Chapter Text
This isn’t the first time it’s dawned on Chloe that she’s been spending way too much time lately hanging around outside this fucking diner. Almost every day it feels like she finds herself here, sitting in her truck in what’s probably the exact same parking spot as yesterday, waiting and smoking and running through all the messed up shit in her head until she catches that first glimpse of Victoria and starts thinking maybe everything’s alright, like some stupid love-drunk kid still riding the high of her first real kiss.
This place doesn’t exactly help her feel alright about life.
Making matters worse, Victoria’s not even here. She’s all the way over at that dumb school, probably already waiting on Chloe to pick her up, which she’d be on her way to do if she could just find it in herself to walk into the diner, do what she’s gotta do and get it the fuck over with.
With one final sigh, she picks up the package from the seat next to her and heads inside.
Joyce is behind the counter as usual, back to the door, doesn’t even turn around to see her daughter walk in. After how their last meeting went, Chloe could almost feel some satisfaction at being the one to sneak up this time, but she’s trying to be decent, so she shoves that thought aside and walks up to the counter like everything’s fine between them.
“Hey, mom,” she says. Joyce turns.
“Hi, Chloe,” she says, without emotion, just like she used to whenever Chloe would get in trouble or do something really stupid. The freeze-off. Classic Joyce.
“You okay?” Chloe says. “I mean, it’s, uh…it’s been a while.”
“I guess it has,” Joyce nods. Chloe guesses she should at least be thankful she’s not bringing up why. “You know Victoria’s not working today, right?”
“Yeah, actually I came to see you.”
That seems to crack the ice a little. Joyce’s eyes widen slightly, her expression softening.
“You did?”
Chloe nods, laying her package on the counter between them.
“For tomorrow. I didn’t forget.”
Like you expected me to.
“Happy birthday, mom.”
It’s weird seeing Joyce look so stunned, and not feeling like it’s her fault for once. The silence that falls might just be a few seconds, but Chloe feels every single one of them, almost physically, as she wonders if trying to be a good daughter might be about to blow up in her face, worse than anything did when she didn’t give a shit. Don’t start crying, she silently pleads. Don’t be weird or start giving me crap about not talking to you sooner, because I’ll leave, I don’t even care. Please, just take it.
“I…well, thank you, sweetheart,” Joyce says at last. “That’s lovely, I…you didn’t steal this, did you?”
“Seriously?”
“I’m joking,” says Joyce. “Promise. I know you’re past all that now. You’re…I’m proud of you, kid. Really.”
Shit, I can’t even remember the last time she said that. Chloe’s suddenly knocked off guard by what’s probably a totally normal interaction between mother and daughter. Now it’s her turn to get all stiff and awkward and horribly aware of the fact she’s not saying anything for way too long.
“Well, um…hey, are you doing anything tomorrow?” she says. Might as well. “We could go get coffee, or…or something.”
As long as I don’t have to go back to that fucking house.
“That’s sweet of you, but I’ve already got plans,” Joyce says.
“Oh,” Chloe says. “Okay.”
Well, you’ve officially done it. You’re such a drag even your own mom doesn’t wanna hang out with you.
“I’m sure we can figure something out soon, though,” Joyce smiles, oblivious to what’s going on in her daughter’s head. “You doing anything nice tonight?”
“On my way to meet someone,” says Chloe.
“Well, tell someone I said hi.”
Chloe does her best not to roll her eyes. Of course Joyce knows about her and Victoria, she never really thought they could hide it, but does she need to act so smug and knowing?
“Sure, I’ll tell her,” she nods. Easier to just go with it. “I’ve gotta go, it’s, um…it’s been nice.”
Back in the truck, Chloe takes a second to process just how normal that was, and how weird normal feels. She’s not used to being on good terms with Joyce; even when she was a little kid, her mom was always the serious one, making sure she did her homework, went to school, didn’t get in trouble, all that boring shit. Dad was the fun one, the one she could talk to, the one she was sure she’d never live without.
Dad’s not here, she reminds herself, but here I am, still living. And David’s gone too, thank fuck. Maybe things really are gonna be better now.
That’s enough of that. She’s got places to be. She doesn’t want to see Victoria’s reaction if she shows up late for their first proper date.
Are we really doing this? She was so certain of what she wanted this to be that she never considered it might be easier to just keep it simple, getting high and hooking up. Sure, maybe it wouldn’t have been that easy forever with all these stupid feelings, but a real relationship seems way bigger and more intimidating now she might already be in it. Victoria’s going to expect things, and Chloe’s not even sure what those expectations are, let alone if she can live up to them. If she’s gonna be a disappointment, when she was the one that pushed for something more in the first place, then what’s the point of any of it?
