Perfect with You

Chapter 10 - Vexed and Yearning

She curled her thumb and hid it securely inside the palm of her hand, looking at the frame of the window in front of her. She wanted to get out, away from this room. This new room with walls painted gray and a select number of old posters hanging on those walls, the ceramic vase missing a piece, but not yet broken. This should not be the place, sucking in these impending frantic memories. More than anything, she wanted Chloe gone. Away from the chaos that always sought out Max, dragging in her friend, just because they were a separate dream, clashing in the middle.
Chloe ran her hand down her thigh and up again. She looked to her left, the opposite direction of Max and took a thin breath. Her hand curled into a claw as she began scratching her leg. She did it faster. Tapped her boot against the wooden floor. She was craving an out. Craving the drugs that would destroy her and lead her away.

"We need to stop," Chloe's voice shook and her bottom lip was vibrating.
"Not because..." she looked inside herself, touched her temple and looked at her fingers.
"Just fucking pick one" she pushed her feet against the floor, moving her chair backward and stood up.
"I feel awful" stepping to the left, she pulled her hair and kept walking closer to her bed.

Max closed her eyes and placed two fingers at the tip of her nose. Her body stood up as well, running past the light coming through the window, wrapping her arms around her loved one from behind, pressing her lips against Chloe's neck. She hugged tighter, kissed her neck once more and whispered "I love everything that you are and hate everything that I am" then opened her eyes. She was standing at the same spot, having not moved an inch, still looking at Chloe's back and not having uttered a word. She couldn't do that. She wanted to run over to her friend and do exactly what she had imagined in her head, but she couldn't do that.
She adverted her eyes from Chloe and looked back at the screen, but found both too painful to be staring at. The humming the PC made lifted Max's brain and pressed it against her skull, giving her a headache. She looked back at Chloe who was no longer wearing her silk jacket, revealing the black shirt with cut-off sleeves. Her arms were crossed and held close to her body, her head falling slightly down and her breath intentionally muted.
A high-pitched beeping instantly caught the attention of Max, making her look at the screen once more. The computer beeped again, signaling the 10 minutes remaining.

Dammit! I need to answer this shit!

Max read the question again, but the words failed to stick with her.
Her mind kept drifting away to her frustrated friend.

Or should I just fucking... give up?

She read the question again, feeling small poking sensations on the back of her head. Knowing that Ethan must have been present when they were at the diner, but Max failing to notice, frightened her. She felt unobservant and inadequate of protecting her beloved friend.

Chloe doesn't deserve this. She deserves a life of peace and happiness. Not the misery I have brought upon her.

While thinking, she had read the question and the answers trough.

Question 4: You are sitting at a diner with your friend when a robust man throws hot coffee on an elderly waitress. Your friend takes action and stands up. She goes over to throw a punch at the man, but unfortunately, she ends up being knocked down onto the floor. The waitress is weeping, your friend is in pain and you're still sitting in the booth, wondering how you can help her. What do you do?

Answer 1: I rewind time and stop the man from throwing the coffee.

Answer 2: I immediately go help my friend.

Answer 3: I get out of the booth and comfort the waitress.

Answer 4: I let my fear win, let the anxiety strap me down and wait until I can safely avoid confrontation.