Dorks and Punks

“...Hey, Max?”

Chloe liked the city.

Logically, she knew that it wasn’t a popular thought. People were supposed to love the woods. Love walking in the untouched beauty of nature, discovering themselves in the distant unknown, yadda yadda yadda.

But Chloe Price liked the city, and she wasn’t going to apologize for it.

The skyscrapers touched the clouds and reached for the moon. It reminded her of when she was a little kid - Dad hoisting her up by her armpits so she could try and grab the moon, and Mom would film and laugh in the distance. She looked up at the skyscrapers, and thought that maybe, someone else out there had held onto that childish wish - and built themselves monuments to it.

She liked to see the city, and think of it as the place where people reached for the moon - and their reaching fingers became the skyscrapers. Their palms were the asphalt under her feet. Their effort, the homes of thousands.

The harsh light of a streetlamp touched Max’s face, bangs hiding her ears and beanie covering her forehead. Chloe was a little cold - but Max liked wearing her beanie, so. She’d just have to be cold.

And Max glanced at her, eyes wide and vulnerable. Like a rabbit.

“Yeah?”

“Your friend, Victoria - what’s her last name?”

(She already knew the answer.)

“Chase.” Max said, looking a little confused.

Chloe nodded.

Chloe Price believed in fate.

Religion had never been her forte. It had been achingly clear to her for years, that not a single god out there gave a shit about her, or the world. 

But fate?

That, she had believed in for a long time.

It’d started with Dad’s funeral - when she’d held her Mom’s hand, tears dried, and wondered what would happen next.

And eventually decided that Fall was coming. She’d need to dig her jacket out when she got home.

It was hard to say what exactly had led her to believing in fate. It wasn’t hope - no, hope had never really been an influencing decision in her beliefs. It sure as hell wasn’t Mom - she’d stopped listening to her rambles about fate and religion years ago.

She sometimes thought it was the first time she really understood the seasons. Other times, she thought it was when she dug her jacket out of the closet and found Mom sitting at the table, crying again. Every now and again she thought it might’ve even been when Mom married David.

It didn’t really matter.

“You religious, Max?”

Max glanced at her again - hand reaching up to tug at her beanie, in a move that she probably didn’t know was endearing as hell.

“Uh… no. I went to church with Kate a few times, but… didn’t really do anything for me.” She mumbled, picking at the sleeve of Rachel’s jacket. It was starting to get a little frayed.

She didn’t point it out. Max would probably freak out if she noticed.

“What about, like - supernatural shit? ESP? Time travel? Alternate universes? Anything like that.” 

Max paused for a second before answering this time.

“I… I dunno about all that other, stuff, but…”

Max looked up. For a second, Chloe thought her eyes were just wandering - but then Max tugged at Chloe’s hand, pulling her to a stop.

And then Max gestured up.

“I, uh… used to know about, like - constellations. Stars. Astrology. Stuff like that.” She muttered, very quietly. And, it seemed like every time Max said anything, she just got more adorable.

“Really?” Chloe hummed, though she didn’t doubt it for a second. “Dude, that’s… that’s awesome.”

Max blushed to her roots, and Chloe tried to not kiss her.

“It’s lame.” She muttered, tugging at her hair.

“Max. If I say it’s awesome - it’s awesome.” She said simply, drawing herself up confidently. “I have wonderful taste.”

Max huffed, though it sounded more amused then exasperated.

“You’re really the whole package.” Max said - and her voice came out remarkably clear. “But you know - I think it’s your humility I appreciate most.”

Chloe grinned.

“Oh, come on - don’t lie. We both know you’re just after my flawless body.” She said, tucking a hair behind her ear and sending Max a sly look.

But, this time - Max didn’t blush. Instead, she glanced right back - and raked her eyes up and down, once.

“...Eh.” She said, dismissively - Chloe saw the corners of her lips twitch.

Chloe mock-gasped, trying to repress the bubbling laugh in her ribcage.

“Are you suggesting I’m not a perfect specimen?” She whined, fake pouting.

“Oh - picked up on that, have you? Nothing gets past you, huh Price?”

This time, the shock in her blink was completely real.

She shouldn’t have paused.

Max instantly slapped a hand over her mouth, eyes popping wide open.

Because her voice was actually clear. Completely, totally clear, for the first time all night - loud and confident.

For maybe the first time Chloe had ever heard.

“I - I’m sorry.” Max whispered, closing in on herself - like a wilted flower. “I shoul-”

Chloe flicked her upside the head.

“Ow!” Max yelped, whipping towards her. “Wha-”

“What part of ‘banned’ don’t you understand?” Chloe said, effectively cutting her off.

For a moment, Max just looked confused - and then her expression cleared.

She swatted Chloe’s arm.

“Prat.”

Chloe raised an eyebrow.

“Really? Prat? What’re you, an eighteenth century englishmen?”

“Actually, the common meaning of the word is from the nineteen-sixties.” Max fired back in a moment, seemingly without a thought - and then flushed red.

