Box of Rocks

"Do we celebrate Valentine's Day?"

"I dunno. Is it February?"

"Yes."

"Are you going to buy me ice cream?"

"How can I get you ice cream on an island, Max?"

"Then no, we don't celebrate it."

"Great." He rolled onto his stomach, stretching slightly. "So you're not going to get mad if, like, other guys get their girlfriends stuff around the island?"

"What could you get someone on an island, Fang?"

"Good point. Then again, all your points are good."

"You're not getting out of going to work, Fang. You have to help build those huts."

"But Max-"

"No buts." She gave him a kiss when he leaned up for one. "Besides, I have leader stuff to take care of."

"What kind of leader stuff?"

"Important leader stuff."

"Right." He pushed up slightly, groaning. "We have got to stop sleeping in this dang cave."

"Oh? What were you thinking?"

"Something that's not so hard on my back," he grumbled, standing now. "When you snuggle all up on me, sometimes you crush me between you and the ground. It hurts."

Max sent him a stony glare. "Shut up. Are you calling me fat?"

"No."

"I feel like you are. You always call me fat."

"I don't call you fat."

"Every time that you have to carry me-"

"That's because you're heavy. You're a heavy person to carry."

"For you? For the all-powerful Fang?"

"That's what you're going to refer to me now, babe. All-powerful Fang."

"And you're not going to refer to me as babe."

"Aye-aye." He even gave her a slight salute, smiling when she sent on his way back. "Dinner tonight?"

"Hmmm?" Max had gone back to the journal she had been reading through. Island business or something. Fang had woken up to her flipping through it. He was pretty sure it was one of the scientists' lab notebooks.

"Do you want to do dinner tonight?"

"I will be eating dinner tonight, yes."

"Max-"

"Ask me for real."

"Would you grace me with your presence at dinner tonight at sunset?"

"I'll think about it."

"You-"

"Go, Fang. You have to get to work." She smiled at him, her hair falling in her face. "Bring home the bacon."

"I don't like bacon."

"Everyone likes bacon."

"Max, you know I like sausage."

"A person can like both. I like both."

"No! I don't eat things from pigs."

She just stared at him for a moment. "Sausage and bacon both come from pigs, Fang."

"What?"

"So is ham."

"Duh, Max. I know that." He huffed slightly. "I'm not stupid."

"You sure about that?"

"I-"

"Now go. Seriously." She shook her head as she looked back down at that lab notebook. "Have a good day."

"You too," he mumbled, watching her for a moment before walking off. "Max."

"Hey, Ig-"

"Shhh!"

Frowning, Fang continued on over to his friend, taking a seat next to the boy. "What's up, Iggy?"

"I'm thinking, Fang, and would appreciate it if you shut up."

"I just brought you some lunch," he said, frowning as he sat a piece of fruit in the other boy's lap. "Apples."

"I'm busy," he said. Fang made a face, about to get up and go find someone else to eat with. Angel and Nudge always liked it when he ate with them. If he hurried, he might even catch them before they meet up with their friends. That'd be great considering Fang didn't rather like either of their friends.

Still, just as Fang was stumbling to his feet Iggy began mumbling, putting a quick halt to that. Fang just sat there for a moment, listening to him mumble.

"-to me what the stars are to the sea… No. That's no good." Iggy huffed slightly. "You are to me what the sun is to the sky. With out you, I'd die. Good? Good. …No. You are to me-"

"What are you doing, bro?" Fang elbowed him gently.

"I'm trying to write a poem for Ella. Or, well, make one up," he said, scratching the back of his head. He had just gotten it shaved the other day and already it was beginning to get itchy, ingrown hairs no doubt starting to sprout.

"Oh." Fang settled back into the ground before taking a bite of his apple. Iggy had been sitting under their meeting tree, no doubt awaiting Fang's arrival. Most of Iggy's time on the island was spent in the labs. Being blind, he wasn't much help building huts or treehouses. "Are you and Ella fighting or something?"

"No," Iggy said, a frown evident just from his tone. "Valentine's Day is the day after tomorrow."

"So?"

"So I have to do something for her."

"And you're-"

"Going to recite her a poem," the blind teen finished for him. "You know, to show her how much I- Are you laughing at me?"

"Sorry," Fang said through a chuckle. "It's just so…stupid."

"How is showing my girlfriend that I love her stupid?"

