“Call me selfish, but I don’t really have anything to ask. The mysteries of the universe don’t seem too daunting from my perspective. It doesn’t really matter how much shit I had to go through to get here, I’m in love with my best friend.”

-Max Caulfield, from The Book of Halos

She was alone again… sort of.

Max stood and surveyed the diner, which was now filled beyond capacity with the entire Arcadia Bay population; all hollow figures that Max herself assembled through a super-conscious effort. Some of which she knew personally like her classmates and adults she had interacted with around town; others were simply reduced to nameless faces in the crowd. She didn’t know if her rewind capabilities had anything to do with what was happening to her, but she truly didn’t care. Max understood she was exactly where she needed to be, doing exactly what she needed to do.

She surprised herself by no longer being anxious or panicked, existing in this in-between state with no overall control over her life. Not too long ago, the lack of personal autonomy would be a hellish idea to her. Maybe it was the fact that she spent much of her time away from reality, trapped in a nightmare a few years back. Or perhaps dealing with the Voodoo Man’s shenanigans and torturous tactics, she grew accustomed to things she never thought were possible. Either way, Max kept focused on the love of her life.

Chloe is all that matters.

In her mind, she recalled the diner and the mean, nightmare version of herself that she only recently realized she would need to become; or maybe she already had become somehow. She knew from her experience that she would indeed see Chloe again. In her nightmare, her best friend assuredly strolled inside the diner and provided a fierce counterargument to Max’s deepest insecurities. Afterwards, Max woke up in Chloe’s arms during the storm at the lighthouse.

What if there could be something else? Something before the lighthouse but after the diner.

Considering how important the Voodoo Man’s words were when he assumed his gypsy alter ego, Max thought about that day at the campsite and the final card that was pulled, the Seven of Swords.

“Unfortunately, or maybe fortunately, these moments are frozen in time in your memory like… I dunno… like a museum of profound moments. You keep living them again and again. The final card is a little tricky, as it implies your need to deceive. Which, to me, isn’t your natural bend. But this is who you must become.”

Maybe she didn’t mean ‘deception’ in a negative way, but more like me playing the bad guy while actually helping and being the good guy. It’s so confusing, but I gotta just believe.

The Voodoo Man, using Victoria’s hollow body only moments before, explained how he attempted to get Max to that point many times previously, unbeknownst to her. It wasn’t until he nearly broke her spirit that she succeeded and moved forward. In one reality, when he told her directly what needed to be done, things ended poorly. She figured that was why the nightmare version of herself had to be mean to her– and why she would need to play the same part. She clearly didn’t want to hurt herself, but if she didn’t push Max to the brink and test her spirit, everything would certainly fall apart.

Standing near the restroom where Dana was sitting, Max closed her eyes again and entered the super-subconscious realm. It was dark and barren but she had a plan.

You have to remember that week, Max. Every detail when you were with Chloe. Start at the beginning. God, I was so nervous when she picked me up in the parking lot. My camera broke and Chloe gave me shit for being away. Then she was suddenly sweet again.

Max thought about the truck and her busted camera, and she crafted it the way she remembered. She was glancing down while Chloe propped an elbow on the window seal with one hand on the steering wheel, peeking over in her direction.

Chloe: “After five years, you’re still Max Caulfield.”

A tear rolled down her cheek as she recreated the moment, but she quickly wiped it away. She could physically hear Chloe’s voice and it filled her heart.

Max: “I am seriously glad to see you.”

Chloe: “Welcome home, Max. Fasten your seatbelt.”

In the darkened space, Max pushed forward, summoning another inanimate version of herself and Chloe, William’s camera connecting them in the middle between their hands.

Chloe: “I, uh… know it was your birthday last month… This was my real father’s camera… I want you to have it.”

Max: “Yes, of course it’s cool! Thank you… This camera is so sweet.”

At the time, it meant so much to Max. It was almost like Chloe was saving the special memento just for her.

Chloe: “Now that we got the mushy shit out of the way, I feel like stage diving! Let’s thrash this place! Yep, yep! I’m fucking insane in the brain! Let’s dance! Shake that bony white ass! Or take my picture with your new camera!”

A few more paces away, Max created them again; this time with Chloe dancing on the bed in her room and Max taking a picture of Chloe.

Chloe: “This song fucking rules! Can’t dance, hippie. Come on! Rawk out, girl! Yo, turn it off, turn it off! You need to hide. Now! My stepdad will kill me if he finds you here!”

Next, Max thought about the cliff, then recreated the memory.

Chloe: “You were here today, Max. You saved me! I’m still tripping on that… Seeing you after all these years feels like–”

Max: “Destiny?”

Chloe: “If this is destiny, I hope we can find Rachel. I miss her, Max. What the hell is this?

