mypartnerintime | IC Inbox

[ Shit. Chloe's quiet for a while. There's not a way to answer this that makes anyone feel better, probably. ]

Not knowing what's going to happen when you already know something is wrong is definitely worse. I - ... I'd rather know how things turn out than be in the dark about them when I already know someone is missing or know that there's a death that could happen.

But she doesn't know she goes missing. She doesn't know about Nathan or Jefferson being total fucking creeps. She's completely in the dark and the worst she thinks is going on is probably just being stuck in that fucking town with her piece of shit family. How can I tell her how much worse it gets?

She'd probably burn the fucking town down.

Oh.

[The worst part is that Chloe absolutely has a point, and now Max can't think of any solutions at all. Maybe she should stop treating it as a problem to be solved - should stop treating most things with Chloe as a problem to be solved, in all honesty - and just be there for her.

She's quiet for a little while. There's too many emotions swirling inside her, a whole mix of things she barely even understands. She really thought Rachel would make things better for Chloe, and she still will, right? And how's Max supposed to feel about all of that...? What's she even allowed to feel about any of it?]

...It'll get better. I'm sure, Chloe. You spent years with her before everything went wrong.

[Still, she remembers how Chloe sounded in the junkyard, remembers the dirt stuck to her fingernails, remembers the taste and sting of bile rising up her throat when they found Rachel, Rachel Amber, who's here now, alive and well and not in the ground-... She can't think about it. Shouldn't.]

Where are you guys now, anyway? When do I get to meet her?

Edited 2019-06-11 23:17 (UTC)

[ It doesn't feel like it will get better. But some part of her knows that maybe she's right. That the smell of her in that hole, the way that her skin or what was left of it really had looked, would all be slowly replaced by seeing her smile and smelling her shampoo. She still smelled like jasmine, she'd been able to tell as much when she'd held her again. It was such a better memory to have so fresh already.

She clears her throat heavily, shaking her head before she remembers that Max can't see it. Right. ]

We split up. I... I'm at the lake now. I needed. Space. I guess. I just wanted to clear my head before I came home.

[ She'd wanted to warn a few friends, to make them realize that they couldn't tell either. Shiro. Diarmuid. They needed to know. ]

But we'll all hang out soon, okay? There's supposed to be a circus or something coming up. Maybe it won't be a fucking shit show and we can stuff our faces and win stupid prizes.

What are the chances of that? [It's a weak joke with a tone to match. They both have enough experience by now to expect bad things to happen, but there has been that occasional event in the past when things were actually enjoyable.] But maybe we do need something fun.

[It sounds a little like Chloe isn't crying anymore... which is good. But Max wonders how much her company would be welcome at all, at this point. She said she needed space, but just the thought of Chloe staying out all on her own, having gone through everything she just did and now with Rachel added to the mix...]

...Do you want some company?

[ The words actually get a small laugh out of her, even if it's only got the slightest humor attached to it. ] Just don't eat anything without watching someone else do it first and get home before dark, right? That should cover our bases.

[ She sighs, because it's messed up how normal it feels to say all that. To joke about the horrors in this place. A coping mechanism at its finest. ]

I'm... I'm okay. I need to text a couple people. I'll be home soon. I promise.

[ A beat. ]

Then maybe we could like... curl up on the couch and watch Ice Pirates or something? Might help me forget this bullshit week for a little while.

[She laughs softly too, more out of gladness at Chloe's reaction than anything else. It's not a completely heartfelt laugh, but it's getting there.

And she's worried. She's worried about Chloe being out on her own, especially after this fight they just had, no matter how well it's simmered down. She's allowed to worry, right? Chloe's not very forgiving of herself.

...But she needs space. She asked for space.]

Okay, Chloe, I'll get the movie set up. Just... be safe, okay? Don't do anything dangerous. Promise me.

I'm just texting Shiro. [ This is obviously the least dangerous thing in the world. Not that that means that she couldn't do something else, she guesses. ]

I promise I'm not gonna do anything else but sit here for a little while.

Okay.

[She believes her. And yet she's having a hard time putting down the phone, lingering a little in her worry, and wanting to make sure Chloe's ready to hang up.]

...

Okay.

I’ll see you when I get home.

[ She lingers for a second, like she might say something more - tell her how much she appreciates her or loves her or... something. But she feels too vulnerable as it is and eventually she just ends the feed. ]

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