Life is Strange

Never Leaving you

Chapter 1

Max Caulfield laid back on Chloe's bed, furiously rubbing her streaming eyes as tears rolled down her cheeks. Her chest heaved sporadically as she gasped for breath, her ribs hurting like they were being crushed. No matter how much she tried to suppress it to draw breath, it didn't stop. It wasn't going to stop. It was real, it hurt and it was brilliant. She wanted every moment to be like this.

"It wasn't that funny, Max." Chloe rolled her eyes as she walked around to the side of the bed and sat down, brushing her long golden hair back over her shoulders so that it fell down her back in a way that made it glow in the evening light streaming through her bedroom window. Max had always loved the way her hair seemed to glow like that. It was something she couldn't get with her own hair being as dark as it was. For her it was like a blanket that obscured her. With Chloe, it surrounded her face like a halo.

"Yes it is!" Max protested. "It is to me, anyway. Did you know it would just explode like that?"

"No!" Chloe scoffed in a way that made Max smile. She didn't know why Chloe seemed to have that effect on her, but she was glad for it. "I was so apologetic!" That brought a smirk to Max's face.

"Chloe Price apologising? What's the occasion?" That got Chloe laughing. As she did, she leaned across Max to lean on her right hand and talk to the shorter girl more directly without having to turn her head to see. Max had always been ahead of Chloe in the 'Great Growing Race' as Joyce called it. That was until the last six months or so when Chloe had just shot past her, now currently sitting at almost a head taller than her.

"The occasion was that I blew up his beloved family pet!" Chloe smiled at the memory. "You know, you've never experienced real joy until the first time you've improvised a zombie trap from six yards of chicken wire, a bunch of old lumber, some string and a guinea pig."

"And two sticks of dynamite, apparently." Max added before bursting out laughing again. Once again, new waves of pain struck her in the ribs relentlessly like a series of punches. In that moment, Max knew what true happiness was. It was being with a friend who could make you laugh so effortlessly and just enjoying their company. This was the time Max loved most: these perfect moments where it was just her and Chloe as an inseparable duo.

Downstairs, the doorbell rang. Max and Chloe both let out a frustrated sign. They knew what the time was. They knew who it was at the door. They didn't mind too much, it was getting late after all. But it was still the time they dreaded the most. They'd come to hate goodbyes. Sure enough, Joyce's voice called up the stairs for her.

"Max! Your parents are here!" Chloe groaned and got up, offering her hand to Max. Max accepted it gratefully, clinging on for just a second longer even after she was on her feet in an attempt to savour every second together they had left. It always hurt to do it, but she knew she had to go. They walked out into the hall and Chloe stood aside for her to go down the stairs. Guests first. That was always her rule, especially when Max's parents showed up. She trudged downstairs, unable to hide her disappointment while not wanting to seem heavy-footed.

Her parents were at the bottom, talking to Joyce in hushed tones. Vanessa was taking the lead in the conversation and whatever she was saying, Joyce clearly didn't like it from the look on her face. Max slowed her pace tentatively, but her parents had already spotted her. They looked up with grins on their faces that felt weirdly forced. Something wasn't right. Her parents had never been like this with her. They were hiding something. They'd never done that before.

"Maxine!" Vanessa walked over to the bottom of the stairs and embraced her daughter. Max hugged her back, wondering what the hell was going on as she descended the rest of the way as Ryan leaned over and handed her the car keys. They were officially in totally uncharted waters now.

"Go and wait in the car, Max. There's something we need to discuss with Joyce real quick and then we'll be right out." Max looked up at him, knowing her confusion was plain on her face. Her parents having something to discuss with Chloe's parents was nothing new, but they'd never asked her to wait in the car. They'd usually told her and Chloe to go and spend another fifteen or so minutes together rather than removing her from the equation entirely. They definitely didn't want her to hear this.

"Ah, are you leaving us already, Max?" She turned to see someone else walking into the room, wiping oil from his hands as he went. He had a grin on his face that could make a whole room full of people grin with him, but as soon as he walked in Max noticed Joyce's expression change to a rare one of anger.

"William H. Price! What have I told you about cleaning your hands properly before you come in this house?" Joyce rounded on him as Chloe and Max both burst out laughing. They could have stood there for the duration of the verbal dressing-down Joyce gave him if Vanessa hadn't put a hand on Max's shoulder.