Max remembered the first small twinge of jealousy from Chloe’s words. She felt her best friend’s love for herself, but could also sense Chloe’s feelings for Rachel. But quickly, she realized what she had learned that week. Rachel was hiding stuff from Chloe and lying to her about it; actually deceiving her in a hurtful manner. In a way, it broke Max’s heart knowing her favorite person would soon find out about everything.

Max: “Snowflakes… Or a storm is coming.”

Chloe: “Max, start from the beginning. Tell me everything…”

A few steps more.

Chloe was so excited to find out about Max’s rewind power. It was a fond memory Max was sure to include. She crafted herself and Chloe again in the booth at the diner.

Chloe: “Let’s talk about your superpower… Epic! I pledge allegiance to Max and the power for which she stands… You can rewind time, Max. That’s fucking insane. We have to play! You need a sidekick to guide you.”

Max: “Okay, Girl Wonder… Show me the way to Chloe’s Cave.”

It was so nice ‘playing’ with Chloe again. The stakes were higher, but we were still the same kids who played pirates in the backyard and around Arcadia Bay.

Recalling the junkyard, Max continued down memory lane.

Chloe: “Welcome to American Rust, my home away from Hell.”

Max: “Raw and rough. It suits you…”

Chloe: “Max, do you know how awesome this is? I get my best friend back and she’s also supersized?”

Of course, being with Chloe was great, but losing consciousness wasn’t pleasant.

Max: “I… don’t… feel so super…”

Chloe: “Max, here let me help you find a place to chill… You freaked me out there. Do you feel any better now?”

After designing the scene, Max thought about one of her favorite memories after the two reconnected. It began rough with Chloe getting her boot stuck in the tracks, but it ended so enduringly. She created the train and the tracks then herself and Chloe as they held hands and balanced across.

Chloe: “You saved me again. Crazy. Now we’re totally bonded for life! Since you’re the mysterious superhero… I’ll be your faithful chauffeur and companion.”

Max: “My powers might not last, Chloe.”

Chloe: “That’s okay–we will. Forever.”

Max realized when the other version of herself walks down her trail of memories, she will need to proceed in sequential order. Next, she thought about the time they broke into Blackwell at night, creating the moment when they were trying to bust into Wells’ office.

Max: “I’m so glad you’re my partner in crime.”

Chloe: “As long as you’re my partner in time. I might get to the other side of that door before you, Lupin.”

Max: “The race is on. See you soon. Welcome to my domain.”

Chloe: “You are magic. I have no clue how the hell you got in there, but you did it, sista.”

Inside, they discovered memorable yet disturbing files, so Max featured that moment as well.

Chloe: “Max, you better come check out these files…”

Max: “It’s not a drawing… look, ‘Rachel in the dark room… Rachel in the dark room…’ Over and over. That’s it. No, you are not taking the cozy chair.”

Chloe: “Max, do your powers include mind-reading? Or did you just rewind because I tried to steal the chair. Shit. I’m confused.”

Max: “It’s the powers of best friendship. I know how you roll…”

Suddenly, Max’s heart fluttered. She knew she loved Chloe, but she didn’t understand what her feelings meant until they swam together in the Blackwell Pool. Looking back, it was then that Max realized she cared about Chloe more than she even thought possible. It was genuinely special recreating the memory.

Max: “Cowabunga!”

Chloe: “Why, look! An otter in my water! Your power is changing everything, Max. Especially you. I can already tell. You’re not so chickenshit anymore.”

Max knew it wasn’t the power that was changing her, it was being around her best friend again. She was growing and becoming a more assertive version of herself because of Chloe.

Max: “Thanks, girlfriend.”

Chloe: “And you make me feel like I have a reason for still being in Arcadia Bay.”

Max: “Let’s call it a draw. I’m gonna freeze my ass off when I get out…”

Chloe: “You look cute with your hair soaked in chemicals.”

Max crafted the moment she and Chloe were holding hands, fleeing Blackwell security.

Max and Chloe: “Hide!”

Chloe: “You can’t go back to your dorm room now, you’re a Blackwell fugitive! Crash at my place tonight.”

Taking a few steps forward, Max began designing Chloe’s room from when they awoke the next morning.

Chloe: “Photobomb!”

Max: “Photo-hog! It feels like a different world from yesterday…”

Chloe: “We left a skid mark on Blackwell last night.”

Max: “Wish we could just hang out all morning like we used to… Maybe we should get up. I have to get back to Blackwell soon.”

Then, Max’s heart overflowed again. She felt nervous the way she did when Chloe asked her to kiss her. Besides the way Chloe panicked, it was such an amazing experience, and it was the pair’s first kiss.

Chloe: “I double dare you. Kiss me now.”

Chloe: “Damn, you’re hardcore, Max! Now I can text Warren and tell him he doesn’t stand a chance… unless he’s into girl-on-girl action.”

Max: “You are such a dork.”