Chloe’s left eyebrow crawled up to join her right one.

“Uhm - stars. Right.” Max muttered, keeping her eyes firmly away from Chloe - and, instead, she squinted up at the sky.

Chloe let her get away with it.

“Yeah, that’s right - I did want to hear a bit about stars.”

Max tilted her head softly, and God, she was cute.

She shifted a bit, and leaned down, to sit cross-legged on the pavement. She adjusted her dress a bit to cover her knees, and peered up.

After a moment, Chloe joined her on the ground - flopping back so that she was comfortable, propping one leg up.

“Um. Okay, so - the north star should be… ah-ha! There!”

Max pointed up, and Chloe sat up to look.

“...Uh… not seein’ it.”

Max rolled her eyes.

“Here, look,”

Max grabbed her hand, and pointed it up. Chloe tried to focus on anything but how cute she was when she was exasperated.

“Right there - see? The really bright one, pretty close to that white building?”

Chloe squinted.

“Uh… yeah? Is it the one that’s, like… on level with the roof of that weird art thing?” Chloe said, drawing a line from said roof to the star she thought might be the one Max was talking about.

“Um… oh. Oh! Yeah, that’s the one!” Max chirped, sending her a happy smile, and her heart stopped.

“Alright, uh - that’s - right, yeah. That’s the north star - or Polaris, if you wanna be fancy.” Max said, tone quite dismissive of this reasoning.

Chloe was falling in love all over again, and this wasn’t okay. She was already far too in love, she didn’t need more of this weirdness!

“So, the north star is in this constellation, Ursa Minor - the little dipper.” Max looked deep in thought, eyes glazed and unfocused. “It’s below Ursa Major - the big dipper. Though the tail end of Draco is also between them…”

“You’re losin’ me, dork.” Chloe said, even though she wasn’t really lost at all.

“It’s pretty simple, I’m just not explaining it well.” Max murmured back, clearly not really paying attention. “Uhm…”

Max pointed up again.

“Okay - there’s Polaris, right? And you know the little dipper, right?” Max sent her a glance.

“Sure.”

“Okay, so - it’s like…”

Max traced a shape in the sky. If Chloe hadn’t already known what the little dipper looked like, she would’ve just been confused - but she could kinda see what Max was trying to do.

Kinda.

“Like that. See?”

Chloe squinted.

“...Maybe? Yeah. Yeah, yeah. Okay - go on?”

Max gave her another smile - proud and approving, and all of the confusion in the world was worth the feeling it stirred in her gut.

“Okay, uh… it’s kinda hard to see with all this light pollution…”

“Eh. I don’t have to see ‘em.” Chloe offered, flopping back against the pavement again. “Just tell me about them, huh?”

Max blinked down at her.

And smiled.

“Alright.”

Max laid back with her, flopping her arms out to either side and looking completely unconcerned about the cold pavement.

“So, to the right of Ursa Minor is Draco. It’s the really long one, looks like it curves around the little dipper - like it’s orbiting or something. Above the tail end of Draco is the big dipper - it’s supposed to be a bear, or something? I don’t really see it. To the left is Lynx - that one just kinda looks like a lightning bolt…”

At some point, Max shifted towards her - and ended up tucked underneath her arm, pointing up at stars neither of them could see and explaing myths to her.

And then she stopped talking, and started humming instead.

“Close your eyes…. Listen to my voice, it’s my disguise… I’m by your side…”

“Ooooh, it’s what’choo do to meee,” Chloe murmured with her.

“Ooh, it’s wha’choo do to me.” Max muttered sleepily - and her jaw split into a silent yawn.

“You yawn like a cat.” Chloe murmured with a smile. Max sent her a sleepy glare from under her mussed-up hair, and really, she had to stop being so cute.

“You smell like sap.” Max murmured, snuggling up to her. “Weirdo.”

“Your fingers are cold.”

“You…”

Max yawned again.

“You’re warm as a radiator. How come you’re so warm?”

Chloe smiled.

“It’s my natural glow. I can’t help it.”

Max giggled quietly.

“It’s your manly musk. Another sign you were never meant to be a proper woman.” She fired back - witty even when she was half-asleep.

“Eh. I’ll take it.” Chloe said, with a smile in her voice.

“...Why did you ask? About… religion, and stuff?” Max muttered, opening her eyes to peer up at her.

Chloe thought carefully before she answered.

“This is gonna sound dumb, but… I was gonna ask if you believe in fate.”

Max snorted.

“Nope. Fate’s dumb. If she’s real, she’s a bitch.” Max murmured, closing her eyes again.

“What do you believe in, then?”

“People. Choices.” Max said, clearly barely conscious. “I think that everything comes back to a single organism, making the decision to live. That all good things come back to choices people have made. I believe that people can choose - and I believe in the consequences for those choices.”

“...What choice led to this, then?” Chloe said, trying not to feel self-conscious.

Max didn’t respond, for a moment.

“You. Responding to my texts. Being nice.” She said finally.

Chloe had no response for that.