That’ll have to wait. She’s almost there. Time to smile and pretend she’s not spent every moment since she last saw Victoria second-guessing everything about what they’re doing.
There she is, Chloe thinks as she catches sight of a slim figure walking out of the school gates. God, she’s gorgeous. Victoria’s dressed up; literally, in a short dark blue dress under an expensive-looking black coat, and as she comes closer Chloe can see she’s made a real effort with makeup, subtle but effective, bringing out her eyes, her cheeks, that fucking smile. It’s almost like she’s looking at the old Victoria Chase, but different, better, like if that rich girl had ever really looked happy and excited, not pale and pained from working herself to the bone just to be queen of some shitty school. When she steps up and opens the truck’s passenger door, it’s like a sudden rush of warmth in spite of the cold air that actually floods in.
“Hey,” Victoria says. “You’re not late.”
“You thought I was gonna be?”
“I thought you might be playing it cool.”
“Nah, I’m actually a massive fucking loser.”
“Knew it, ” Victoria teases as she climbs up into her seat. Chloe rolls her eyes.
“What’s in the bag, anyway?” she nods to the heavy-looking black bag Victoria just set on the bench seat between them.
“My skates,” Victoria says.
Of course she’s got her own skates.
“Haven’t worn them for a while,” she continues. “Hope I’m not too out of practice.”
Chloe doesn’t know what exactly made her suggest ice skating for a date. It sounded romantic, like something a real couple would do, and in that fuzzy kind of afterglow that had felt important. It hadn’t hurt, either, that she knew she wasn’t awful at it - Max’s dad used to take the two of them skating back when life wasn’t hell - so the risk of making an ass of herself seemed low.
Or so she thought. Chloe hasn’t skated in years. Now, faced with a confident Victoria who owns her own skates, her own competence is the latest thing to get stomach-churningly second-guessed.
But, she’s still got to pretend everything’s cool and this whole relationship thing doesn’t terrify her at all, so she just smiles and starts the engine.
The little ice rink Chloe’s known since she was a kid is at the edge of town; not a long drive, but too long to let it pass in silence, so she listens to Victoria’s chatter as she keeps her eyes on the darkening road ahead and contributes where she can. School’s shit. Work’s shit. Life in general is shit, they both agree.
But being with you is almost good enough to make up for everything else.
Somehow, that remains unsaid.
Victoria’s face takes on a familiar frown as they pull up outside the rink. Chloe guesses she can’t blame her; the place looked ten years out of date ten years ago, and hasn’t exactly moved with the times since her last visit.
“Well, this is… cute, ” she says, a little pointedly. Chloe has to smirk.
“You know everything in this town’s a big heap of crap, right?”
“ Obviously. ”
“Yeah, so…” she shrugs, “suck it up, princess.”
“Don’t call me that,” Victoria says, but there’s no hiding the smile on her face or the hint of pink in her cheeks.
Inside, the same as outside, the place is exactly as Chloe remembers. She takes note of Victoria looking down her nose at the dented lockers and safety posters probably older than both of them, but she’s good enough not to say anything. They head to a slightly grimy desk to pay a bored-looking woman for their time on the ice, and then Chloe swaps her boots for a pair of battered old rented skates while Victoria straps on her own, no doubt expensive figure skates, as clean and well-maintained as if they’d never been worn. Then, after a quick, silent prayer to whatever deity might be listening that she won’t fall on her ass in the first five seconds, Chloe takes Victoria’s hand as they glide out onto the smooth white surface of the rink.
It takes a few seconds to get her balance, grasping at the side until she’s sure her legs are under her, but from there it’s easy enough, like she never stopped skating. Victoria seems to be doing better, glancing over her shoulder with an amused smile at Chloe’s first shaky attempts.
“I thought you’d know what you’re doing,” she jabs playfully.
“Yeah, like you’re so good,” Chloe shoots back, though she would have to admit she’s already feeling a little outclassed by the ease with which Victoria moves.
“That’s nothing,” Victoria says. “Watch.”
She closes her eyes for a second and takes a deep breath, gliding out in front while Chloe skates along behind. Then, with practiced grace, she throws her arms over her head and picks up one foot as she starts spinning in place. It’s a simple move, but executed to perfection, and the sight of Victoria twirling, dress floating, face set in a kind of focused calm, is quite something.
She comes to the end of her move, one skate trailing slightly behind her, and turns to face Chloe with a smile that’s halfway between smug and shy, like she’s loving the chance to show off but isn’t totally sure if she should. Chloe grins.
“ Damn, ” she says. “Lemme guess, Daddy paid for some fancy private lessons?”
