"Why do I get the feeling we're gonna find all kinds of wrong in here?" Max asked after she opened Billys door, El and Rocky close behind.

"Oh wow." Rocky looked around Billys explicit room, eating a bag of chips he stole from the Hargrove pantry. "Your brother really respects woman, doesn't he?"

"Step brother." Max corrected him with an eye roll.

"Step." he nodded. "Wanna chip?"

She looked over, taking one from the out reached bag before they spread out.

Max leaned, pulling a drawer open before slamming it back, "Ugh, gag me with a spoon."

"I'm not seeing anything worth panicking over." Rocky said honestly as he looked through some of Billys drawers. "Damn, nice leather though."

El flipped the light on, encouraging them to follow her to the bathroom. Their eyes falling to the bathtub filled with water, empty ice bags laid on top of it, "Max."

"Ice. It's just ice." Max dipped her hand into the bath and pulled one of the bags, "It's probably for his muscles or something. He works out like a maniac."

Rocky looked into the bathtub, leaning down and touching the water. "It's been sitting for a while."

"How can you tell?" Max gave an odd look.

"Because it's cold, but not cold like you just had an ice bath." he nodded, taking her wrist to touch the water. "It would be really cold if the ice was recent, but it's almost a warm-cold now."

Max went to mock his intelligence before El turned to them. "Look."

They followed her gaze as smeared blood was on one of them. Max looked to Rocky. "You have any science behind that one?"

"Zero." Rocky shook his head.

El pulled the cabinets open, reaching for the trash can under the sink and peering down at it.

"El, what is it?" Max spoke when El didn't say anything.

El turned to Max with a bloody whistle in her hand, Rocky stood up quickly and bagged it with the empty ice bag.

"Thanks." Max spoke as Rocky removed the umbrella from over the trio, dripping it at the door.

"You could just use your hell powers to keep us warm and dry." Rocky shrugged as he followed her. "But, sure, umbrellas work too."

"Excuse me." Max approached the two older teens behind the counter.

"No one in the water until thirty minutes after the last strike." the boy spoke, not taking his eyes off the magazine he was flipping through."And don't try and argue with me. You wanna get electrocuted, go climb a tree."

"Who's arguing?" Rocky shrugged as the guys eyes flickered his way.

"Yeah, we don't care. We're not here to swim." Max huffed, siding with Rocky on their clear bad cop, bad cop vibe, "Or get electrocuted."

"We found this." El held the fanny pack up, meeting eyes with the pair behind the counter.

"Does that belong to anybody here?" Max asked curiously.

"Oh, yeah. That's Heathers." the boy nodded his head, eyeing the pack, "I'll get it back to her."

"You expect us to trust you?" Rocky shot in his direction. "You just threatened to electrocute us."

"Yeah." Max agreed.

El cut in, "We could give it back to her."

"You could." he shrugged, "Cept' she's not here. Bailed on me today."

The trio shared a look.

"What is this? You three want a reward or somethin?" he asked in disbelief when non of them bothered to leave the desk.

"No. We're just good samaritans." Max grinned.

"We came all this way in the rain." Rocky nodded his head with an exhale. "We'll find a way to give it to her."

"Or you can just leave it." he suggested after.

"Or you can just back off." Rocky went on.

"Or you ca-" the guy dropped the newspaper, being cut off by Rocky reached over and yanking his head down to hit the counter.

"Or you can just back off." he repeated, letting him go and giving El a thumbs up, knowing that's what she brought him along for. Max gave a grin, the two followed El to the poster board. They stared at a lifeguard photo, the name Heather written under it.

"Oh, I know her face." Rocky nodded his head. "She gave me my freshman year tour last year. She's sweet, not Billys type of girl."

"Do you think you can find her?" Max looked at El.

Looking back at the pair of older teens behind the desk, who were no longer paying them any mind. El yanked the photo off, Max leading them toward the locker rooms.

"Coming to the girls bathroom?" El gave a questionable look as Rocky followed them into the locker rooms.

"I think it'll be okay this one time." he walked into the showers more as El shrugged.

"I'll get the showers." Max flipped them all on for the sound, the place steaming up quickly. "Rocky, get her goggles."

"Where?" he frowned his eyebrows.

"Backpack." she huffed. He walked up behind her as she turned on the shower, unzipping the bag on her back and rummaging through to get the goggles. Max turned on the shower, having it spray down onto the two. "Oh!"

"Max, really?" he gapped at her.

"I thought it was gonna go that way." she argued, the pair stumbling out of the shower, dripping with the water as he handed El the goggles.

El gave a small, taking a seat. El put a pair of black out goggles on her face, Heathers picture laid before her. Max and Rocky sat on the bench, giving her some space to do what she did best.

"What do you see?" Max asked honestly.

"A door." El said back, "A red door."

Rocky turned some, his elbow colliding with Max's with a questionable look. "Never seen a red door in my life."

El gasped for air, yanking the goggles off and taking deep breaths.

"What happened?" Max asked quickly, being ignored as El continued to gasp for any form of breath, "El!"

Rocky held her shoulder as El inhaled deeply, catching her breath in the process of coming to the conclusion that something had been wrong.

•

kylie speaks

el was so smart to invite him