This takes place after the third book, since I hate the turn the series took after that one. The first three were fine, and yeah, I guess MAX is okay, but, you know what? Let's start the disclaimer.
I am not James Patterson. Because this is Fanfiction, and I am not a fan of myself. I really don't see the point of these things, in that case, but oh well. I don't own Maximum Ride or Fax (damn ...), but I do own this story. So suck it, bitchez!
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Wind blew my hair away from my face, the golden strands flying with the raging air. Rain pelted down from the night sky, which was masked by thick clouds of the deepest grey, some even mistakable for black. Light escaped the world, and darkness prevailed.
Outside, the trees buffeted about as their branches clashed at war. The land was merciless, unforgiving. A part of me cringed as I thought of flying in this weather – not that I ever could. The only person I knew with such skill in the air was Fang.
With a heavy sigh, I slid my window shut, and the deafening sounds of the storm ceased suddenly, blocked by the barrier of glass.
My skin was enveloped by new warmth, from the downstairs fire and the heating systems gushing throughout the extravagant house. Outside my bedroom, the speakers blared music that Nudge never seemed to stop playing, while laughter floated up the winding staircase.
I turned to leave my room when a sudden flash lit the household, turning everything an ethereal shade of grey-blue. It was beautiful, entrancing – eerie. Thunder boomed loudly, and the young voice of Angel squealed below.
I reluctantly left the solitude of my bedroom, trying in vain to brush my tangled hair flat as I went. Giving up, I settled for straightening my thin tank – hardly adequate in the furious weather – and hitching up my skin-tight jeans – the most "fashionable" item Nudge and Ella had successfully been able to force me into, as of yet.
As I stepped into the living room, I had to momentarily squint at the sudden brightness. The whole place was lively, cheery, and even Fang's face held a smile, albeit small.
Nearby, Mom smiled and laughed happily, her face brightening. A man's arm snaked around her waist – the arm of Matt, her boyfriend. It made me overjoyed myself to see my mom so alive, especially with him. Before they began dating, she was weary, stressed, and growing grumpier by the day. It heartened me to see her as she should be: happy.
The rain pelted ceaselessly against the roof of the house, growing heavier each second. I closed my eyes and tilted my head back, contented. I've always loved rain, now more than ever. The sounds, the scents, the sights. The storms.
I went to sit on the leather couch, between Nudge and Gazzy. The former was chatting, on and on, but it was really no different to her normal behavior, and she was paid no mind.
"... so I was like, 'What?' And she was like, 'Yeah!' And I was like, 'No! No way!' And then we got into a mini argument but she bought me a dress and it was all sorted, right, Ella?"
"Right," confirmed my sister.
Nudge beamed. "And — oh, my god! I love this song! Well, I love JB in general, really. And oh my gosh, have you heard about how …"
I tuned her ranting out and listened to the sounds outside as they grew louder, stronger. Angel screamed at a sudden rumble of thunder and ran onto Fang's lap, where he held her, stroked her hair. She had always been a soft spot of his. His expression softened considerably the moment she went to him.
The conversations going on about me lost their meaning, eventually, and I got to my feet. I felt eyes on me – Fang's? – but ignored them, instead walking out of the room and down the corridor. I checked behind me quickly, then hurried up the stairs and back into my bedroom. I swung the door shut and rushed to my window, which I lifted fully open. I knew I wasn't allowed outside. I knew I could get hurt. But I didn't care, and jumped straight out the window.
The wind battered my eardrums for only a second while I fell, and then I was on the ground. My feet stopped the impact from seriously hurting, but I still fell to my knees. Irritated at this, I stood once more and dusted off the knees of my jeans. My hair was already soaking, my clothes sticking to my skin, and goosebumps erupted along my exposed flesh. I ignored them and jogged down the path, leaving Matt's Californian mansion behind.
Despite the cold, I felt happy to be in such a state of freedom, and laughed into the empty air. Nobody was out except me – who would be?
Ahead of Matt's place was a broad asphalt road, on the other side of which sat three shops, side by side. Behind the trio was a lush, thick forest, that housed me and the rest of the flock almost daily. I knew the way through the trees by heart, and showed no hesitancy in rushing into the shadows of the pines.
Cold droplets dripped down my neck, and I shivered violently. Again I ignored this, and progressed forward. After a few minutes I halted in a spot where only a few raindrops fell, stopped by the thick canopy above.
Where was I?
I gulped inaudibly and turned in a circle, but it was too dark for me to make out my surroundings. I couldn't turn back and head home, not now. I didn't even know where I'd ended up.
So I kept going.