Taking a few steps to consider which memory to select, Max remembered she and Chloe shared some not-so-lovely moments as well. In some ways, the darker memories were haunting and hurtful; in other ways, she knew even the dark moments were times she and Chloe were together facing the universe as one.

Max recalled being inside Frank’s RV.

Chloe: “Oh, we could totally cruise everywhere in this bad boy! Can you see us heading down the coast to Big Sur or beyond? I know. Just daydreaming. It makes me ill that Rachel posed like this for Frank… or wrote him love letters… I can’t believe she was banging Frank! Rachel straight up lied to my face! Why didn’t she say anything?”

Max: “Because she knew how you would react.”

Chloe: “Then she wasn’t much of a friend, huh? Just another person who shits all over me. Why does everybody in my life let me down? My dad gets killed, you bail on me for years, my mother gloms onto step-fucker… now Rachel betrays me…”

Chloe’s words were hurtful, but she needed to get it all out. Max knew that moment was messy, but it was THEIRS. It belonged to them, and thus important for this museum of memories she was assembling.

Max felt the need to move forward, but in doing so she would need to remind herself about going back in time. She discovered she could photo jump, so she attempted to save William’s life and fill the gaping hole in Chloe’s life.

Chloe: “Not until I see it first! You know the rules, Dad! Dude, I am so lucky that my father is cool… Max, you are being so fucking strange. You feel okay?”

Max: Chloe, I am… awesome. We are awesome.”

Sliding forward on the path, Max began crafting scenes from the alternate timeline. Chloe wouldn’t remember their time together, but those moments were profound for Max. When the other version of herself sees these memories, this will be important to her.

Chloe: “It’s weird hanging out with you again.”

Max: “I know… I’m glad we are though.”

Chloe: “Look, the worst thing you can do is treat me like a baby. I still want to laugh and talk shit with my best friend. Can we stop? This is seriously the best view of the sunset. What do photographers call that?”

Max: “The golden hour.”

Chloe: “Whoa, awesome picture. We look so badass in our pirate gear.”

Max: “We should have taken over Arcadia Bay when we had the chance.”

Chloe: “Listen, Max, my respiratory system is failing and… and it’s only getting worse. I’ve heard the doctors talking about it when they thought I was zonked out. So I know I’m just putting off the inevitable, while my parents suffer along… and I will, too. This isn’t how I want things to end.

Max: “What are you saying?”

Chloe: “I’m saying that being with you again has been so special. I just wanted to feel like when we were kids running around Arcadia Bay… and everything was possible. And you made me feel that way today. I want this time with you to be my last memory… Do you understand?”

Another tear tumbled down Max’s face.

God, I hated seeing Chloe like that. Giving up. Sooo fucking unfair. I haven’t thought about this memory in years.

Max shuddered then sniffed back her emotions before continuing.

Max: “Chloe… you’re back. I’m just… I’m just–I’m so glad you’re here!”

A memory that was much better than the previous spread throughout Max’s mind. She recreated the detective board, the notes on the floor, and the desk. Chloe wasn’t aware of everything Max had experienced in the alternate timeline, so she didn’t want to pass that burden on.

Chloe: “You sound high, but thanks for the morning grope. Since we were up all night playing ‘CSI: Arcadia Bay,’ I was still spaced out here, trying to put all this info together.”

The ecstatic emotions that spread through Max’s heart from finding an alive and healthy Chloe were quickly tempered by the next. Her instinct was to finish the Max and Chloe memory museum with happiness, but taking from the Voodoo Man’s direction, she realized Max needed her spirit pushed to the very edge, taking her towards the physical edge of the cliff to be with Chloe. Every memory of Chloe and herself, either good or bad, was a testament to their deeply rooted connection.

Taking a couple steps forward she recalled the dark room.

Max: “Kate wasn’t the first… All those binders are filled with other victims. Victoria has to be next. Nathan must be planning to dose her tonight at the Vortex Club party.”

Chloe: “Rachel… This can’t be real… These are all—these are all posed shots, right? Right? The junkyard! Max, we have to find that spot, now! Then we can see what he did… There’s no way she’s dead. No way! She posed for those pictures, Max. I know it, please… let’s go.”

What happened next shattered Max’s heart into countless fractals.

Chloe: “Rachel… Oh, Rachel… No… no… Please, not her…”

Max: “Chloe…”

Chloe: “Rachel… why?”

Max: “I’m sorry, Chloe. I’m so sorry…”

Chloe: “I loved her so much… How can she be dead? What kind of world does this? Who does this?!”

Goddamn Jefferson. And Nathan. Fuck those two.

Max took a break and meandered back through the path. She stopped to take a final look at each memory and make sure she had the precise details. After her review, she closed her eyes and was back in the diner at the table.

Remembering the specifics, Max crafted a camera, setting it in front of her on the table as she waited for herself to come out of the diner’s restroom at any moment.

I hope this works. Fuck! I need to see Chloe again. I need her back!