"Because, dude, we're on a freaking island."

"So?"

"So if we were back in the states, yeah, go ahead and buy her something nice. Here though, who gives a shit?"

"Fang," the other boy scolded. "Valentine's Day isn't about what you can buy a person. It's about showing them how much you love them. And don't you love Max?"

"Well…"

"So yes," Iggy said, knowing it would take a lot out of his friend to admit that. "That's the day you show her that you care about her."

"I dunno. Seems kind of…dumb. For stupid girls."

"Stupid girls," Iggy repeated.

"Yeah," Fang said, chewing on a piece of his apple. "You know, ones that need their guy to reaffirm shit for them. Max ain't like that."

"She's not."

"Nope."

"Are we talking about the same girl?"

"Yeah."

"Fang, Max couldn't even take you leaving and starting your own team without thinking it was because you didn't love her."

"That was then. This is now."

"Oh yeah? What's changed?"

"Our relationship."

"In what way?"

"In every way."

"Whatever, Fang." Iggy shook his head. "I'm going to recite a poem for Ella and gonna get some out of it. You're going to get Max nothing and going to get nothing in return. Easy."

Fang frowned. "What Max and I do is none of your business."

"Come on, Fang. No chick gives it up on Valentine's Day without getting something nice in return."

"Ella don't want your faggy poem anymore than she wants your tiny dick." With that, Fang jumped up and walked off.

How dare Iggy think that what Fang and Max had relied on something as silly as a made up holiday. A holiday that really served no purpose anymore. The little prick.

"Hi, Fang."

He had walked all the way over to where Angel always ate lunch with her friends. They were sitting in a circle, all the little girls giggling now as Fang sat down next to the blonde mind reader.

"Hey, Ange," he mumbled as she wrapped an arm around him. Then she nodded at the middle of their little circle where a fire was burning, skewered fish roasting over it.

"Dylan caught us a bunch of fish," Angel told him, giggling. "He was supposed to eat with us, but he had work to do. He's really good at fishing."

"I've noticed," Fang mumbled, looking down at his stupid apple. He hated Dylan and his stupid good nature and niceness and ability to catch fish. It wasn't fair. It was Fang's job to take care of the girls, not Dylan's!

"You're all sweaty," one of Angel's friends told him, giggling. Her friends were always doing that, giggling. It annoyed the heck out of the teenager.

"Yeah, Fang. You should have bathed before you came over here," Angel told him with a shake of her head.

"I was working, smart one," he told her, still not exactly happy with the fact she was eating fish that Dylan made. Dylan. God.

"Where's Max?"

"Aren't I enough for you?"

Angel just smiled up at him. "I wanted to ask Max what she thought of my gift."

"Your gift?"

One of her friends, a brunette with pigtails, giggled into her hand. "Angel's going to give Damian a present for Valentine's Day."

"What?"

Angel nodded, never the bashful one. "I'm going to ask him if he wants me to teach him to fly."

"He doesn't know yet?"

"No," Angel said, shaking her head. This wasn't shocking. There were a good number of younger kids that had yet to learned the skill. Fang hadn't learned until he was out of the School after all.

Still, the thought of Angel teaching another little boy to fly repulsed him. Seriously.

"You're getting him a gift?"

She nodded. "He likes hunting with his brother. They kill the squirrels and rabbits. I traded some stuff to get him a knife."

He blinked. "You have a knife?"

"I'm not keeping it," she insisted. She knew that Max would never allow that. "I'm giving it to someone."

"Why are you giving him a present anyway?"

"'cause it's Valentine's Day, Fang," Angel said.

"Duh," one of the other girls added.

"Aren't you getting Max something, Fang?" Angel asked.

"Well-"

"Ooh," another girl said causing them all to giggle again. Ugh.

"I've gotta go, Angel." Fang patted her on the head as he stood, taking his apple with him. "Don't let those fish burn, okay? And be sure to put out that fire."

"I will," she assured him as he headed off. "Bye, Fang."

He gave her a slight wave as he made his way down the beach now, not sure of his destination. Had everyone lost their minds?

"Fang!"

He had been heading towards the caves when he heard his name called. Turning, he saw Gazzy standing alone near the water. He was waving the older boy over who just sighed and decided to go that way.

"What's up, buddy?" Fang asked as he made it to the boy.

"Look at what I can do!"

