Chapter Text
Max hated seeing her being so close with someone that wasn’t her.
He was a boy that she didn’t even know that well; she deserved better than that. He gave Max a bad feeling. It wasn’t about his personality or anything; Max was only slightly acquainted with him. It was just something about his appearance that made her feel odd. Maybe it was because she felt that he made Chloe happier than she did. The boy surely only liked Chloe because she was pretty. Well, to Max, she was beautiful, but she would never tell her that to her face and mean it the way she wanted. He gave Max a bad impression.
But there she was with him, laughing and looking truly happy. Even though she hated to admit it, Max was jealous. She had begun to develop a small crush on her best friend, even though she knew it was wrong. She was only twelve years old, and although she was only a year older than her, Chloe felt much older and more mature. Max felt like a little kid compared to Chloe. She could never compete, and she always felt younger. That’s why she could never tell Chloe about her feelings. Also, she knew Chloe wasn’t attracted to girls; she had a boyfriend. A suspicious, strange boyfriend. But he seemed to make Chloe happy. Maybe Max was just being paranoid.
Max was spending the day with Chloe at the beach, and Chloe’s parents came along. Of course, Chloe invited Carter to join them. Max had been hurt; as it was meant to be a day for just the two of them. She understood that she had no right to be possessive, and that Chloe was happy and could spend time with someone else as well as her. Chloe could have more than one friend. She kept telling herself that Chloe was not her property, but she still felt jealous.
Max was not exactly comfortable running around in her blue one-piece bathing suit, as she was “developing” and felt self-conscious. Chloe was the opposite. She was sporting a floral bikini that wasn’t too revealing, yet showed off her petite, slightly curvy figure. Chloe had started puberty earlier than Max, and it showed as she ran cheerfully near the water. Max wished she could be as carefree as Chloe. Max preferred to keep away from the excitement; she was lying down on a beach towel close to Joyce and William, who were relaxing in the warm sun. She watched Chloe and Carter having fun near the water and wished that she was in the place of the boy. Max thought back to when it was just her and Chloe. Now that Carter had entered the picture, Max didn’t feel so special anymore. Boys ruin everything.
Max watched as Carter chased after Chloe, both laughing. Chloe’s feet splashed in the water as she moved, Carter’s following after. He took a hold of her hand and looked at her lovingly, and she returned it. He bent down to kiss her, and she leant up and accepted, giggling. Good for Chloe, falling in love with someone taller than her. There weren’t many. Max could feel her cheeks burn red. She peeked over at Joyce and William. Joyce was reading a book, and William was watching his daughter thoughtfully. Max guessed she wasn’t the only one taking notice of Chloe and her boyfriend’s undisguised displays of affection.
‘Looks like she’s enjoying herself, isn’t she?’ William asked. Max immediately looked at him.
‘I guess so,’ Max replied. William stared at her for a minute.
‘Are you alright, Max?’ He asked.
She wanted to tell him no. She wanted to tell him her feelings for Chloe, and that she didn’t like Carter at all. But she decided that feigned happiness was the best way to go.
‘Yeah,’ she told him, ‘I’m just happy that Chloe’s having so much fun.’ William could see right through her.
‘I know this is hard on you,’ he said. ‘Chloe having a boyfriend and all. I know you feel left out. I’m a little sceptical myself, to tell you the truth. But it’s her first relationship, and it should count.’
‘I don’t want her to lose interest in me,’ was what Max could think of saying. ‘I don’t want her to forget me just because she met a boy.’
‘She won’t,’ said William. ‘You’re her best friend, and always will be.’
