Life After Arcadia [Life is Strange]

Chapter 9: Warm House's and Cookies

Max's POV

We arrived at Daniel's grandma's house. "Okay, get ready for a big welcoming. My grandma is a very talkative person." He said. "Can you handle that, hippie?" Chloe asked me. "I'm not anti-social, Che." I told her. "I'll protect you." Chloe said and kissed my cheek. "Get a room, you two." Daniel said. Chloe grinned smugly and gave him the finger. Daniel opened the door and let us in. The smell of cookies quickly filled my nose.

I love this place already!

"Just kick your shoes off..." He stated to us, just tossing his on the ground. We turned a corner and entered the living room. Which was pretty large. The dining area was also pretty big.

"Hey, look who I found at the mall." Daniel said. "Max! Chloe!" Emily said with a bright and welcoming smile. "Hello Emily!" I greeted as she wrapped me into a hug. "What a surprise!" Emily said as she hugged Chloe. "Nice to see you too, Em'." Chloe told her. An older woman came out of the kitchen.

"Well... hello there!" She greeted. "Chloe. Max. This is Grace. My grandmother." Daniel said to us. "Gosh, aren't you two just beautiful young ladies?" She said as she shook our hands. "It's very nice to meet you, Grace." I said. "It's my pleasure. Here, sit down and relax. I just made cookies." Grace said to us.

For a grandmother, Grace didn't look that old. Maybe mid to late fifties at best. She wore a grey sweater and black pants.

Chloe and I sat down at the table with Daniel and Emily. "So, what brings you to Dellwood?" Emily asked us. "We're here for the holidays." I told her. "Is Ryan and Vanessa here, too?" She asked.

"No, they're still in Seattle. It's just me and Chloe." I told her. "That's lovely. How long have you been here?" She asked. "We actually just got here yesterday." Chloe said. "You enjoying it so far?" Emily asked us. "Very. The mall is awesome!" I told her. "Yes, it's a very impressive building." Emily said.

She looked at Daniel, who was on his phone. She quickly snatched it away. "Dude!" "No phones at the table, Daniel. I told you this." Emily said. Daniel slouched in his chair. "Cool. Just cool, man." He said.

"Wowser. This is quite the settlement Grace has." I said, looking around the room. "A big open space is usually best for a get together. Our relatives are going to be showing up next week for Christmas." She said. "That's wonderful Emily." I said. "Maybe you can join us." She said. "That's cool of you, Em'. But we'll probably be gone by then." Chloe said. "Yeah, sorry." I added. "That's fine, dear. We have a big family so it would be heavily packed in here." Emily said.

Chloe's POV

Grace came out with the tray of freshly made cookies. They look so fucking good. "Watch out, they're-" "Yo man!" Daniel said, ripping his hand away and putting his finger in his mouth. "Hot..." Grace said, arching an eyebrow and grinning at him.

"Not desperate for a girlfriend, but your desperate for a cookie?" I asked. "Chloe, don't-" "Oh, Daniel's looking for a girlfriend?" Grace said, interrupting Daniel. He groaned and slid even lower in his chair. "I remember when Daniel approached that one girl in kindergarten... what was her name?" Grace questioned. "Cassie." Emily told her.

"Cassie! Yes, that was her name. Daniel approached her with a flower on Valentine's Day." Grace said.

"So the skater does have a heart." I said and grinned at Daniel. "Awww. That's so cute!" Max said in a baby talk voice. "Did she take it?" I asked. Daniel groaned and slouched even lower. "Let's just talk about something else." He said. "Nope. You're not getting out of this one." I told him. "Grandma, may I be excused from the table?" "I think you're stuck here until you tell them about Cassie, Daniel." Grace told him.

"Chloe, I hate you so much." He said. Everyone laughed. He sat up and leaned his arms on the table. "You wanna know about Cassie so bad? Fine. Let's do this shit." He said. "Watch your language at the table, Daniel." Grace said. "Let's do this shizz." He corrected himself.

"Cassie was this really hot girl I went to school with. She currently lives in California. One time on Valentine's Day, I gave her a flower and asked if we could be friends..." Max smiled sweetly at Daniel. "She says "sure, you seem cool" and I was like, "okay, cool" and we started being friends. Rest is history. I gotta use the washroom." He said and quickly stood up.

"Well, at least he said something..." I said. "I think it's sweet. Our boy is growing up, Chloe." Max said. Everyone started laughing.

"Mmm. These cookies are delicious, Grace." Max said. "Thank you, Max. Daniel always used to make them with me. That was before he got "too cool" to do stuff with his family." Grace said. "Like he's too cool for hugs?" Max asked. "Oh trust me, dear. Daniel has a soft spot. He's just not great at showing it." Grace told her. "We'll believe it when we see it." I said. Grace laughed. "I'll leave you to it..." She said.

Max's POV

Snow fell from the night sky. I locked hands with Chloe and smiled sweetly at her. She smiled back and kissed me. "So Grace seems cool, don't she?" Chloe asked. "Yeah she does. Daniel's lucky to have her as a grandmother. It was so cool seeing Emily again. She's such a nice person..." I said. Chloe nodded slowly. "Hey, what's wrong?" I asked her. Chloe sighed.

"Hey. Babe, are you okay?" I questioned. "I'm just thinking about my mom." Chloe said. "I know we had our differences... but, I miss her, Max. I really do." I wrapped Chloe in my arms. "I know, Chloe. I miss Joyce too." I assured her.

Once we parted, I said, "At least you and David made amends." Chloe shrugged. "I guess. Last I heard, he's down in Arkansas somewhere. But I still miss my mom. It's hard to think that both of my parents are dead..." Chloe looked at me. Her blue eyes glistening with tears.

"You're all I have left, Max. I can't lose you too."

"Chloe. You're not losing me. Ever." I grabbed her hands. "No matter what. I'll always be here with you. Always."

"How do I know that, Max? You left me once. How do I know you won't again?"

"Chloe, that's crazy! I will never leave you again. That was a mistake I'll never make again. Okay?" I said to her, running my fingers down her cheek.

Chloe sniffed and she nodded. "Okay." I leaned close to her and gave her a kiss. "I love you." I softly told her. "I love you too, Max." I kissed her again and pressed my forehead to hers. Letting the snow fall around us.

Bonus episode for Before the Storm, Farewell, comes out today. I'm so not ready for it!