Fang just stood there, watching as the Gasman flipped himself over onto his hands, doing a handstand. This is what he interrupted him for? "Wow, buddy."

"Watch." Gasman moved his hands forwards now, accomplishing walking on them. For a few seconds anyways. Then he just toppled over. "Oof."

"Gasman." Fang just stood there, slipping his hands into his pocket. "Do you have a girlfriend?"

The boy just spit the sand out of his mouth before pushing himself up onto his knees. "Gross."

Fang just nodded slightly. "If you did have one though-"

"Super gross."

"-would you buy her something for Valentine's Day?"

"Well, duh." Gasman shifted so he was sitting on his butt. "Look, Fang! I cut my knee. It'll scab and then-"

"Duh?"

The boy nodded, poking his bleeding wound. He was still at that age where scabs were cool and not just something to put up with. The prospect of having more of them excited him.

"Yeah, duh. That's what you do," he said. "You give her candy or something."

"We're on an island, buddy."

"Iggy's writing Ella poem."

"I know," Fang said, snorting.

"You could do that for Max."

"What makes you think-"

"It's obvious." Gasman dusted himself off before standing. Then he quickly shifted back into his handstand position. "I think you'd be good a poetry."

"What?"

"You're all dark and brooding and-"

"Poetry is for fags."

"Max says you're not supposed to say that word."

Fang blinked. Then he reached over and pushed Gasman's legs, causing the boy to lose balance.

"Hey!"

He stared down at the boy. "What would you get your girlfriend, Gazzy?"

"Not a poem," he admitted as he stood up again. Then he launched himself at Fang, trying to knock the other boy down as he had him. Fang just shoved him off making the boy laugh as he hit the ground again.

"Then what?" Fang was still standing there all collected and stuff, but that just made the Gasman laugh harder. "What would you get her, Gazzy?"

"Here? I'd probably catch her a bunny as a pet since girls like those. You'd have to make sure that no one tries to kill it though. Girls don't like dead things much."

"You think I should catch Max a bunny?"

"No. I thought you should write her a poem. Something cute."

"I'm not cute."

"Course you are."

"Gasman-"

"Can you do a handstand?" The boy quickly moved to get back up on his hands. "Nudge can do a one-handed handst- Where you going, Fang?"

Nudge! Of course. Why hadn't he thought of that before?

The teen in question wasn't hard to locate. She never was. Nudge was typically hanging around on this little rocky pier that stuck out into the ocean. From there her and other girls gawked at the older boys who liked to swim near there in an attempt to catch their eyes. Fang typically stayed far away from there, as the last thing he needed was Max thinking he was showing off. Not to mention, he didn't like to hang around other woman. Why play with fire? Especially when it could lead to running the one thing you've wanted your whole life?

"Ooh, fresh meat."

"Strut for us."

"Take your shirt-"

"You, me, now." Fang cut off which ever one of the teen girls was speaking as he came to a stop down the pier in front of Nudge. Looking to the right of her, he found Ella as well. "You too. Now."

"Wh-"

"Now," he growled as one of the guys that had swum up to the rocks smiled at Nudge. She looked away from Fang to wave at him which about made Fang vomit. Seriously. If Angel giving a boy a gift made him sick, Nudge flirting made him want to slit his own wrists. Seriously.

"Come on, Nudge," Ella said, jumping up as some of their friend cackled.

Everyone on the island always thought Fang was a little off. Even Max had more friends than him. He mostly kept to himself and the Flock. If he wasn't' working on huts and treehouses, he wasn't seen. Not that Fang cared about what they said. Not at all. Didn't hurt a bit.

…But anyways.

"God, Fang, this had better be important," Nudge complained as he led them away from the pier and up the beach. "What is it?"

"It's about…Valentine's Day."

"Oh, Fang," Ella sighed. "You don't have to do this. We both know to use protection."

He stopped dead in his tracks. Then he looked at Nudge who was elbowing Ella.

"What?"

"She's kidding, stupid," Nudge said, rolling her eyes. "God, Fang. Is that what you wanted?"

He wasn't so sure that Ella was just joking though. Still, he could only tackle one issue at a time.

"Should I get Max's something for-"

"Is he serious?"

"He can't be," Ella responded to the other girl. "I refuse to believe it."

"No way he is so dumb."

"Maybe he is though, dumb. That'd be the only answer to-"

"Knock it off!" Fang turned to face them both then. "Fine, I need to get her something. What though?"

