Chapter Text
“Bye Safi.” Max was lying on her bed in her motel room thinking about the last thing she said to Safi before she hit the road with Chloe after the fire.
That was 6 months ago…
“Bye Safi.”
“Bye Safi.”
“Bye Safi.”
It just rang in Max's head over and over like nails on a chalkboard, making Max hate herself more and more every day. Making her feel more and more guilt every day. “What is wrong with me?” How could I-“
“Ta da! I return with day-old donuts holes and coffee!” Max winces at the sudden burst of daylight coming through the door as Chloe came in the room with breakfast. Doing her best to be upbeat and energetic for Max since she’s been increasingly troubled by something that she refuses to share.
“Thanks, Chloe. You’re the best.” Max gives Chloe an appreciative smile as she got up to meet Chloe in the kitchen area with a small rusty old, white table that has seen better days.
“Meh, I try” She answers with a casual shrug. "Are you feeling any better this morning?” She asks as they dig into the mixture of chocolate and plain glazed donuts.
“I’m not sure…” Max tried to hide her uncertainty by hiding behind her cup of coffee. Chloe sighs as she pops a donut in her mouth. “…Max, something has been bothering you for awhile. At first, I thought it was because you’re tired of the crappy motel rooms that somehow all look the same and the equally crappy dive bars.”
Chloe puts a comforting hand over Max’s before she continues. “But… now I know it’s because of something else. Talk to me, Max. What’s going on with you? Let me in. Let me help.”
Max saw the sincerity and pain in Chloe's eyes, making her feel guilty for trying to deal with her feelings on her own. Max thought what she always thought. She could handle her turmoil on her own. She didn’t want to be a burden to anyone.
Especially not to her best friend, Chloe.
“I- …I left her. I just left her.” Chloe was trying to follow Max’s thought process as both women seemingly forgot all about their breakfast. “Left who?”
“Safi. I promised her I wouldn’t leave her. I said I’d always be there for her. She begged me… Begged us not to leave her and that’s exactly what we… What I did. She’s alone and going through so much. And I knew that and I still left her.”
Max couldn’t control the tears that fell, prompting Chloe to get up from her seat that was opposite of Max to hold her as she cried. Chloe was at a loss for words. She was desperately racking her brain to find the right words to comfort the girl that always comforts and saves everyone else, without expecting anything in return.
“It’s okay… it’s gonna be okay.” Chloe was mentally kicking her for not thinking of anything else remotely original to say. “Max… if it’s weighing on you like this. Maybe, you should go to her. Ya know, ease your soul and all that.”
Max slightly pulled back from their embrace and looked into Chloe’s brown eyes. “I can’t. I’m not going to abandon you. The band’s tour isn’t over yet.”
Chloe waved off her concern with her free hand before she grabbed a tissue for Max from her demi-jean back pocket. “I can finish the last leg of the tour without you. It’s okay. You need to take care of the guilt you're feeling before it eats you alive. Even Super Max has her limits. Please go. I’ll be fine, I promise. We’ll regroup after the tour.”
Max wiped away her tears as she stood up to hug Chloe. “Are you sure?” Chloe smiled as they broke the embrace. “Yes, and if you ask me that one more time i'm literally gonna kick your ass out the door without your stuff.”
It had taken 2 days for Max to return home. But, here she was staring at her Hellerton home once more. But before she went inside for the first time in 6 months she took a picture of the house. She couldn’t help it, the house always looked beautiful covered in snow. Plus, she took a picture of the home every time the seasons changed and every picture was always different.
Max yawned as she entered her home. It was 6:30 in the morning. “I should get some sleep before I let people know I’m back.” She muttered to herself as she climbed the steps, undressing along the way.
She stops in her tracks just two steps away from her bed. There was a tall, nearly naked slender woman in her bed. Max blinked twice as the surprise wore off while her brain was slowly processing the image before her…
She knew that silhouette anywhere even when it’s covered in sheets.