“My daddy would have paid for anything if it meant he didn’t have to look at me for a few hours,” Victoria says, but she’s still smiling, and the sudden brutal honesty makes Chloe laugh.
“That why he shipped you off to Blackhell?”
“Of course,” she says. “But if he could see me now, he’d probably explode, so maybe it was all worth it.”
She reaches out and takes Chloe’s hands, and with a gentle pull they start moving again, Victoria showing impeccable form and poise even while skating backwards. Chloe realizes this is probably going better than she ever imagined it could.
“Got any more fancy moves?” she asks. If Victoria’s having fun showing what she’s got, might as well give her another chance. Plus, there’s just something sexy about the totally unpretentious, well-deserved confidence of the real Victoria Chase, and if Chloe can tease a little more of that out, she’s gonna goddamn well do it.
Victoria rolls her eyes, like it’s so embarrassing being asked, but she’s already glancing over her shoulders to check the ice is clear ahead, already looking like she’s gearing up for something special.
“I’m a little out of practice, so this might not be perfect, but I can probably show you an axel.”
She gives Chloe’s hands a quick squeeze before releasing them to glide free. Chloe slows to watch as Victoria drifts away. The only other people on the ice - a guy with two young kids, and a guy and a girl who might also be on a date - seem less confident, sticking to the sides, and Victoria, showing an impressive sense of her surroundings, goes for it.
Her left foot comes up off the ice. Now she’s skating one-footed, backwards, out of practice, as naturally as breathing. Chloe comes to a halt, holding the side to keep her balance. She doesn’t want to miss this. Victoria turns, picking up speed as she does, and then jumps half a foot off the ice, spinning through the air for a second before landing with only the slightest little wobble.
It takes all her restraint not to yell fuck yeah! or that was sick! and totally embarrass Victoria in her moment of triumph. The couple and the guy with the kids have stopped to watch too, and everyone’s looking at her all impressed and admiring, and Chloe wonders if this is the first time she’s ever seen Victoria look truly happy, no faking, none of whatever’s too painful to talk about hanging over her head, just proud and smiling and knowing she’s still good at something. Chloe lets go of the barrier and pushes forward to catch up again, thinking if it’s already going so well, maybe she can push her luck and finish the date with a little more than a goodnight kiss at the school gates.
Then it happens. Out of the corner of her eye, Chloe vaguely notices two girls getting onto the ice, one hanging back, one setting off with a bit more confidence. For about a second she doesn’t think anything of it - why would she? - until the confident girl picks up speed beyond her control and starts heading, arms flailing wildly, right for Victoria, who’s still moving backwards and doesn’t even see the newcomer approaching. The other girl moves as if to catch her companion, but from the way she moves it’s clear she can barely skate at all, and the result is as sudden and painful as it is predictable.
The first girl hits Victoria like a runaway freight train. The second catches up, grasping for anything to steady herself, and slips forward spectacularly, knocking all three to the ice with a muffled thud. Chloe hits the brakes.
“What the fuck do you think you’re doing?” Victoria’s irate voice rings out. The dad flashes a disapproving look that goes totally unnoticed as the tirade continues.
“You fucking idiot! ” Victoria groans. “ Jesus, if you can’t fucking skate…”
“Hey, come on,” Chloe says, catching up at last. She reaches down carefully to take Victoria’s arm so she can pull herself up. Her touch is met with a sharp gasp of pain.
Shit, that’s not good.
“I’m so sorry, I didn’t mean to…” the second girl starts saying frantically. Something about her voice strikes Chloe as familiar, and when she looks, there’s no mistaking that face.
“Kate?”
It is. That mousey church girl from that chance meeting at her dad’s grave, the one she said she’d text but somehow never got around to doing it, is right here , having just knocked Chloe’s date on her ass.
“Chloe?” she says.
“ Kate?” Victoria says, eyes narrowing.
“Victoria?” says Kate.
This would be funny if my maybe-girlfriend didn’t maybe have a broken wrist, Chloe thinks.
“ Victoria? ” the fourth girl speaks up now as she tries to extract herself from the tangle of bodies.
“Max?” says Victoria.
No, Chloe thinks. No way, it can’t be, there’s no way she’d come back to town after all this time and not think to even text me.
Then the girl looks up and Chloe almost swears she feels the ice crack under her feet. For the first time since she drunkenly wandered into the Two Whales for that first, cringeworthy encounter with the new Victoria Chase, it’s like Chloe’s seeing a ghost, except it turns out that’s a hell of a lot less fun when you’re sober, and instead of your old school bully brought low, you’re suddenly realizing you’re looking at the best friend who ran out on you right when you really needed her.
“Chloe?” says Max Caulfield.