Somewhere Only We Know, a maximum ride fanfic

I sat on the couch with my eyes closed, feeling despondent and apathetic. The pint of ice cream in my hand had long since been depleted, and I was curled around it like a cat or a sweater, holding it in so it wouldn't get away from me like everything I tried to love. I tried to love Tess, in embarrassed stuttering, back in Virginia; we'd had to leave there like bats out of hell. I tried to love Ella, in sweet words and chocolate chip cookies; she'd found a boyfriend. I tried to love the flock, in yummy breakfasts and self-deprecating jokes; they'd all hooked up and made me feel like the pathetic fifth wheel.

Why was I always the one left behind? For once in my life, couldn't someone just take me with them? I felt myself getting teary-a sign that I needed more ice cream. I sniffed and shoved away from the couch, then stomped into the kitchen for a quart of chocolate Ben and Jerry's. Hey, that thing had my name written on it in all caps, bolded, italicized, and underlined, okay? Don't judge a blind guy.

I yanked open the freezer and started rooting around for my ice cream, then jumped at Gazzy's voice. "Iggy? What are you looking for?"

Great. A witness to my troubles. I gritted my teeth and replied slowly, "The ice cream. Didn't we have a quart of chocolate in here?"

"Uh. Please note the past tense." he said uncomfortably. "I'm eating it."

I muttered a curse under my breath, then asked him in a strained tone, "Well, do we have any more vanilla swirl? Chocolate fudge? Anything?"

On a regular day, Gazzy would be saying something like, "Whoa, Iggy, chill out. It's just ice cream," but today, he said, "No. If you want, I'll split this with you."

There are times when I really love Gazzy, and this was surely one of them. I straightened up and said, "Thanks, Gasser. Means a lot."

He pressed the carton into my hand, and I carved out a large spoonful; Gazzy asked sympathetically, "One of those days?"

"One of those years," I grumbled in response around a bite of ice cream. "You?"

Gazzy told me, "That time of life, you know?"

I chuckled darkly, "Man, do I ever. You have my deepest sympathies, Gasman. Thirteen sucks ass."

For a long while, we munched in companionable silence, passing the ice cream tub back and forth in perfect synchronization. It had been a while since the two of us had just hung out, me and the Gasman. Rather than him hitting puberty, it hit him, and it hit him pretty damn hard. Being a mutant bird kid at age thirteen is a hell of a lot less fun than it's cracked up to be, let me tell you. And, as for me, well. . . let's just say nineteen doesn't treat Avian-Americans to well, either. I hadn't constructed a bomb for two years, and that was a major problem for me.

"Hey, Iggy," Gazzy said, snapping me out of my bombing daydreams. I looked his way to let him know I was listening. He continued, "How come everyone's paired up and moved on but us? I mean, they're still here, but they're not. . . really here. You know?"

I nodded somberly and admitted, "I was just wondering the same thing."

"Yeah? I've been thinking about it ever since Angel said she got kissed by that boy at her school. I mean, gosh, I've never been kissed before; my eleven-year-old sister is getting more play than I am, for crying out loud!" he ranted, furiously chewing ice cream. I let him keep the bucket for a few extra turns because I knew this was hurting him, and he was pissed off, and overprotective of Angel. We all were, but he was by far the worst.

"I know. And then having to listen to Nudge with her boyfriend in the room next door? Jesus." I sighed, pushing my hair off my forehead. "Something I could go the rest of my life without."

"You don't have to watch Fang with Max." he groaned, then said suddenly, "You've kissed people, right?"

I swallowed thoughtfully and informed, "Yeah, but I've been told it's apparently not attractive when you have to find somebody's mouth to kiss them."

Gazzy seemed to ignore that, inquiring, "Who have you kissed?"

"Tess, back in Virginia. At Anne's house? Yeah, and then I kissed Ella, but that didn't turn out so well." I explained, then said to him, "Why do you ask?"

If I didn't know better-and if I had heard a body crashing to the ground-I'd have thought Gazzy had suffered a fatal heart attack and died right there. He didn't speak for the longest time; the ice cream bucket quickly became forgotten between us in the awkward silence. Then, at last, he mumbled, "I'd like to be kissed."

Instead of teasing him for never having kissed anyone, I asked quietly, "By who?"

"A-Anyone, really. I just. . . want to be kissed. Want to know what it's like, what the big deal is all about. You know?" he stammered; I pictured a very healthy blush on his cheeks.

I nodded and thought over what he said. I'd felt that way at thirteen, too. Only, when I was thirteen, we lived miles away from civilization and I didn't associate with anyone I hadn't grown up with. Gazzy just had so many options, it seemed; he could pick anyone he wanted in almost the entire world. The kid was famous. Gazzy was one lucky thirteen-year-old. So why hadn't he been kissed already? Could it be that he just hadn't had the courage to talk to anyone? Or was he not sure what he wanted?

Before I could really think about it, my mouth opened, and I blurted out, "Do you want me to kiss you?"

What the hell did I just do? I inhaled sharply and looked away, shocked at my own words. Did I seriously just offer to kiss Gazzy? He was practically my brother, my best friend, my partner in crime! I heard him clear his throat, then he hissed a single word under his breath, so quiet even my sensitive hearing almost couldn't pick up on it:

"Yes."

I looked at him, eyes wide, even though it made no difference. "Y-You do?"

