I'd tried so fucking hard to forget about my time in the Dark Room; and now all I could see was Jefferson's smug face leering at me over the top of his ridiculously-expensive camera. The box that I'd shoved everything related to the Dark Room into had finally sprung a leak, made infinitely worse by the knowledge that he'd also managed to somehow get me multiple times in this timeline, too...

 

Honestly, I'm not sure how long my mini-breakdown lasted for; the only thing I was aware of as I laid there curled up in the fetal position was Rachel's arm wrapped tightly around me, while Kate gently held the hand that hadn't already been squeezed to death, and Dana soothingly rubbed circles against my back. So by the time I'd run out of tears to produce, suffice to say that I was in no state to finish explaining the other details about the Week of Hell. You know, stuff like mentioning Kate's attempted suicide, or confessing to Rachel what I did to Chloe and William in the alt-timeline – fuck don't think about that or I'll start crying all over again – or even the fact that Victoria got caught by Jefferson in the original timeline and it was all my fault... Although, now that I think about it- I'd be better off bringing up those things with each of them in private, so it's probably for the best anyway.

 

We spent the next few hours in uncomfortable silence, just sitting there – or in my case laying there moping – as everyone else slowly came to terms with the horrifying truth; that our own teacher and fellow classmate really were monsters lurking in the shadows, waiting to snatch us up when we least expected it. Until eventually, far too soon for my liking, a fairly old nurse came by to inform us our kits were done being processed and that Doctor-slash-Nurse Jane would be waiting for us in the so-called 'VIP Lounge' whenever we were ready.

 

Seeing no point in delaying the inevitable, we set off immediately, using the nearby directional map on the wall to navigate our way towards this fancy VIP Lounge, which was oddly-located in a far corner on the opposite side of the floor from us.

 

When we got there, we unsurprisingly found Jane already waiting for us. The poor woman looked utterly exhausted; much worse than any of us did, and despite the smile she gave at our arrival, I could tell it was forced- there was something in her eyes that gave it away.

 

Ever since we found out we'd all been drugged and decided to take those kits just in-case, I hadn't been able to shake the terrifying thought in the back of my mind that our results weren't going to be good. Needless to say, what I saw on her face right now had me bracing for the worst, as the four of us – plus Dana and Taylor – sat down on the many comfy-looking leather armchairs and couches in the room.

 

Once we were settled, Jane gave a strained greeting. "Afternoon, girls. Were you able to get any sleep since we last spoke?"

 

Kate shrugged nervously. "Hi, Jane. Um... we got some sleep- not much, though. What about you? I thought you said you only worked the night shift?"

 

She yawned almost on cue. "I do. And normally, I would've gone home to sleep hours ago... yet in all my years of working at various hospitals around the US, I've never encountered a situation quite like yours. So rather than pass your kits off to the day shift when they were half-way processed, I felt the need to see them through to the end myself. Which meant I only managed to nap for an hour or so in the staff room, while I waited for the results to finalize."

 

Apparently, I wasn't the only one to notice the tension in her, because Victoria grumbled, "Enough with the pleasantries- tell us the bad news already."

 

Jane pursed her lips. "Okay, but first... girls, are you sure you don't want me to do this in private with each of you?"

 

For some reason, she pointedly looked straight at me when she asked that, and I had to swallow the impossibly-large lump in my throat before answering for everyone, considering this trip had been my idea to begin with. "Yes. Whatever you have to say, you can say it in-front of all of us- Dana and Taylor included."

 

When the others all agreed, I silently breathed a sigh of relief that they were letting me take the lead on this- not that I had any idea how to handle it, of-course.

 

Jane leaned forward and cleared her throat. "Very well, I won't beat around the bush then. I'm afraid that all four of your kits have come back with traces of semen..."

 

And just like that, my terrifying thoughts became reality.

 

Rachel abruptly sat up. "Excuse me- did you say all of them?!"

