Quroscuro

Everyday Hero

In this part I mention a band called the Vaccines the song I was thinking of was 'If You Wanna' if you want to listen to it you can find it on spotify.

"It's shitty" Nathan muttered staring at the wheel. "I finally feel a genuine connection and find someone who understands and I don't even know if it'll be the same when I get back".

Max felt it too, after a few short hours with Nathan everything had changed. Especially her feelings towards him, she didn't want him to go back in time as selfish as that was; but things had to be put right.

He looked over at Max and saw her face was serious and he could see her eyes glistening with tears; she was biting her lip holding everything in like he himself had done what felt like thousands of times before. He hated seeing that expression on her, in fact he could hardly stand it. He had began to notice just how beautiful she was, granted it wasn't the same type of beauty as Rachel which everyone could see. She was slight, pixie like, fragile but she was also strong in a way he would never be.

"Victoria was right about you. You're cool, you're not afraid to be yourself. I think we could all get along if things had been different." 

And he sure as hell knew he was going to try and make things different for Rachel, for him, for Max.

For us he thought.

She sat bolt upright. She had found it! A way they might keep the connection alive. 

"I am going back too!" She smiled confidently.

"How? You weren't here when Rachel disappeared, we don't have any pictures together. I don't know what would happen if you tried to jump into a picture your not in!" His words came out rushed and panicked.

Max firmly grasped his hand to try and curb his panic. "I am not going to use the same photo, I'll be using a photo of me from before I came to Blackwell, I have a theory that if we jump into our photos at the same time our current selves will both be in our respective places at the same time!"

She tore through he bag and found a pen. "I'll need something to write on."

He grabbed the photo he had folded and put on the dash. 

"You can use this." He said wondering what she was going to do next.

He watched as she neatly scrawled something on the back. She enthusiastically placed the photo into Nathans hands. 

"That is my address from when I lived in Seattle, and my home phone number just in case."

He looked up at her and she was beaming and rightly so her plan made sense he just hoped it would work.

"Oh man seriously I don't think anyone has given me their home phone number since third grade." He chuckled, her smile was contagious.

He felt more confident now that this connection wasn't going to die here and that not even time itself would come between them.

"So we each get a photograph and jump in and then what?" he had never felt this alive in a long time; he was full of excitement for the first time in what felt like forever.

Max's smile faded. "Then we wait it out, no more photo jumping that could ruin the whole plan". 

There was a plummeting feeling like his stomach had just been dropped from a height. Six months, that's half a year! He was willing to wait he couldn't not, when would he ever find a connection with someone like this again? Especially in Arcadia Bay. Max interrupted his train of thought.

"You'll call me right? I want you to call me as soon as you can after we've jumped".    

"Of course I will Max" he said smiling. "So I am guessing our next step is finding the photos, mine will be at my house and I am guessing yours is at your dorm?"

She nodded. "I could call Chloe get her to pick me up and take me back to Blackwell while you go to your house."

"Sounds good to me, but where shall we meet once we have our photos?"

She thought on this for a few minutes. Two whales was too public and we should avoid sticking around the school or the Prescott estate..."How about the lighthouse?"

"Good thinking Max, it's out of the way and no one will be there tonight because of the party."

It was agreed, she called up Chloe telling her to pick her up from where the pirate fort was. Chloe was of course wanting to know every scrap of info.

"I'll fill you in I promise but right now I need you to get your rear in gear."

Nathan sniggered and snorted. "Oh Max you crack me up!"

They talked and laughed until they heard Chloe's car pull up. He grabbed Max's arm making her face him and leaned in to kiss her on the cheek. He could see Max's face flush pink, which he thought was stupidly adorable.

"Don't make me wait too long for the the next one" he said teasingly looking at her through his eyelashes.

Max's face had turned completely red now her eyes skittered in every other direction than his.

"I...I won't" she managed to choke out.

She climbed out of the car and Nathan reclined in his seat a little. He had to admit he felt like quite the smooth talker after that; he waited for Chloe and Max to leave before making a move.

"Now to be an everyday hero!" He said proudly to himself while turning on his CD player the sounds of The Vaccines greeted him.

Authors notes

I don't know why I just feel like Nathan would listen to The Vaccines.