“Safi…”
“Max...” Safi was stirring, still in a haze of sleep before her vision cleared up and she realized she wasn’t sleeping anymore. “MAX! Oh my God! What are you doing here? You’re back earl- I mea-“
Safi was so startled that she nearly fell out of the bed while she was trying to cover herself up for dear life. Last thing she wanted to do was subject Chloe’s girl to her near nakedness. Safi quickly grabbed her clothes from the floor to get dressed as Max followed her with her eyes, still stuck in place.
“Any chance you could remind this little incident? Embarrassment and me don’t really get along.” Safi's attempt to defuse the awkward situation with her sense of humor snapped Max out of her trance.
She reached out to Safi, motioning her to calm down. “Hey… it’s okay. This is a no embarrassment zone.”
Safi visibility relaxed with a calming breath, donning her signature look now that she’s fully dressed and smoothing out her dress shirt with her hands. “Thanks… So, you’re back early. Why? Is everything okay with you and your blue-haired girl? You know what, what am I saying. You’re probably exhausted. I’ll just go and get out of your hair.”
Safi quickly walked towards Max to hit the stairs when Max stopped her by gently grabbing her arm. “Wait… What are you doing here?”
“Max…” Safi awkwardly rubbed the back of her neck before continuing. “Uhh… Before I answer that. I think you forgot that you’re uh… practically naked, yourself. So, I’ll just go downstairs and make some coffee while you dress.” Safi rushed downstairs to the kitchen without another word.
“Shit…” Max muttered as she looked down, wondering how she forgot she was only wearing her bra and panties, just like Safi minutes ago.
Who was she kidding? She knew how she forgot. Safi made her forget. Safi always makes her forget. Safi always makes her world stop spinning.
When she’s with Safi nothing else exists.
“Max is back. Okay, it’s okay. Just stay calm. You’ll have a quick chat with her and be on your way. Everything will be fine.”
Safi frantically paced back and forth while she waited for the coffee to be done. She was fighting the urge to shapeshift into someone else and just tell Max that Safi had to go. “No. I won’t do that. I can do this.”
Eventually, she had to stop the pacing and self-talk to get two cups of coffee on the kitchen island. And as if on cue, Max descended the stairs and stood on the opposite side of the table, grabbing the cup of coffee closet to her.
“Thanks.” She said as she took a small sip before putting it back down. “Yeah. Don’t mention it.”
Safi was trying not to fidget. But her eyes kept darting between Max’s adorably-freckled face and her untouched cup of coffee. “So... What are you doing here?”
“Well… I have been staying here since you left. This was the only place that I feel safe… Like you said, it’s a embarrassment free zone and your hide-away key wasn’t too hard to find. I’m sorry, I should have asked. I just didn’t wanna bother the two of you on the road and all that.”
Safi didn’t realize it until she was done talking that she backed herself into the kitchen counter to create more distance between her and Max. Max gave a small smile as she moved towards Safi. “It’s okay. I don’t mind.”
Max reached out to caress her friend’s cheek, wanting nothing more than to comfort her. But Safi moved away just before Max made skin contact. Safi was finding it hard to think, hard to breathe because Max was so close.
So, she kept a few feet between them. Now backed up against the kitchen island.
“So, is everything okay with you, Chloe, the tour? Why are you back 3 months early?” Max barely registered what Safi said because she was trying to ignore the painful fact that Safi wouldn’t let her get close to her.
“Yeah. Everything is fine. Chloe is thriving in her element and I took an obscene amount of pictures. It was great. I came back early because…” Considering Safi didn’t wanna be near her, she didn’t wanna completely scare her away with the truth. “Because I got home sick.”
Safi chuckled, “You missed this shithole? You’re adorable, Caulfield. Anyway, welcome home. I should go, gotta walk back to the Snapping Turtle to get my car. I had to leave it there because I had too much to drink. I’ll see you later.”
Before Max could do or say anything Safi had already walked out the door in a hurry. To get away. To get away from her. She can’t blame Safi though. She left Safi when she needed her most.
“I came back for you.” She confessed to the house that now feels far too lonely. Too empty.
Max felt heartache that she never felt before. Rewind couldn’t fix this. Rewind couldn’t fix the desire to cry because she messed up 6 months ago.