 

Victoria glanced my way with wide eyes. "Even mine?"

 

Kate stared blankly at her, struggling to comprehend the ramifications.

 

Jane took a second to look at each of us, before running a hand through her hair. "Unfortunately, yes... and it gets worse."

 

Dana sucked in a breath. "Oh, fuck..."

 

Taylor attempted to place a comforting hand on Victoria's shoulder, and scoffed. "How could it possibly get any worse than that?"

 

Jane pulled a folded piece of paper out of one of her many pockets and studied it for a moment before answering. "Because when I examined the samples we took, I was expecting them to match since the girls had come to test for GHB together, yet not all of them did; it seems that between the four kits, there were two seperate sets of DNA, indicating two attackers. Some only had one or the other, but some had both. Would you still like me to continue?"

 

I sighed heavily. "Please just get it over with. I bet I'm one of us who had both, aren't I?"

 

She nodded sadly. "Yes, and I'm sorry to say that your body had significantly more... trauma than everyone else, not that this kind of thing can be compared-" she glanced back at the paper before adding, "As for the others... Kate also had both sets, as-well. However, Rachel only had the first, and Victoria had the second. I really wish I had better news for you, girls. I can only imagine how you must be feeling."

 

Well, judging by past-me's journal entries, I've been taken to the Dark Room three fucking times already, so me getting the 'worst' of it kinda tracks. If I wasn't so emotionally drained I'd probably be laughing at my ridiculously shitty luck- or at-least acting a little more shocked. As it is, I simply felt numb. From the moment I entered this timeline, it's been one bombshell after another and I have nothing left to give at this point. I think a part of me must've been expecting this outcome, and I can't help wondering if the Dark Room was this bad in my timeline; I mean, the only parts I remember were when I'd been conscious enough to jump through those photos of me, and it's not like I was naked in any of them... but I'm not sure how long I was there before David saved me – hours I assume – plenty of time for Jeffershit to have done more than take photos, right?

 

Kate looked like she was gonna be sick, and she wasn't the only one- perhaps eating breakfast right before this wasn't such a good idea...

 

I released a shaky breath. "When you say my body had more trauma... what exactly do you mean?" The grimace on her face had me backpedalling immediately, "Actually, nevermind. Forget I asked. I don't want to know."

 

Rachel glared at the table, exhibiting impressive restraint to not set the flimsy wooden thing on fire, as she bluntly growled, "Just to make sure I'm understanding this correctly, you're saying that not only were all four of us drugged... we were raped as-well? And by two different people?"

 

Jane tilted her head in consideration. "Every single one of you told us you hadn't had consensual sex in the last five days, during the time period you think the attacks took place, so it certainly seems that way. Now, the only question I have is, what do you want to do? We can turn your kits over to the police as evidence if you'd like to take things further- there's no shame if you don't want to, though. And you don't have to make a choice now; we'll keep them safely stored away until you've come to a decision, and will hold onto them even if you'd rather do nothing, so there's no rush. They'll still be here in the event you change your minds in the future."

 

When I glanced at the others to gauge their intentions, I half expected Kate to be the most conflicted about it, given her whole forgiveness thing... but when our eyes met, there was a hard defiance in her gaze – an unspoken promise of vengeance, surprisingly – and I nodded in acknowledgement as I turned back to Jane. "Store them for now. We'll need to discuss it first, but if we do decide to proceed, I have a contact in the ABPD who you can give the evidence to. His name is Anderson Berry- he'll look into it for us. Do not turn our kits over to the police unless he's the one asking for them."

 

She raised an eyebrow at my odd stipulation, then rummaged around in another of her pockets and pulled out a stack of what I could only assume were some kind of business cards. "I see. In that case, I'll give you all my info and you can pass it onto him. And if you girls have any further questions about the specifics of your kit results, you're welcome to call me yourselves, too."