Eventually the land became familiar, and ease returned to my step. I don't know how long passed in the rain – seconds? Minutes? Hours? – but eventually I found the secluded, rock-framed pool I had been looking for, lit by moonlight and pelted by rain.
The sight was truly beautiful.
A grin blossomed on my face and I removed my tank top, the wet fabric sticking to my dampened skin. For some reason I was warm, warmer than I would expect, and so I proceeded to strip off my jeans, socks and shoes. This left me in only my simple black underwear and bra to match – just how I'd wanted. With a laugh and a yell, I ran forward, jumped over the rocks and submerged myself in the freezing water.
I don't remember ever coming back up.
"Night, Fang," came Angel's hushed whisper.
He smiled slightly. "Night, kiddo."
She yawned, and then said, "When's Gazzy coming to bed?" The two youngest shared a room together, while Fang roomed with Iggy, and Nudge with Ella. Max got her own bedroom; the flock often joked that it was favoritism on Dr M's part, but they all understood.
"I don't know, Ange," Fang replied. "Get some sleep." He turned and went to the door, but before he could get there, Angel called out his name. He looked at her in question.
"Where's Max?" she whispered. "I can't sense her."
A frown creased Fang's brow. "She's gone?" Come to think of it, he hadn't seen her since she'd left the living room.
Angel gave a small, frightened nod, but Fang was already out the door.
He ran to Max's room, but stopped as soon as he saw the window, gaping wide open. He swore and raked a hand through his hair. "Max ..." he hissed.
The rain hadn't eased up at all. Fang felt a twinge of sympathy first for Max, stuck in the storm, and then for Angel, who was terrified of thunder. This was soon replaced by boiling anger, however, and Fang himself stormed downstairs.
Iggy looked up from where he sat on the floor, an eyebrow quirked in query.
"Max has been outside for the past hour or so," Fang said icily. "Maybe longer."
Iggy looked mortified. He cursed under his breath.
"You going to look for her?" he asked quietly.
"I don't really see any other option, unless we leave her out there to die."
Iggy nodded. "Good point."
Fang clenched his jaw. How could she be so stupid? It would be fine in just a casual shower, but a full-blown thunderstorm?
Dr M came downstairs then, a wide yawn stretching her lips taut. At the sight of Iggy and Fang's tenses statures, she stopped and looked at them with concern glinting in her gaze. "Is everything okay?"
"Max went out in the storm," Iggy said, his voice low. "She's been out for at least an hour."
Dr M smiled, trying to make the gesture reassuring. "I'm sure she's fine. Just go to bed and —"
"Are you kidding me?" Fang ground out through his teeth. "This is Max we're talking about. She's not fine."
"Fang," said Dr M sternly, "she'll turn up. Stop worrying."
He sent her an angry glare, then turned, walked away, and opened the front door. Slanting rain immediately flew through, dampening the whole area around the entrance – Fang included. The world outside was purely grey and black – it looked as if someone had taken a greyscale picture on an olden day camera. Everything was dark, gloomy.
"Fang!" yelled Dr M. "If Max is hurt, which I'm sure she's not, we don't want to risk losing you too! Get back here!" she added, as he took another step.
Fang whirled around, his expression like a storm in itself. "After all this time," he growled, "I would've thought you'd know two basic things about me." Dr Martinez opened her mouth to speak, but he cut her off. "One – don't evertell me what to do. And two – don't even think about making me sit idle while anybody from my family is in danger."
Then he turned and walked straight out. The door slammed shut behind him.
Cold ...
My eyes opened a crack, then fluttered shut again as rain stung my pupils. I groaned softly, too weak to make another sound.
Half of my body was covered in freezing water, the current so strong it almost pulled me in. The upper half of me was exposed, and battered by merciless daggers. The sky's teardrops.
My whole being ached, from my head to my toes and back up again.
Pain ...
I tried to sit, but I fell back down with a muted thump as sudden agony attacked me in waves. Three silent tears spilled from my eyes, rolling down my temple and into my dripping, matted hair. They blended easily with the rain.
Feeling began to return to me, then. The first thing that I understood was a biting pain all over. Then exhaustion; terrible, deathly weariness. That was followed by fear – an emotion that I found hard even to admit to myself. Where was I? What had happened to me? Why was it so cold? And why, oh why, was I in so much pain?
Confusion ...
I couldn't remember how I'd gotten here. All I could recall was the warmth of the fireplace in the living room, and the faces of my family. Mom and Matt, Fang, Iggy, Nudge, Gazzy, Angel, Ella. My brow creased slightly in worry. Where were they now? Were they hurting too?
