Every Day

Episode 1: Max

Episode 1: Max

Max found her curled up on the sofa in the near darkness, her chin resting in her tiny hands, a blanket curled around her lithe body. She stared absently into the unlit fireplace. She didn't look up when he entered the living room.

"The baby's sawing zzz's again," Max said. "Hopefully, he'll stay asleep for an hour or two this time so we can actually get some rest." He studied Chelsea closely. She didn't appear to have heard him. "Chels? Are you alright?"

She didn't answer. Sitting there staring off into space, she looked so lost and so small. He moved over to her and gently placed a hand on her arm. She blinked up at him, seeming to notice him for the first time. "Chelsea, you should go back to bed, and get some sleep before Mr. Cranky Pants wakes up howling for his breakfast."

Chelsea shook her head. "He can't help it if he's cranky," she automatically defended her son. "He's teething."

"I know he is teething. That would make anybody cranky. Poor little guy." He smoothed a hand through her dark, tousled hair. "Seriously, you should get some rest while the going is good. You look beat."

"Gee, thanks. Just what every girl wants to hear."

"You know what I mean. You've got to be exhausted, what with working, taking care of a new baby, and raising a fiancé who is practically a kid himself." He offered her a cheeky smile.

She didn't return his grin. "You are working full-time, Max, and you help a lot with Isaac. Aren't you exhausted?"

"Sure, I'm tired, but you're also nursing the baby. On top of that, you just lost your grandfather. You're tired and stressed. Don't tell me you're not, because I can see how much losing Victor has taken a toll on you. You haven't been yourself since you got back from Salem." It was true. Chelsea had been quiet and withdrawn ever since Max picked her up at the airport the day she returned from Victor's funeral. He knew she was suffering because he knew her as well as he knew himself. They were twin flames.

Chelsea let out a soft sigh. "I'll be alright."

"Get some sleep and then in the morning, we have to talk. I want you to level with me."

"About?"

"About how you're really feeling. Because I'm worried about you."

"Don't worry about me. I'm fine."

"Are you? Really?"

"Max," she said, "stop treating me like a child. I don't need a father! I already have one, even if he is a vegetable!" She covered her face. "Oh god. I can't believe I just said that."

She sighed. "I'm sorry, Max. I didn't mean to sound like such a bitch."

"Don't worry about it."

She shifted on the sofa. "It was just so hard, you know, saying goodbye to Grandpa Victor. It hurt. It felt like saying goodbye to my dad all over again. I know my dad is alive, but -"

"But Bo isn't exactly-"

"Home," Chelsea said. "He's not awake and alert, and with his family, making dumb jokes, and loving and protecting us, and it feels so wrong. So damn wrong! He hasn't even met Isaac. What if he never does?" She swiped at her dewy eyes.

"No, no, you can't think that way. Because if I know anything, it's that Bo Brady is strong. He'll pull through this. I have to believe that." Max squeezed her hand. "You have to believe it too."

"I don't know if I can. I know he fought against death itself to come home to all of us, but what if this is just too much to overcome? He's gotta be so tired of life throwing crap at him!" Chelsea cried.

Max joined her on the sofa. He pulled her against him, and she tucked her face into the crook of his neck, allowing herself a moment to cry softly. He gently massaged her back in slow, soothing circles. "It's okay, Chelsea, just let it out, okay? It's alright to be upset. This is all a lot to hold in. Just get it all out. I'm here and I'm not going anywhere."

"I miss my dad," Chelsea cried. "I miss him so much. I was such a miserable excuse for a daughter for so many years, and -"

"C'mon, that's not true. You helped save his life before, remember? You donated part of your pancreas to him. That's not exactly a small gesture, Chelsea."

"But I killed his youngest son, Max! Does he know? Does he know how sorry I am for taking Zack away from him and Hope?" Tears dampened Max's shirt. He felt helpless to stem the tide of her grief. He'd never seen Chelsea fall apart like this before. It scared him to see her this upset. He didn't know how to reach her.

"He knows. They both know. They forgave you a long time ago, Chelsea. You just have to forgive yourself now," Max said quietly. "All this guilt you keep carrying around won't bring Zack back. You've turned your life around. I know Zack would have been proud to have you as a sister. As proud as Bo is to have you as a daughter."

"I miss my dad," Chelsea said. "I miss my home. I miss - I miss Salem." She collapsed against Max in fatigue. "I want to go home," she whispered.

"You want to go back to Salem? You mean, for a visit, or to-"

"To stay," Chelsea said. "I want to be there if, or when, my dad wakes up. I want to be surrounded by my family and old friends. Max, I know we have a good life here in London. We both have friends and great jobs, and my mom has an apartment two streets up, and she comes to visit us often, but-"

"But it's not really home." He cupped her cheeks between his hands. "Chelsea, if you want to go home, we'll go home. Frankly, I've been missing Salem a lot myself lately. It's the perfect place to raise Isaac too, away from the hustle and bustle of a big city."

"You want to return to Salem? Do you mean that?"

"Yes."

Chelsea's teary eyes gleamed. "So, we're doing it then?"

Max nodded. "We're doing it, baby. We're going home!"

Chelsea threw her arms around his neck. "Oh, Max, thank you! Thank you so much!" She kissed his neck, his chin, his cheeks, and finally, his lips. Their mouths moved together for a long moment before they came up for air.

He wrapped an arm around her slender shoulders, and she tucked herself against his side. "We have so much to do to get ready for a big move like this," Chelsea said. "It all feels so overwhelming!"

"But it's exciting, right?"

"So exciting! But first things first. We have to break the news to my mom that we're leaving London."

-- What did you think?