 

Inspecting the card she gave to me, I saw that it was plain white, simply stamped with the hospital's name and logo, alongside her own name and number. After quickly adding her as a contact to my phone, I safely tucked the card in my messenger bag.

 

Kate hesitantly spoke up, her voice barely a whisper. "Um... what happens now? I don't- what do we do?"

 

In response, Jane lifted a small plastic bag into her lap from behind her chair, pulling out several different pamphlets... as-well as four clearly-marked boxes that made my blood run cold. "These leaflets will outline potential next steps, plus recommendations for various people and organizations to reach out to should you feel the need. Also, because none of you were on birth control, and it's already beyond the time-frame for Plan B to be effective – except for Rachel and possibly Victoria – I took the liberty of acquiring pregnancy tests for everyone, out of my own pocket. I suggest that you don't use them just yet, though- it's most likely too soon for any of you to get accurate results. It'll be best to wait until your next periods are due, and if they seem to be coming later than normal, then you should take the tests."

 

While Jane began going over some of the things in the leaflets, I immediately zoned out as my mind kicked into overdrive. Because unlike Rachel, Kate, and Victoria, I've been drugged three times- which according to what I'd read in my journal last night; the first 'blackout' happened on my damn birthday, the second occurred three days later, and the third was five days ago on October 3rd. So if the latest one is what Jane is basing my kit results off, and she's saying my body has more trauma than the others, then... I can only assume that means I was also raped three times. Not only that, but my fucking period is already late. Sure, it's been late before sometimes, except never by more than two days. And I was too distracted with everything else to notice before now that it still hadn't come when I woke up this morning, so... that makes it three days. Fuck.

 

Abruptly shooting to my feet, I casually swiped up one of the pregnancy tests – feeling incredibly embarrassed that she'd bought them herself – tossed it into my messenger bag, and gasped out an excuse to leave. "This is too much- I think I need some fresh air."

 

Rachel frowned in concern. "Do you... want me to go with you?"

 

Ah, crap- I should've seen that coming.

 

I shrugged, hoping she couldn't hear the panic in my voice. "N-No, I'll be okay. I mean, unless you're willing to come to the morgue with me to see Chloe – 'cause I'm heading down there afterwards – before we go back to Blackwell, or whatever it is we're doing next."

 

She shuffled uncomfortably. "Ugh... sorry, I'm so not ready for that yet."

 

I nodded in understanding. "It's fine. Neither am I, honestly- so I probably won't be down there for long. I'll... see you guys when I'm done bawling my eyes out, I guess." Turning to Jane, I gave her a tight smile, "It was really nice to meet you, Jane. Thanks for all the help. I – we – owe you for going above and beyond for us."

 

Then before she could reply or anyone else could stop me, I half-ran half-stumbled out of the room, blindly navigating my way through the halls until I came across the bathroom we'd previously used for our drug tests. I hovered indecisively outside the door, debating whether I wanted to do this or not. Eventually, the need to calm my anxiety at not knowing the truth won out, so I hesitantly shoved open the door and locked myself inside a stall before I could change my mind.

 

Frankly, there was no point in me doing this- thanks to my terrible luck, I could already predict what'd happen; because deep down, I already knew – even without the two lines staring me right in the face, like double middle fingers from the universe itself – that the test would only confirm the obvious: I was pregnant...

 

It took me a ridiculously long time to actually accept what I was seeing, and much longer to fight against the overwhelming urge to puke my freaking guts out. I have no idea what I'm gonna do about it, but one thing is certain- nobody can know. I had enough to deal with as it is, though so do the others, and the last thing I wanted to do was pile more bullshit on them. Besides, there's only one person I would've considered telling regardless, and she's fucking dead now. So as much as I didn't want to face Chloe, it seems a trip to the morgue really was going to be my next destination. Fan-fucking-tastic!