Thunder shook the world, and lightening lit my eyelids blue. The rain didn't cease one bit, instead hardening to an almost unbearable degree. I felt bruised and abused. And I couldn't even gather why.
My limbs were numb, so numb, but I concentrated my dwindling focus on the limp fingers of my left hand, and eventually feeling began to return.
I was just about to roll onto my front and, from there, somehow get to my feet, but sudden warmth struck me. I breathed a sigh of relief, but I froze when I realized that the warmth came from hands. Human hands.
I grew more panicked by the second. Had I been kidnapped? Was this all some form of cruel torture, that I thought deemed inflicted by the forces of nature when, really, they'd been controlling it and laughing all along?
The hands slid to a spot underneath my armpits, then lifted me up. My lower body dragged along sharp rocks and jagged edges, until I was resting against the hard expanse of what I recognized as a man's chest.
His other hand moved down to my bare legs, the bottoms of which were still on the rocks. He pulled them up until I was cradled against him.
My eyes were still shut tight, and my body was wracked by violent shaking. The hands rubbed up and down my arms in a futile attempt to warm me.
It took a moment for me to realize that no drops were hitting me. My stinging eyes fluttered open, but ahead, I could still see the pouring rain. I forced my head to tilt up, and I figured that my captor was holding a wide, black umbrella between his legs to shelter the two of us.
The arms holding me tightened until my whole left side was pressed against his torso. Warmth from his body rushed through me, heating my frozen bones. Nonetheless, I still felt like death.
I turned my head, my neck stiff beneath. As soon as my eyes fell on him, my heart rate rocketed up and my breath hitched.
"Fang," I whispered.
His eyes were a hundred times darker than the night around us, and in them I couldn't decipher a single one of his emotions. His expression was unreadable.
"Fang?" My voice was soft, quiet ... vulnerable. I sounded weak, and I hated it.
I was still madly shaking against him, if a bit less than before, and he tightened his grip. "Have I ever told you," he snarled, "how goddamn stupid you are?"
I cringed, taken aback by his harshness, but my gesture was small. I could hardly even move.
"Did you even think about what you were doing?" Despite what he said, his arms still held me close and kept me warm. His hands had now taken to rubbing my sides, eliciting shivers down my spine – and not from the cold.
Faint flashes of memory appeared in my mind. Rushing into the storm, running through the forest, jumping into the pool. The recklessness that I felt, and excitement that coursed through me.
Fang growled softly, clearly irritated by my silence. "Damn it, Max!"
"I'm sorry," I tried to say, but the words were barely audible. I suddenly felt extremely insecure as I realized that only my two flimsy undergarments shielded me from being stark naked. I forced my heavy arms to cover my chest feebly, but Fang pushed them back. I met his eyes, and he saw right through me as if I were made of glass.
"Don't," he murmured.
Some of my former fiery spirit started to return, but my voice was still feeble. "Why? So you can stare at me all day? No, thanks."
His jaw clenched. "No."
"Then why?"
"Because you have nothing to be insecure about, unless you feel humiliated about being beautiful." He raised an eyebrow. "Happy?"
My cheeks flamed, and I didn't answer.
He frowned. "You're still freezing," he muttered.
I struggled to get away from his grip, but he overpowered me. "I'm fine!" I protested.
"Max, you whiter than paper." I could see the worry flash in his eyes, though it was quickly replaced by boiling anger.
I sighed and looked away from him, directing my gaze at the pour only inches away. "I'm sorry," I whispered again.
Fang looked at me for a moment, and then he smirked. "You don't have anything to change into," he stated.
"No shizzbuckets, Sherlock." I glared at him dryly.
"And so you'll just be in them." He nodded towards the pieces that covered me.
I continued to glare.
"Which means ..." He took his dry top off and threw it at me.
"I'm not taking this!" I said, and threw it back to him. I was desperately trying not to ogle his bare chest. "You'll get cold."
"Not as cold as you," he countered.
I bit my lip. "Fine ..." I muttered, and took the dark shirt back. It was baggy and too big for me, and several inches fell down past my hips, like it was a short dress. My legs were still painfully exposed, but at least my torso was covered.
Fang chuckled. "Very nice."
I slapped his arm.
He rolled his eyes. "I was being serious," he said. "It's cute."
I blushed heavily and turned my face away. A chuckle sounded, and the light red in my cheeks turned to stark crimson.
"Your color's returning," he commented. I could hear the suppressed laughter in his voice.
Annoyed, I yanked the umbrella away from where it stood between Fang's legs and got to my feet. The rain immediately began to pelt Fang, and he jumped up as well and playfully snatched the umbrella back. We were close enough together that it sheltered us both.
