Chapter Text
Escape
March 2008 - Seattle - Max
'I have to see her,' Max thought as she finished picking the lock to her bedroom window with a pair of hairpins.
She'd been practicing the technique for the past few weeks after her last failed attempt to get back to Arcadia Bay, back home, back to her Chloe. Biting her lip, she felt the lock give, stifling her victory cry. Honestly, she had lost count of her numerous escape efforts. The first few had been unambitious, easily foiled. Later, she'd tried and failed to hitchhike, stolen money from her parents to go by bus or cab, flat out run and slept rough - whatever crazy scheme came to mind, she tried. Every time, she somehow got caught, adding much harder obstacles for her next attempt. Well, not this time.
The young girl took one last look at her room, or maybe prison cell was a better word to use. It was the dead of night, her alarm clock reading 01:25 A.M. A street light outside her window dimly illuminated her surroundings. There was very little left in her room, mostly confiscated as a punishment or because it had been used in an escape attempt at one time. Just the basics, making it feel even less like home than it already did. There was nothing tying her to Seattle, unlike Arcadia.
No precious memories. No happiness. No Chloe.
Grabbing her duffel bag, she stuffed it out the window, letting it fall into the flower bed outside with a soft thud. Holding her breath, she listened out for telltale signs of movement. No point going through with this if she was going to get caught at the first hurdle. Hearing nothing, she swung her legs over the ledge, turning onto her stomach and lowering herself down. Feeling the small bushes with her feet, she figured it was only a short drop to the ground, so let herself fall. The impact made her stumble, landing on her backside in the damp grass.
'Ugh, that's all I need. A wet ass for my long ass trip...' she thought to herself, grinning as she got up. Stage one complete. Brushing herself off, she hoisted her duffle bag onto her shoulders and made her way down the street.
It took her less than an hour to find the main highway, leading out of Seattle back to Arcadia. She walked on the grass verge running parallel to the road, trainers long soaked by mildew. There was a chill in the air, making her shiver despite the hoodie she'd remembered to wear this time - a lesson learned the hard way. Her need to make it to Chloe overrode any discomfort she was feeling now.
As she trudged through the damp grass, she managed a smile at her daring escape; she'd already made it further than last time. Then, she'd made it to the bus depot only to find her father already waiting for her. Her stomach and heart re-lived the sinking feeling she felt that day, yet another failure to add to the ever-growing list. The following conversation had been less than pleasant...
"She needs me, dad. And I need her," the young girl screamed at her father, tears running down her red blotchy face upon entering their home on the outskirts of Seattle.
He gave her a pitying look, finally letting go of her wrist and locking the door. She had noticed how haggard and stressed he'd seemed recently but was too preoccupied with her own problems to find out why. He probably wouldn't tell her anyway. "Max, I know how you feel, but..."
His attempt to console her was shot down almost instantly by the emotional thirteen-year-old. "You don't know how I feel. I'll tell you, though. Even if you don't really care. I... feel like there's part of me missing." Instinctively, she hunched in on herself, wanting to cry all over again. She hated this.
Unsympathetic, her mom scoffed at what she probably considered a melodramatic remark. Max glared at her, despair turning to a newfound rage she'd never experienced before. Right now, she wanted to lash out, smash everything she could get her hands on, scream at the top of her lungs until her throat was red raw. Why didn't they understand? Why did nobody care? Why had they even moved in the first place?
Why?!
"Silly schoolgirl crush..." her mother muttered, as she traced a finger around the rim of her half-full glass.
All the anger drain from the young teen, cheeks burning as the realization struck her. In that moment, something clicked into place, everything suddenly making sense. "I like... really like Chloe... wowzers..." she muttered to herself, not knowing whether to laugh or cry.
A loud smash filled the room as pieces of broken glass and the contents spilled across the table, causing both Max and Ryan to stop and look over at Vanessa. " We should've moved sooner..."