"Go on, Max. Out to the car." Max was unable to hide her confusion yet again. Things seemed to be getting stranger by the second. She had a feeling she wasn't going to like the outcome.

"You usually tell Chloe and I to-"

"Don't argue." Vanessa's voice carried a hard edge that Max hadn't heard since that time she and Chloe had accidentally shot a squirrel with a BB gun, brought it inside to try and nurse it back to health on the couch and tried to give their patient CPR when they lost the pulse. The resulting mess had been enough to warrant a replacement couch which had definitely angered Ryan and Vanessa since that one hadn't even been a year old. The tone of voice now matched exactly and it was enough to tell Max that something was seriously wrong. Chloe had clearly noticed too, but also seemed to know that she could put a brave face on it and drag things out a little longer without any trouble. She wrapped Max in a bone-crushing hug and knocked the air out of the smaller girl's lungs.

"Don't worry, Max. I'll see you round."

"See you tomorrow, Chloe." Max was unable to keep the relief out of her voice. Chloe had always been able to calm her down. Maybe it was because of her determined mindset. That mindset also made Chloe a lot more difficult to settle down when she was upset, but her company alone was completely worth the trade-off.

Reluctantly, they had to part in the end. Chloe opened the door and held it for her as she headed out to the car. For some reason, the door shutting behind her felt oddly final and she couldn't keep the sinking feeling suppressed any longer. She got to the car and popped the lock, climbing in and strapping herself in out of habit.

Sighing to herself and wondering how long her parents were going to be, she really wished she'd had the forethought to ask Joyce if she could take some water out to the car if she had to wait. Her throat was pretty dry, not just from the heat of the day but also from nerves. Just at that moment, as if to seal the deal, her phone rang. She pulled it out of her pocket, no small task due to how small the pockets on her jeans were, and answered it.

"Hel-"

"-aven't told Max yet. We plan on telling her when we get home, but we think she should be the one to tell Chloe." It was Vanessa's voice. It was faint and distant, but it was enough that Max could hear. Chloe must have set up her phone on the stairs and put it on speaker to catch as much of the conversation as she could. A stroke of genius though it was, Max wasn't sure if she really wanted to hear. Things were adding up in her head and they weren't looking in her favour.

"Well do you think Max would want to go?" That was William's voice. "Seattle's a long way away from here. New school, new people, new life. If she goes that far out, how are she and Chloe going to meet?"

"They can call each other and write." Ryan's voice was pretty dismissive, but Max knew he was just letting it glance off him. In truth, she could tell he was worried. And what was all this about Seattle of all places? Then she remembered. Her parents had been talking about job interviews for a while. Then her dad had gone out of town on 'business'. He'd been gone for a few days. More than enough time to get from Oregon to Seattle. Was the job interview there? But that would mean... No. Please, for the love of god, no!

"And what if she doesn't settle down?" William persisted. "She and Chloe are inseparable. Joyce and I can very rarely talk about one of them without the other getting flagged up somewhere along the line. If ever."

"What are you saying, William?" Vanessa asked. That was a good question and one Max never heard the answer to. Before she knew what she was doing, she was out of the car and by the fence of a nearby garden. She dropped to her knees, feeling weirdly light and detached from herself as the delicious lunch Joyce had made for her and Chloe made a reappearance. The taste of acid filled her mouth as she vomited. Eventually she stopped and was able to sit back and rest against the side of the car as her stomach churned. Her family was moving to Seattle. She was going to be taken away from the life she had and taken away from Chloe. In that moment, time stood still for what felt like an eternity.

Author's Note: Okay, so now that I've finished Life Has Changed after all these years, I'm back to writing for this fandom seriously. Especially now that I've started getting more ideas for it than I have for Wolfblood (the fandom I usually write for) and I've also taken more time to really study the game and worked out a way to better capture the tone of the original material. For me, that's what I used to have a lot of trouble with. But I've been getting better at it as time has gone on. Another thing I've started doing is not uploading chapters until the story is actually complete. The same is true for this story. I have already written the full thing. It's literally just a matter of uploading chapters. With that said, I hope you all enjoy.