"Something good," Nudge said, crossing her arms as she looked around the beach. The last guy she wanted to be seen with was Fang. She loved the teen to death, she honestly did, but he had done horrible things to her image in the past.

"I know that," he hissed.

"No, apparently you didn't if you were just about to ask us whether you should get her something or not." Ella shook her head at him, sighing slightly. "Something from the heart."

"The heart."

"Not a literal hear-"

"Shut up, Nudge." He looked at Ella full on now. "What do you mean?"

"Something that means something to the both of you," she told him. "I traded to get Iggy this pair of sunglasses because I always joke that if he had some, he would look more blind."

Nudge frowned. "That sounds horribly offensive."

"It's cute. Between us."

"If Fang lost a leg would it be cute if Max cut off a bear's leg and gave it to him?"

Ella frowned. "Were you dropped on your head a lot or-"

"What should I get Max for Valentine's Day?" Fang brought the conversation back into focus. "Seriously?"

"Think about everything you guys have ever done together, Fang. Everything." Ella smiled at him. "Think hard. Think like a girl. Then, when you have something that will completely blow her mind, you have your answer. Only you can answer this. And trust me, no matter what it is, Max will love it."

"Are sure?" Fang had his doubts. A lot of them.

"Completely."

"I need a box."

Dr. Martinez frowned as Fang came into the lab. "Excuse me?"

"I need a box."

"For what, Fang?"

He looked around, glad to find that there were no other scientists around. "For Max. For, uh, her gift. You know?"

"Gift?"

"It's February and-"

"Oh." She sighed, finally turning away from the counter where she had been writing something in a journal. "A box you say? How big would you like it to be?"

"Not big. Shoebox sized, maybe? Just if you have one. I thought maybe-"

"I'll be right back. Don't mess with anything."

Shifting on his feet, Fang looked around for anything to mess with while waiting. Though he tried to hide it, Fang was still very much a child inside. Deep, deep down. And in that deep, deep down part of him, his inner little boy really wanted to play with some chemicals. He used to think that would be so cool, being a chemist. He-

"I didn't think the two of you were into this kind of thing."

Fang frowned, looking to his right to find Total stretched out on one of the counters, his dark, matted hair looking a little cleaner.

"You say something?"

"I thought you and Max weren't into that lovey-dovey stuff, is all," the dog said.

"We're not."

"Then what are you going to do with the box?"

Fang really wasn't in the mood. The day had sucked so far. It wasn't his job to deal with the dog.

"Bury you in it."

"Well aren't you a pleasure today," the Scottie sneered.

Fang shifted on his feet again, giving the lab another look around. "So you aren't getting Akila any-"

"She's a dog, Fang."

"Well, I was just being conversational."

"Don't. You're not good at it."

Needless to say when the good doctor returned with a box, Fang took it with a thanks before rushing out of the caves. He had a lot of work to get done before the next day.

No good deed goes unpunished just as there's no rest for weary. Which of course meant holiday or no holiday, Max was very busy that next morning. Fang woke up to her gone even though the dawn was barely breaking over the horizon. He's little over achiever. Sometimes he felt extremely proud of her. Others he wished they could just be some f the normal kids on the island.

Heh. Normal. Isn't it odd that there was such a difference between winged children? How were any of them normal? Maybe some were just more normal than others.

The point was though, while every teenager was hooking up on the island (Except Nudge. Fang refused to believe that she could ever…) and all the children were harassing one another with adolescent thoughts of cooties and the such, Max was stuck working. Which meant Fang had nothing to do.

You know, except obsess over his gift and fret over whether or not it was stupid. But Ella had told him that Max would love what he got for her no matter what. He had to believe in that. He just had to.

The day wore on at a nauseating pace. Fang paced around their little cave, every little movement causing him to look up in anticipation of it being his girlfriend. He really wished that she wasn't so busy. He wanted nothing more than to just get the whole gift thing over with. It would circulate in his brain until the poor organ combusted if he didn't get it done with soon.

"Well, well, well, come here often?"

Fang just stared at Max as she landed on the ground in front of him. He was out of the cave by that point, having taken to looking out over the island while waiting for her.

"Frequently," he told her, his nerves coming off through his voice more than he would have liked for them to. "How was your day?"

"How was yours?" she asked back, coming closer to him as she pulled her wings in. "You look guilty."

