Ties With Her [Life is Strange]

Chapter 12: Home Away From Hell

How can you tell which way is up when your life is turned upside down?

Chloe smoked a cigarette and breathed out. She was currently lying down on a sign post with the baseball bat in hand. She soon sat up and sighed.

I can't go home anymore.

Is this junkyard really all I have left? A place full of forgotten garbage that nobody uses anymore?

Chloe dropped the bat on the ground and jumped off the sign post. She picked it up and roamed the yard. Lightly hitting nearby bottles. But then the truck she saw last night caught her sight.

Remembering what went down last night, Chloe raised the bat to hit it. But stopped herself and examined it. A grin formed on her face as she got the idea to open the hood.

A look of disgust spread across her face as the inside of the hood was a complete mess. She pulled out the old, rusty battery that undoubtedly stopped working years ago. She threw it to the ground and looked inside the hood again.

This truck's a complete shitshow. But maybe I can fix it. It'd be rad to have my own car. Maybe I can impress Rachel with my knowledge of cars.

Chloe turned to the junkyard and examined the surroundings.

If this beast will ever run again, it needs a battery to do so. Wonder if there's one lying around somewhere...

Chloe saw a small box sitting on the ground. She walked over to it and moved the lid off of it with her foot. And there was a 'singing man' bobblehead. Chloe picked him up and stuffed him in her pocket.

This little guy can come with me.

After searching relentlessly, popping open multiple hoods of other rusty vehicles, Chloe gave up. She sighed and crossed her arms. Kicking at some dirt on the ground.

So much for my car... and impressing Rachel.

But then Chloe saw a white pickup truck that looked like it was pretty recent. She approached the truck and opened its hood. Hoping that the search was finally over. But something was holding it closed as it wouldn't even budge.

There's probably a latch I need to pull.

Chloe walked around to the driver's seat that was missing its door. Making it that much easier to release the hood. After pulling the latch, Chloe opened the hood. And there was a new battery. Chloe rubbed her hands together and reached into the truck proceeded to take the battery from the truck.

Chloe returned to the rusty truck and put the new battery inside of it. As she tried to connect it, she was suddenly zapped. She shook the pain away and continued to work on the battery.

When she was done, she wiped her hands together and closed the hood and eagerly entered the truck to see if it would start. After sitting in the seat and closing the door, Chloe looked for the keys. But they weren't there.

So she improvised with a screwdriver that was sitting on the dash. She tried to start the truck, but to no avail.

"Dammit. The love you need from me, I just can't give to you right now." She stepped out of the truck and looked inside. "Maybe I can spruce you up in the mean time." Chloe took out the singing man and put him on the dashboard.

"Starting with you, little man."

Chloe ventured off into the junkyard to find things to make the truck more appealing to the eye. Or at least to make it look less shitty then it already does.

Chloe passed a toy robot. She saw that it had a blue light bulb. She picked it up and took the light bulb off and threw the toy robot on the ground. Through Chloe's journey around the junkyard, she managed to find a neon beach towel for the seat and a rug for the floorboard.

Chloe saw the camera she destroyed the other night. She picked it up and sighed. Thinking of Max.

I still miss you, Max. Even when I don't show it.

Chloe returned to the truck and opened the door. She climbed inside and applied the rug to the floorboard to cover up the noticeable hole. Next, she covered the seat with the neon beach towel. And lastly, she fixed the broken bulb with the blue light bulb she took from the toy robot.

And with that, she was done.

This thing looks worse then a hobos rusted out shopping cart. Probably drives like one too. Well, that's if it ever does which is definitely questionable.

"Still... that'd be sweet, wouldn't it?"

Chloe's phone suddenly started ringing. She took it out and saw that an unknown number was contacting her. Chloe hesitantly answered and pressed her phone to her ear. "Yeah?" She questioned slowly.

"Price. It's Frank." Chloe's go to dealer, Frank Bowers. Who she's been dealing with for several months now.

"Oh. Hey Frank. What's up?" Chloe asked. Relieved that it wasn't some scammer looking for cheap ways to get money. "Just checking to see how you're doing." Frank said. "Really?" Chloe asked him. "Yeah, no. You still owe me that hundred and seventy-five bucks!" He told her.

"I'm not waiting much longer. You can kiss your high goodbye if your dumbass doesn't pay me!" He said. "Chill, Frank, it's only been like... a week." Chloe told him. "No. It's been a month!" He redirected. "I'm warning you, Chloe. If you ever want to get high again, you'll need to pay me first." And with that, Frank hung up.

Chloe put her phone back in her pocket and took out her cigarette pack. Kicking her feet onto the dashboard.

It's definitely time for a hard-earned smoke break.

After lighting a cigarette, Chloe took out her permanent marker and turned to the wall behind her. She drew a triangle and an eye in the center of it.

"The all-seeing eye." Chloe muttered as she put her marker away. Chloe's curiosity got the best of her when she saw the glove compartment. She kicked her foot down on the dashboard and the glove compartment opened. And there was a dark blue beanie sitting inside.

Chloe scooted over to it and grabbed the beanie out of the glove compartment. Nodding approvingly.

This'll do.

Chloe put the beanie on her head and looked at herself in the mirror. Smiling approvingly at herself and nodding. She kicked her feet onto the dashboard again and tested the trucks horn. Scaring away a few local birds while doing so.

Chloe reached for her cigarette pack and lit another smoke. She breathed out the smoke and observed the outside world.

Little to her knowledge, a raven circled above her truck and took off. Chloe's eyes started to droop as she dozed off. Jerking herself awake each time her head fell.

But soon succumbed to her exhaustion and fell asleep.