CH1

A normal day at school. That's what it is. I decided as I walked through the hallways of the school. No, not the school, we left that place on fire. Of course, there are still others, but that one is gone. Done. Finito. No more. That cheery thought put a spring into my step as I walked through the cafeteria doors. Then I stopped dead. There were hundreds of hormonal teenagers cooped up inside a tiny cafeteria with about 3 windows. Great. Looking around, I finally spotted an almost empty table near a window. Seeing Fang enter through the opposite doors of the cafeteria, I waved him over to the table with me. As I sat, the girl at the other end looked up from her sketch pad in surprise. The surprise turned to slight annoyance when she saw Fang sit down, and then she looked back down at her drawing and continued sketching.

"So" I said, trying to make conversation. "I like your hair, who did it?"

The girl glanced up at me before saying, "I did. In my bathroom. This morning. Why?"

Her hair was cut short, with just one clump cut to hang low over her eyes, exactly like Fangs. The rest of it was black and spiked up and the tips were frosted. Cool. Before I could answer, a huge group of blondes that must have been cloned walked up to our table.

"Ooh, well if it isn't the new kids…and Keely…" there were a few snickers, and from the way the girl said It, I guessed she was the alpha female here. Keely must have been the other girl's name. "I guess weird birds flock together!" Clone ditz #1 said, giggling at her stupid joke.

"I guess they do…and you're living proof of it." Keely said, snapping her sketchbook shut and moving so she towered menacingly over Clone #1. The girl looked kinda freaked out, and I but I would too if someone Keely's size stood over me like that. She must have been around 6'2, if not more. I shot a look at Fang, and I saw his hands curl into fists at his sides. A small group had gathered around by now, and I guess the clones must have seen it, because they backed off really quickly. Keely quickly sat down, muttering curses under her breath.

"Who was blonde ditz clone?" the side of Keely's mouth twitched, which I took for her –and fangs version of unbridled chortling.

"Now you're an official member of this school- you've just met Bryttni."

I rolled my eyes and said, "So, are you Keely?" Keely nodded, just like I knew she would. Her eyes never left her sketchpad, but she asked,

"Can I see your schedules?" I nodded, and Fang and I slid both of ours across the table. Keely pulled out hers, and compared the 3.

"What are your names?" she asked, sliding the schedules back to us.

"Im max, and this is F-Nic."

Keely raised an eyebrow at us, "are you by any chance related to Iggy Ride? He wouldn't shut up about you guys."

I rolled my eyes. "Yup, that sounds just like our Iggy."

She nodded, and then said, "Well, it looks as if F-Nic and I both have the same classes. So what, is Iggy like, your brother or something?"

I glanced at Fang, paranoid already. I had never been good at answering questions.

"You could say that…" the answer, surprisingly enough, came from Fang. Keely glanced up from her sketch pad again. "So, what, are you guys adopted or something?"

"Mmm-hmmm."

She blushed for some reason, and stared at her page. "A man of many words?" she said sarcastically, moving her pencil around the page in random, sketching movements. I craned my neck, and was surprised to see a really good sketch of Fang. "Wow, you're good."

She blushed furiously and started to shut her sketchbook.

"No, hang on. Can I see them?"

Keely appeared to consider it, then she shrugged and handed me the sketchpad. As I flipped through it, I could tell from the pictures that she really like Fantasy, and was an amazing artist. I started to hand her the pad again, but a flash of red caught my eye and I opened to the picture. They were kinda creepy, bordering on disturbing. One was a girl holding a gun aimed at her head, with blood dripping down her wrists, and the other on the page was of a girl who had just shot herself. Butterflies poured out of her head, the only color in that picture. The first one was titled "suicidal tendencies", and the other was "fly". I showed Fang the drawings and handed the pad back. "Colorful," I commented dryly. Keely shifted her gaze from the drawing pad to Fangs face and blushed as their eyes met.

She mumbled something intelligible, and intertwined her fingers in her lap...

Fang grimaced and signaled for me to have a sidebar with him.

"Max? I think I need to talk to Keely....by herself. Im not sure, but she seems...confused."

"Why would you do it though?"

"Because, I think I understand."

The comment made pain flare in my chest, and for a second, I wondered if grade 9's could have heart attacks. I felt hot tears prick the back of my eyes as he gazed at Keely, and I walked back to my seat. I grabbed my bag, and shoved my seat in... "Im going to go to my class early. I want to study."

Without waiting another second, I stood up and left. I looked behind me once more as I left, and felt tears brimming in my eyes. I banged the doors open, and slid down the wall next to the door, no caring who saw. 'What the heck is wrong with me? I never cry....well, almost never. But not about things like this!' my first thought was 'I must be PMSing'. My next was, 'Fang has never looked at me like that.' I rolled my eyes, and sighed at my own stupidity. Of course he hasn't, we're just friends! He seems to like her, that's a good thing...I hope. Besides, Keely might be good for him. He's never brought up things like that before, especially not around me.' The bell rang, and I jumped. Slowly, I climbed to my feet and walked to my next class. Art with Mr. Plavic. Then I realized something. 'Crap! I have Fang and Keely in this class too!'

When I opened the door, the class was still rowdy from lunch, and I looked around for an empty seat near the back. There was only one, and it was beside Keely. I walked over to it, and sat down, careful not to look at her. I pulled my book out of my bag, and when I was sure nobody was looking, I looked over at Keely. She had her head bowed down over a book, and she was scribbling furiously. Fang's head was bent close over her head, and his hand was on her back. She looked up at him and muttered something. He whispered back at her and glanced at the clock at the front of the room. He slowly straightened up, and as he did, his hand brushed against hers. Keely blushed and Fang said something quiet to her, then he sat in his spot, beside her in the next row. I let my hair fall in a curtain around my face and sighed. Apparently Fang and Keely were up to something.