Max wished that were true. But she couldn’t help feeling that she would just become a used-to-be-best-friend. She gritted her teeth and focused on the sky. It was a beautiful day; the sky was perfect blue with no clouds in sight. Max pulled her Polaroid camera out of her bag, the one her mother had gotten her for her birthday. She loved to take pictures, and wanted to be a photographer. She snapped a picture of the ocean. As she stared at the developing photo, she snuck a glance at her best friend. She was still playing around with Carter. Max tried to ignore it. She looked at the fully-developed photo and it was a great shot. The sun was in view, and the line where blue met blue was nice and clear. She placed the photo on the towel beside her. After a moment of hesitation, she quickly took a photo of Chloe and Carter. She waited for it to develop, and when it did, she was amazed at how nice the shot was. It showed Chloe in the midst of running, with Carter racing after her. There was a bit of blur where one of her feet left the ground to perfectly show movement. Her long, blonde hair flew behind her, and her smile was bright and beautiful. Max thought she looked stunning. After what seemed like an eternity of staring at the picture of her best friend, she finally put it down next to the last one of the horizon.
Max shifted her gaze back to the happy couple. She looked over quick enough to see Carter pick Chloe and up and carry her bridal style. Their noses touched and Max could see the expression on Chloe’s face. It was one of pure love. Max’s best friend was in love, there was no denying it. Max felt her face screw up as they kissed once more, before Carter put Chloe down and she laughed. They faced out to the ocean and Chloe rested her head on the boy’s broad shoulder. He slung one pale arm around her shoulder and she put hers around his waist. His other rested just above her bottom. Max watched in fury as his hand went down to touch the bottom of her bikini.
She pushed herself off the towel and stormed towards the two thirteen year olds, ignoring the confused looks from Joyce and William. As she got closer, Chloe and Carter turned around.
‘Woah, Max! What’s wrong?’ Chloe asked, surprised. Max didn’t answer her. Instead, she turned to look at Carter. He looked genuinely shocked. He didn’t understand what was going on. Max didn’t know what to do, so she did the only thing she thought of. She brought up her leg and kneed Carter right in the groin.
‘Shit!’ He exclaimed before falling to the floor, clutching the assaulted area. Chloe was surprised for a moment, then her expression immediately changed to anger.
‘What the hell, Max?’ Chloe said before bending down to help her boyfriend.
‘I’m sorry, I… I don’t know what I was thinking. I--’ Max stuttered, but Chloe stopped her.
‘Are you serious? He’s really hurt! I can’t believe you did that!’ Chloe almost yelled as she cooed to Carter and cradled him in her arms. Joyce and William ran over to see what the commotion was all about. Max could feel the rage boil inside her. All she needed was to let it out.
‘What the fuck, Carter?!’ Max shouted. ‘What were you doing, grabbing her ass like that, huh? You’re just a horny bastard, that’s it! I hope you enjoyed those fifteen seconds, because it won’t be happening again! Enjoy the friend zone, loser!’
Max stormed off towards the parking lot, not bothering to grab any of her stuff. She ran all the way to where the Prices’ car was parked, and tried to open the door, but it was locked. She slumped beside it, trying not to cry. She had just fucked up her relationship with her best friend, not to mention made Chloe’s and Carter’s stronger. She didn’t even know she had that courage and strength in her. Carter didn’t even deserve it. She felt terrible.
She heard footsteps come towards her, and she glanced up. She didn’t even flinch as Chloe sat down next to her. They were silent for a few moments before Chloe spoke.
‘So… Why did you do that?’
‘Chloe, I’m sorry. I don’t know what came over me. I guess I was just jealous because you were spending so much time with him and I didn’t want you to forget about me. I didn’t want to lose you. I just went into protective mode when I saw him touching your butt, because I don’t want you to get too involved with him and less with me. I can’t even believe I did that. I’m really sorry.’
‘Max, I will never forget about you, and you always need to remember that. I’m sorry for spending so much time with Carter and leaving you out a lot. It’s just… He’s my first boyfriend and I want him to like me. You’ll understand when you fall in love. And to be honest, I wasn’t too fond of him touching me either.’
Chloe looked at Max and smiled. Max rested her head on the taller girl’s shoulder and felt time slip away. She hoped that this moment would last forever. As both girls gazed at the slowly setting sun, hand in hand, they knew that they would always remember this moment.