 

Once I'd finally composed myself enough to not look like a complete nervous wreck, I ducked back out of the bathroom as if nothing was wrong – nothing else, anyway – and swiftly walked in the direction of the elevator. When I got there, I rode straight down to the basement levels, and it only took me a few moments to find the morgue. Luckily, nobody tried to stop me along the way. Not that they'd be able to.

 

Steeling myself for what I was about to do, I shoved the morgue's heavy double doors open, and startled a young man sitting at a desk inside – presumably the medical examiner – who spun around in his chair to face me. "Ah, I heard I might be getting a visitor today. Miss... Caulfield, I presume? Or is it Miss Amber?"

 

I halted in my tracks, and subconsciously reached for my powers, already not liking the look of this guy one bit – apparently I'm just naturally suspicious of all men now, thanks to Jeffershit – as I awkwardly cleared my throat. "Y-Yeah... the first one. I'm, uh- I'm here to see C-Chloe Price?"

 

He nodded at me and pointed across the room. "Of-course. She's in the middle row, third drawer from the left. Take all the time you need. I'll be waiting outside when you're done."

 

Then he rose to his feet, and I refused to take my eyes off him until he'd walked out of the room. Only once the doors shut behind him did I turn around and apprehensively approached the wall of drawers containing the deceased.

 

Locating the drawer he'd mentioned, I grabbed the handle, and... totally fucking froze. Damn it- come on, Max. You wanted to see her – speak to her – one last time, so don't chicken out now.

 

Summoning the last spark of courage that remained after this hellish twenty-four hours, I re-adjusted my grip and fiercely yanked the drawer open, coming face to face with the consequences of my actions...

 

My eyes instantly watered, and I willed myself not to start crying again, as I stared down at her lifeless face... struggling to process how unnaturally still and pale she looked.

 

I took a single shaky breath, and was unable to prevent the word-vomit that came pouring out along with it. "Chloe... I'm sorry. I'm so fucking sorry. I tried to fix everything... I tried to give Rachel back to you, but fate intervened and screwed us both. I didn't want this, anything but this. Why couldn't I just be happy with you? Why did I have to keep fucking around with time? All it did was make things worse! Rachel might be alive, yet you're dead, and the Dark Room is even more sinister in this timeline than it seemed in ours; not only did Jeffershit still get his hands on Rachel, he also got Kate, and... I'm not quite sure what happened with Victoria since she wasn't dumped behind the football bleachers like the rest of us, though I'm guessing that one was somehow Nathan's doing. Oh, and Jeffershit even managed to drag me to the Dark Room three fucking times already, and as if that's not bad enough... dog, they fucking raped us, Chloe- they raped us! And now I'm fucking pregnant! So tell me, how the hell am I gonna get through this without my childhood best friend?!"

 

The resulting silence shredded my already broken heart.

 

My lips trembled. "Please, tell me what I'm supposed to do. I can't handle this on my own. I need you, Chloe..."

 

Of-course, nothing happened.

 

What the fuck were you expecting, Max?

 

Chloe can't tell you shit, because she's dead...

 

Did you think her ghost would pop up to reassure you that everything will be okay?

 

Well too bad, she's gone- and it's all your fucking fault!

 

Understanding the finality of the situation, the last thread of hope I'd stupidly been clinging to was ripped out of my grasp, and I collapsed to the freezing-cold floor like a puppet who's strings were cut, as all the emotions I'd been desperately holding inside ever since the bathroom incident came flooding out of the vault I'd locked them into...

 

I don't know how long I'd been laying there for, though I'd clearly gotten so distracted with sobbing out my guilt and self-loathing that I didn't even hear the doors opening, until I felt a pair of arms circle around me and I panicked for a moment thinking the creepy medical examiner dude had come back in. But then I smelled Rachel's telltale jasmine perfume and realized she must've come to check on me. I didn't think it would be possible, yet that only made me cry harder, and I simply curled up into her lap while she struggled to soothe my full-blown breakdown by stroking her fingers through my tangled hair.