I froze when I realized just howclose we were.
Water dripped from Fang's hair into his eyes, and he shook it out like a dog. The drops flew onto me and I scrunched up my face.
"Fang!" I whined, dragging out the word. The chill was still biting into my skin, and I didn't even realize I had shuffled forth to absorb more of Fang's body heat, hardly dimmed by the rain that had momentarily fallen on him.
He didn't answer, and I looked up under my eyelashes to see his expression. A tiny frown was situated upon his brow, his lips were slightly parted and his eyes were a dark swirl of indecipherable emotion. I repeated his name, this time in a whisper.
He looked down to my hand, then slowly brought his forward so that the two brushed together. Acting on a whim, I interlaced my fingers with his and gave a gentle squeeze.
I saw the muscles in his jaw ripple as he clenched his teeth. "Max," he hissed. Alarmed, I quickly started to withdraw my hand, but his grip tightened and held me there. I watched as he pulled our intertwined hands up to his face and grazed his lips over my knuckles. Despite the deafening roar of the raging storm, the world seemed silent.
Our movements were slow, as if we were treading on thin ice and were terrified at the mere prospect of breaking it. His eyes flicked up to meet mine, and his breathing was ragged.
I stood on my toes, bringing my face ever closer to his. He stood perfectly still, unmoving, his eyes still on mine. I traced his jawline with my nose and inhaled his scent, mixed in with the rain. He smelled of musk and jasmine.
He uttered my name again, this time in a whisper. His hand left mine to grab one of my hips as the other did the same. He pushed the fabric of my shirt up so he could trace my skin; I shivered, but it wasn't from the cold.
My face was still by his neck, but two of his fingers found my chin and tilted it up so I faced him properly. He leaned in at the same time as I did, and our lips met halfway.
It started off slow, gentle, wary. Soon, neither of us could stop the intensity building. I dropped the umbrella, letting the rain pelt our vulnerable bodies, and gasped against his mouth as he bit my bottom lip and slid a hand slowly up my spine.
He seized his chance and slipped his tongue into my mouth, causing me to gasp again as he pushed his against mine. Our bodies were crushed together so tightly, not even a slip of paper could come in between us.
Our mouths slipped over one another, slick from the rain that trickled down our faces and dripped off our eyelashes. Our movements were hungry and tirelessly desperate; it was perfect.
My hands knotted in his wet hair and pulled his face in closer. He broke off and separated our lips, but quickly made up for this by attacking my neck. He suckled and bit on my flesh, and I could feel his devilish, satisfied smile on my skin as I groaned.
"Fang," I murmured. I pushed him back and pressed my face into the crook of his neck; he was reluctant to stop his ministrations, but he circled his arms tightly around me and didn't complain.
My teeth were chattering, and while my whole body was unbearably warm from Fang's kisses, my skin was covered in goosebumps and the short blond hairs on my arms stood to attention. He rubbed my sides.
"You're freezing," he said. I looked up at him, my expression clearly conveying what I wanted to say: No shit.
He picked me up and I yelped, but I couldn't escape his grip. He grabbed the umbrella from where it was discarded on the ground and held it over us, even though we were both already drenched as both his arms were already around me.
I don't know how long it took for him to walk us home, or how he so perfectly knew his way through the trees even in the darkness. I may even have fallen asleep, because the first thing I remember after hearing his footsteps lightly traveling over the leafy forest bed was awaking in under my sheets, wrapped in his arms. He was awake; I could hear it in his breathing and the rhythm of his heartbeat.
Mine immediately sped up once I was aware of his presence, and I knew he felt it. He stroked my hair off my face and pulled us up so that he was sitting against the head of my bed and I was curled up in his lap.
In the doorway, a tall figure was silhouetted by the bright light streaming through the crack between the door and the wall. It was still dark, but I didn't know how long I'd slept for. It could've been three years since the forest, for all I knew.
I realized that the silhouette was Iggy as he came closer and sat on the edge of my bed. He looked between Fang and I with a boyish smirk and a triumphant nod of his head.
"I knew it," he said. Then he called loudly, "You owe me fifty bucks, Gaz!"
Believe it or not, this one-shot took me at least two, three weeks to write. I mainly did it in the couple of minutes walking to school where I was alone and not with my friend, via my phone. And then, after that, it's taken me like five weeks to actually get it onto the computer because the internet network isn't compatible with my laptop and nobody knows that I write Fanfiction in my family. I'd prefer to keep it that way.
Want to review? Go ahead!
xoxo,
- J