"Not guilty," he told her, shaking his head slightly. "Just…"

"Just what?"

His head got another shake as he said, "Close your eyes."

"Fang-"

"Do it."

She did so, though her arms crossed in the process. Fang stared at her for a moment, taking in the anticipation she was failing at hiding on her face. He smiled slightly before walking off into the cave for a moment to get his little box.

"Hold out your hands," he said as he made it back to her. When she did so, he placed the box in them.

"Heavy," she muttered.

"Now open your eyes."

Max's eyes met his first, the smile evident in them, before she looked down at the box. Shifting it to one hand, she knocked the lid off. Fang was holding his breath, almost certain she'd say-

"I don't get it."

-exactly that.

"Of course you don't," Fang said, his nerves still coming off through his tone. It was rare that Fang was anxious, but when he was, he had a hard time concealing it.

"I-"

"It's rocks, Max," Fang told her.

She glanced up from the box filled with the aforementioned items. "I see that, but-"

"Back when we were still on the run once I had to carry you. Remember? After one of your brain attacks?"

"I remember," Max whispered.

"I asked if you had been eating rocks," he said, speaking fast now. "And then you said that maybe they came from my head."

"Something like that," Max agreed softly, looking hard at him now.

"Well, Max, they didn't come from my head." He was about to die. Seriously. "They came from my heart. Heart rocks. And I-"

"Oh, God, Fang, are you serious?" Max was laughing now, looking around. "What, is Iggy in the cave? Nudge? This is a joke, right?"

He frowned. "What?"

"I mean, you're not serious are-" She stopped as she saw him glaring down at the ground. "Oh, God, Fang you-"

"I carved our names into the tree too," he muttered, kicking the ground. "I thought…Ella said…"

"I'm sorry." Max looked down at the box of rocks. "I thought you were… Didn't we agree to not get each other gifts?"

"It was a surprise," Fang mumbled, a hard lump forming in his throat. "I was trying to be, you know, quirky and cute. Romantic."

"Romantic."

"Yeah." He coughed slightly. "I was trying to be…"

"You were trying to be something you're not. And you failed."

"Max, you're suppose to comfort me!"

"I am comforting you." She sat the box on the ground before looking him in the eyes. "Why did you think you needed to get me a gift? The real reason?"

"Well, everyone said-"

"Everyone else said, huh?" Max shook her head, moving to wrap her arms around him. Fang just stood there, not moving in the slightest. "That's your problem, Fang. You wanted to do something…romantic as you put it. You're not romantic. In the slightest."

"Iggy wrote Ella a poem."

She shorted. "Suck up."

"More like fa-" Fang paused. "Yeah, suck up works too."

Max pulled back slightly to look him in the eyes. "You mentioned a tree earlier?"

"Why yes, yes I did."

"You've done it before though."

"That's what I got the rocks too. Thought it'd be, you know, cute. Nostalgic."

"What exactly did Ella tell you?"

"To just think really, really hard," he told Max as she moved back from him. Fang quickly took her hands in his own, holding them tightly. "And I did."

"That's where she led you wrong," Max said, smiling at him.

"Oh?"

"You should know by now, Fang, that your body is not made for thinking."

He gave her a little smirk. "You are the brains of the operation."

"And the beauty and brawns."

"Then what's left for me?"

"I dunno. Think really hard. Then, when you have an answer, we can just not include it in consideration. Since you're never right."

"Ha ha." Fang thumped her head gently as he let her hands go. "Well, other than the rabbits I caught and skinned for us to eat later, that's all of my plans for the night."

"Oh."

"Yeah, except I kinda need to take care of something before we eat."

"What?"

"Nudge mentioned something yesterday about Valentine's plans."

"And you want to go make sure those plans are ruined and that she hates you forever?"

"Only in the interest of keeping her pure as long as possible."

"Fang-"

He stared at her. "Please?"

"Go ahead," Max sighed. Fang pressed a quick kiss to her cheek and mumbled how much he loved her before jetting off, no doubt planning on checking in on Angel at some point too.

"A box of rocks," Max sighed as she was left alone on the cliff. She smiled fondly down at the box, knowing that it was filled with dirt and sediment that really had no value to her at all.

She also knew that she was never throwing it out. Never ever.

"Almost beats a box of chocolates," she mumbled as she bent down to pick the box up and put it away in their cave. "Almost."

A week early, I know, but that's not always a bad thing.