 

After what felt like an eternity, I twisted so that I was looking up at her and hiccupped, "Th-thank you, Rachel. But, um... what are you doing here- I thought you didn't want to come?"

 

It was only at that moment I noticed she'd been crying too, and I tentatively reached up to wipe away a rogue tear as she sniffled, "I didn't. I dont. Yet I knew you needed me. I dunno how to explain it, I just... knew."

 

I frowned in confusion and urged, "Try. Please."

 

Rachel fidgeted beneath me for a second, then gently grabbed my rewind hand, and the resulting jolt that passed between us reverberated all the way up my arm. "You felt that too, didn't you?" when I nodded, she slowly explained, "I was busy packing my stuff with the others back in our hospital room... when all of a sudden, my hand – the one I use my own powers with – randomly started doing the tingly thing again, and since it only did that once before while we were in close proximity and crying our freaking eyes out in the dorm hallway, I kinda assumed it meant you needed me or something, so I came as fast as I could. Guess I was right, huh?"

 

I swallowed heavily, realizing how close our faces were. "Y-Yeah, I guess you were..."

 

Her gaze suddenly flickered to my lips and stayed there, causing my lungs to seize in anticipation. Even-though this was definitely not the time or place, a recently-awoken part of me was curious – almost eager, in-fact – to see if she was about to actually try kissing me without the excuse of being half-asleep, or saying she was playing mind games with me like earlier. However, just when I imagined her maybe starting to lean down, we were once more rudely interrupted by the morgue doors slamming open, and she jumped away so fast that her head banged loudly against the wall of drawers.

 

Rachel rubbed the back of her head, glaring at the medical examiner as he walked inside. "Shit, that hurt."

 

He winced. "I apologize for startling you both. I know I said to take all the time you need, though I'm afraid you'll have to cut it short- a body has come in from Seaside that requires an immediate autopsy, so I need my morgue back. Sorry."

 

Climbing unsteadily to my feet, I hastily scrubbed my face and hoped I didn't look as awful as I felt. "Oh. Alright. But, uh... can we have a minute to say- say goodbye first?"

 

The guy laced his hands behind his back. "Sure, I'll be outside. Close the drawer when you're done."

 

Once he was gone, I turned to offer my hand to Rachel, who hesitated briefly before accepting my help to stand up. "Rachel, you don't have to do this if you're not ready..."

 

Her face hardened. "You know damn-well that I do. Even if I don't want to."

 

Then she spun on her heel to look down at Chloe for the first time, and the mask she'd just attempted to hide behind completely disintegrated at the sight of her laying there.

 

I wasn't aware she'd continued to hold my hand until the death-grip started threatening to cut off my circulation, but I squeezed back even harder as I pathetically whined, "I don't know how to survive this. She was my Captain- my... my Partner in Time. I'm nothing without Chloe. I never was. From the very first day we met on the elementary school playground, my world revolved around her. Then my parents dragged me off to Seattle, and thanks to my anxiety, I abandoned Chloe to deal with the death of William all by herself. Some best friend I was, huh?" My throat closed up, yet I forced myself to keep going, finally voicing my chaotic thoughts aloud. "This is my karma, my fault... all of it. If I hadn't-"

 

But before I could gain momentum, my tirade was abruptly cut off by Rachel's free hand clamping over my mouth; her grip strangely gentle as she forced me to stare at her instead of Chloe, while she growled, "No. We are not having that conversation. Not here. As for how you survive this... you lean on me. We lean on each other. Just take it one day at a time- that's all we can do. Understood?"

 

Despite not believing that'd be anywhere near enough, I nodded wordlessly, and she reluctantly removed her hand from my jaw.