The ensuing argument resulted in Max barricading herself in her room, curled up on her bed and crying herself to sleep as her mother screamed at her father. Soon after, the young teen found herself under constant supervision. Her phone was confiscated by her mother, she was escorted to and from class and pretty much confined to her room. Practically a prisoner in her own 'home' - and she used that in the loosest of terms for this instance.
Her father had gone to stay with his brother on the opposite side of Seattle, leaving Max alone with her increasingly strict mother. The more the woman tried to police her, the more determined her daughter became to escape. Call it teen rebellion or whatever. She spent her time practicing lock picking, slowing preparing a duffel bag and using the school library to figure out how long it would take to walk back to Arcadia. Now, she was putting her plan into action. Her mom checked on her regularly every couple hours, so she had time to make good progress before alerting her.
With no time to lose, she pushed forward. As she walked, Max reminisced over an old photo - her and Chloe's last Halloween together, both dressed as pirates - a giddy grin plastered to her face. She couldn't help but let out a giggle as she let the realization of her feelings warmed her from the inside out. No amount of cold could douse this flame.
Folding the picture, she placed it in her back pocket while happily muttering, "I'm coming, Chloe."
THWAMP!
Next thing she knew, she was face down in the dirt. The back of her head throbbed from the force of the blow knocking her to the ground. Before she could react, Max felt a firm hand on her shoulder and a sharp pinch in her neck. The world darkened around the edges, vision blurred as she lost consciousness.
'Chloe...'
She was in Chloe’s backyard, pushing the young blonde on the swing set. The daredevil girl had been trying to making it over the bar all summer, getting closer each time. Today, she had postponed her attempt in favor of chatting with Max, but the brunette’s mind was elsewhere – gone on autopilot as she pushed.
“Yo, Max. You listening?” she called out, sounding a little annoyed.
Shaking her head, Max focused back on reality. “What… sorry, I spaced out.”
“When don’t you?” she replied wryly. “We’re supposed to be planning our future here. Very important stuff.”
“Right, sorry,” the younger girl said, hanging her head at being called out. Around Chloe, she could just chill but maybe she needed to focus a little more.
“And quit apologizing. Just pay attention,” Chloe demanded, gently swinging her feet to gain some height.
Done pushing, Max took up a spot on the see-saw next to the swing, idly pushing back and forth on the balls of her feet. “What do you truly want to do when you grow up?”
That made the blonde scoff as she came to a stop. “Max, I’m already grown up. What about you?”
“Travel,” Max replied with a smile. “That would be awesome. Explore the world. Go far from here…”
“Far from me? Thanks a lot, dude,” Chloe pouted playfully.
“Dude, you would totally come with me!” the brunette corrected swiftly. “I need a bodyguard for our adventures!”
That made the older girl grin. “I would be like Lara Croft, except real. That would be majorly cool.”
“Totally! We’d have cars and boats and planes all over for instant escape! And no adults could tell us what to do!” Max planned, her voice getting more excited with each word.
Nodding, Chloe looked just as thrilled by the prospect. “Count me in. What would you do while I was bodyguarding you?”
“Maybe take pictures of our adventures,” Max replied hesitantly. “I would love to be a photographer. As if I ever could be…”
“What are you talking about? Max, you are a photographer,” the other girl stated firmly. “Your pictures could be in a museum. Someday they will. I believe in you…”
Her encouragement made the brunette smile again. “How can I fail with your faith behind me?”
“Exactly!” Chloe exclaimed, leaning over to lightly nudging her friend’s shoulder. “You can’t, so don’t even doubt it. I’m like a good luck charm or something.”
“Guess I’ll be keeping you around, then,” Max added with a stifled grin.
“Pfft, you’d better.” The blonde girl held out her hand, pinkie finger extended. “Pinkie promise?”
Max linked her finger with Chloe’s, sealing the deal. “Pinkie promise.”
The memory faded away in a swirling darkness, leaving her with nothing but harsh words from another time. “You’re dead to me! Just fuck off! I don’t NEED you!”