Life is Strange: Acts Have Consequences

First chapter in a small three-shot I have planned, focusing on the aftermath of rescuing Kate at the end of episode 2, the three chapters are about scenes that are referenced but never seen in the game itself, namely this chapter is about Max walking Kate down and them being seen by the Blackwell students. Anyway, hope you enjoy.

Disclaimer: I don't own Life is Strange or its characters.

Chapter 1: Realization

The rain continued to pour, but Max barely noticed it, everything still felt so surreal.

'I can't believe it came to this, that poor Kate…' She thought sadly. 'Just thinking about what could have happened if I hadn't been…Or if I'd said the wrong thing…'

Max bit her lip, the only sounds she could hear were her own heavy breathing, Kate's choked sobs and the rain. Neither of them cared for the rain which was now practically soaking them to the bone.

"Kate, are you…?" She said softly, breaking the silence at last.

Kate sobbed again and shook her head. "I…I can't…"

Max smiled gently and slightly tightened her grip on her friend as she held her. "Okay, I get it…Take your time."

Max did her best to suppress a shudder as she glanced over at the edge of the roof, where Kate had been standing what felt like a lifetime ago; even if in reality it had only been a few minutes ago. She was glad, grateful that Kate had chosen life; that she had stepped away, reaching out to take Max's hand and stepped towards safety.

There had been one terrible heart-stopping moment when Max thought Kate was going to jump, despite her words, but it passed, much to her relief. She absently heard the door opening and knew it was David, she had seen him attempting to run up to Kate's aid when she froze time, he would never have made it, neither would she if she hadn't done that.

But she didn't dwell on the fact, Kate was safe, that was what mattered.

When he emerged on the rooftop, David was surprised, he had heard the gasps of the students as he entered the dorm building and feared he was too late. But nothing happened and he realized Kate hadn't jumped. Not knowing what to expect, what had caused the students to gasp, he had resumed his journey cautiously and now he found his answers.

'Max Caulfield, when…how did she even?' He thought in shock. 'I don't know how she did it, but she did…She got up here and talked Kate down from that ledge…She saved her.'

He shook his head, still in shock at all this. He didn't move, he couldn't, the more he thought about it, the more he realized he shared some blame in this. His actions, especially around Kate had hardly been stellar or understanding. No wonder so few trusted him but still, for things to come to this.

He sighed. 'I swear, I'm tired of fighting all the time. Just, just stay out of it, let Max handle this.'

So he remained where he was, watching as Max continued to soothe Kate.

Kate could hardly believe it; in the space of such a short time, she had experienced such a torrent of emotions, her mind couldn't keep up. All she could say with certainty was, the feeling of fear, loneliness and depressed which had oppressed her was eased. The desire to end her own life, to put an end to the nightmare had passed, and it was all thanks to the girl now holding her and comforting her.

'Max, you always stood by me, no matter what, even now…Thank you.' She thought; she knew she couldn't put off the inevitable for ever, Max was there; she knew that and drew strength from that. "Max I…I think I'm ready."

Max nodded gently, they could hear the sirens and knew the police and ambulance crew had already arrived. With a sigh, Kate shakily got to her feet, Max continued to support her as they began to make their way down. She saw David, he was pale as a sheet and looked scared. He said nothing however, simply stuck by them as they made their way down the stairs.

Finally they emerged into the courtyard, into a deathly silence. Then it was like somebody flipped a switch and they were soon swamped by the crowd. People cheering for them, congratulating Max, expressing relief that Kate was alright. Kate knew that many of these people were either responsible for her being up there in the first place, or had done nothing to help her. But she didn't care, confronted with the reality of what their actions had caused, it was clear they had realized their errors.

She just prayed they learned from them.

So it was with a lighter heart that Kate allowed herself to relax as she was taken away in the ambulance, Max was there, reassuring her, promising to visit her as soon as she could. They even made sure Kate didn't have to worry about anything outside her recovery. With Max volunteering to take care of her rabbit, Alice.

Kate smiled for the first time in a long time as the ambulance left, she had stared into the abyss, but she was still here and she was certain everything would be alright now.

End of chapter, hope you enjoyed it, read and review please.