"Uh-huh." he whispered, embarrassment coloring his tone. I stood stock-still for a long moment, trying to gather my sufficiently scattered wits, then I swallowed and told myself, I can do this. For Gazzy, I can do this. I faced my thirteen-year-old counterpart and asked him, "Now?"

After a moment's hesitation, he said, "Yeah."

"Okay." I murmured, then stepped a little closer to him, feeling my way along the counter until I found his hand. Using my fingertips, I mapped my way up his arm and shoulder, then his neck, and finally stopped at his chin; I licked my lips nervously. I could hardly believe I was doing this, even for the Gasman. But I was, I was doing it, dear God, I was. I tentatively let my fingers ghost up a little further.

His lips were soft and a bit chilly from eating ice cream, slightly parted to accomodate his shaky breathing. I moved my hand aside, hoping I wouldn't misjudge the distance, and whispered, "Don't move." And then I slowly, cautiously, kissed the Gasman.

Gazzy sucked in a sharp breath, freezing up, then he suddenly pressed his mouth hard against mine, kissing me back with unexpected enthusiasm. His fingers wound into my hair, which had grown rather long in recent months, tugging my face as close as it would go; I slipped my arms around his broad, strong chest and let my body meet his.

I was shocked to find that I really, really liked kissing Gazzy. In spite of his inexperience, it was the most incredible kiss I'd ever had. It went further, too, which was even more surprising; nowhere scary, but I was fairly certain neither of us had ever French-kissed before. With Tess and Ella, I'd been so careful not to go beyond what they wanted, to make sure they were ready and such. But with Gazzy, it was all free and open, just two friends exploring something new together.

And I didn't mind that much at all. As long as Gazzy was with me, I could boldly go anywhere we wanted to.

At some point, we pulled back for air and decided we'd had enough for one night, but we held hands and talked for a long time. Eventually, I asked him, "So, how was your first kiss?"

"It was pretty cool," he said, which made me smile. "But. . . somehow, I didn't think it would taste like chocolate ice cream."

I stifled a giggle and told him, "It usually doesn't, but I think it kind of makes it better, you know?"

That made him laugh, and I joined in. I was happy, for the first time in a really long time, and I knew that me and Gazzy probably wouldn't feel quite so lonely and forgotten anymore. We'd spend more time together, be great friends again, or maybe something a little stronger. Who knew?

I heard our flock van pull up and poked Gazzy's side. "They're home."

Gazzy groaned, "I don't want to deal with them right now."

"I've got an idea." I said, smiling like some kind of crazy person, I'm sure. "Let's give them a taste of their own medicine and go off by ourselves for a while. Leave a note so Max doesn't hunt us down."

"Okay." Gazzy said eagerly, and I heard him scratching around for pen and paper. I waited as patiently as I could, wary of how quickly the flock was approaching the house-they'd just gone to the mall, surely they had more crap than that?-then Gazzy grabbed my hand and we ran down the hall to the back door. He explained, "I said we'd gone camping in the woods, and we'd be back when we felt like it. Didn't say why."

I held up a hand, and he high-fived me. "Good work, Gasser. You make me proud."

We snuck out of the house successfully, and without the others realizing we'd still been there so recently; I hovered above the roof and listened to Max reading our note. She said, "Well, I guess that means they're buddies again. Probably going to blow the mountain up."

"You know, that idea's not half bad." Gazzy said, trying to be subtle.

I smirked and punched his arm, snickering, "You just want me to take the wrap for it, you little fart."

After a few minutes of midair wrestling, I suggested, "Let's go."

"Where?" Gazzy asked, the tip of his wing touching mine.

I thought for a moment, then smiled. "Somewhere only we know."

I walked across an empty land;

I knew the pathway like the back of my hand.

I felt the earth beneath my feet,

Sat by the river and it made me complete.

Oh, simple thing, where have you gone?

I'm getting old and I need something to rely on.

So tell me when you're gonna let me in-

I'm getting tired and I need somewhere to begin

I came across a fallen tree,

I felt the branches of it looking at me.

Is this the place we used to love?

Is this the place that I've been dreaming of?

Oh, simple thing, where have you gone?

I'm getting old and I need something to rely on.

So tell me when you're gonna let me in-

I'm getting tired and I need somewhere to begin.

And if you have a minute, why don't we go-

Talk about it-somewhere only we know?

This could be the end of everything,

So why don't we go

Somewhere only we know?

Oh, simple thing, where have you gone?

I'm getting old and I need something to rely on.

So tell me when you're gonna let me in-

I'm getting tired and I need somewhere to begin.

So if you have a minute, why don't we go-

Talk about it-somewhere only we know?

This could be the end of everything,

So why don't we go?

Oh, yeah.

This could be the end of everything,

So why don't we go

Somewhere only we know?

Somewhere only we know.

Author's Note: And I'm back with Maximum Ride! Shockingly, no Figgy, but I heard this song and the opportunity seemed too good to pass up. Speaking of which, if you haven't already guessed, the song is called "Somewhere Only We Know" and the version I like best is by Keane, which is the original. Hope you liked it. Oh, and please don't give me flames for the illegal aspect of Iggy/Gazzy romance, okay? Just don't, because I will flame you right back. With cuss words. So, only review if you liked it, thank you.

3 Catlethea