 

Rachel turned back to Chloe, and my insides twisted at the gutted expression on her face as she whispered, "I'm sorry, Chlo- I should've been there with you. I would've taken that damn bullet for you without hesitation. Hell, maybe that's why you actually listened to me for once and went to meet Nathan without me, so I wouldn't be there to throw myself head-first into danger like I did with Damon when we first met..." She squeezed her eyes shut, and I resisted the stupid urge to reach out again when several tears slipped free. "Babe, do you remember that time we played truth or dare, when I asked what you'd do if Max ever came back into your life, and you recited a whole-ass bucket list of crazy shit? Well, since you didn't get the chance do anything... I'm gonna cross it off for you. All of them. And if you have a problem with that, I suggest you find a way to haunt me from beyond the grave, otherwise... I'll take care of your Max. That's a promise. G-Goodbye, Chlo. I love you. We both do."

 

I sucked in a stunned breath and glanced at Rachel to see her staring back at me with determination, and the knowing glint in her eyes told me there was no point denying the last part, so I returned my attention to Chloe. "Yeah... I- I love you, Chloe Elizabeth Price. Forever and always, until the end of time. I'll never forget you. Give Bloody Bill a hug from your First Mate, won't you?"

 

Then before I could do something stupid, I grabbed the handle of the drawer Chloe was in, and painstakingly closed it with Rachel's help.

 

The agony in my heart numbed all over again, as we shuffled out of the morgue like the undead – entirely ignoring the patiently-waiting medical examiner – and only when we entered the elevator did I catch onto the fact that Rachel was still firmy holding onto my hand. And honestly, I had no energy left to care- let alone the strength to pull away from her. So I just... didn't bother. Hella awkward or not, her warm and comforting touch was the only thing keeping me even remotely sane at this point, after learning I was freaking pregnant on top of everything fucking else...

Notes:

I'm sorry, I tried to give you all a heads-up well in advance without outright spoiling it that something terrible was coming, so please don't hurt me. I didn't like writing this anymore than you guys liked reading it, and- no... wait, put those pitchforks down! I'm not the monster here, I swear!

*Locks herself in her writer's panic room*

*Ahem* Right... so, just to clarify- in-case it wasn't obvious, I'm not going to be shying away from the topics of rape and pregnancy. I intend to handle them tastefully - to the best of my ability - all while exploring the feelings that arise, the decisions needing to be made, and the long-lasting consequences which stem from those choices. And even-though it may seem like an out-of-the-blue addition to an already dark story without being Chloe around, I had always planned on having a more sinister Jefferson in this timeline, as a result of Max attempting to defy fate by saving Rachel. (Because Chloe's death was simply 'the natural order of things', rather than a direct cause of Max's actions, it meant I had to find another way to portray the after-shocks of her intervention, due to the god butterfly being unable to affect Rachel and reverse the changes.) In-fact, those who've read my 'Pricefield - Time Warriors' fanfic may remember a scene involving an Alternate version of Max describing something similar happening to her; so there's already precedent for me writing this, except that was merely used as a last-minute shock device without any follow-up, whereas this time it's an integral part of the plotline and will be properly fleshed out.

Since I know some people don't like such topics being brought up in LIS fics - especially when it comes to Max getting pregnant because of the Dark Room, which I'm aware is particularly hated and understandably so - if any of you wish to bow out, then I accept and respect your decision with no hard feelings. However, for those sticking around- while this story is still going to get worse at first, it will also eventually get better, I promise. Max might've lost Chloe, yet she won't have to deal with things alone- none of the girls will. Together they can overcome anything. I'm a sucker for happy endings, that's all I'm gonna say...

And now I've finally completed this arc, I'm not sure when the next chapter will be ready - hopefully soon though - so I'll see ya'll next time, whenever that is! :)

Notes:

If you have feedback, I'll gladly take it! Just know that Chloe herself most likely won't be featured in future chapters so don't bother complaining about the lack of Chloe... because I agree with you, but I have other fics with Chloe (including PTW which is probably my pride-and-joy at this point) that you can read if this one isn't an option for you. :)