Hey Guyssss/Galsssss, Pages here and I'm so excited to write this story because I had started it a while ago and really got some good ideas recently so here it goes loll. I'm still kind of new to this writing thing though so getting some criticism (but no hate pleaseee) would be very helpful. But anyway, here's some background info before you start the story:

Max is 17, a senior in high school and she lives in Los Angeles, California.

Best Friends: Iggy, Nudge, Angel, Gazzy, Dylan, Ella (All 17 and seniors).

They are seen as popular even though they don't really understand why.

Max's father died when she was 10 and so she lives with her mother and stepfather, Jeb.

I guess that's pretty much it... Enjoyyyyyy!

Disclaimer: I don't own MR... even though I wish I did *sigh* ;D

Chapter 1

It was dark and I could hear a faint noise that sounded a bit like chanting. As the volume of the sound began to increase, I was finally able to make out what was being said. "-ax! Max! Max! Max!" They were chanting my name. I looked down and realized that I was standing on a stage with a mic in my hand and there was a curtain in front of me that was already being raised. Confused, I looked around trying to find a familiar face... or an explanation. My eyes met with a set of eyes that caused my heart to drop to my feet. It was Jeb, my stepfather. The man who has been abusing me since he married my mom. I was on the verge of hyperventilating when he suddenly opened his mouth and everything went silent except for his voice... "WAKE UP!"

I jolted out of bed, soaked from head to toe in ice cold water. I landed hard on the floor and my eyes flicked around my room, trying to figure out what just happened, when they landed on the smirk that was growing on Jeb's face. He was holding a huge bucket and staring down at me with the eyes of a predator. I shivered and his smirk grew wider. "Hurry up and get ready for school," he said as he threw the bucket at me and strolled out of my room. I caught it just in time and set it on the floor next to me. Thank you, reflexes.

Still on the floor, I sighed and ran my fingers through my, now wet and stringy, hair. It was just a dream... I sighed again, and after a couple more seconds, I got up and moved to the bathroom to get ready for my last, first day of high school. Fantastic.

About ten minutes after getting out of the shower, I was finally ready to head to school. I had on a pair of black jeans with tears along the thighs and knees and a nice dark green tank top. To finish off the look, I wore my favorite black combat boots and my blonde hair was wavy and fell to the middle of my back. I used some concealer to cover any bruises that might be there from the day before and was ready to go.

I tiptoed down the stairs to make sure I didn't come across Jeb and when I saw it was all clear, I sprinted out the door to the sidewalk. Once to safety, I released a breath that I didn't know I was holding, and began the walk to school.

I arrived at school about ten minutes before classes started so I had a bit of time to myself before I had to face the first day of many more school days to come. I decided to go to the music room. There's usually no one there before school starts so I go there to practice my music a lot. Especially because I can't practice much at home, in case I disturb Jeb.

Ugh, Jeb. I don't even know why my mom stays with him. He's disgusting, doesn't have a job and eats everything in the house. All he does is take up air and space. My mom has to work two jobs just to keep our house, so she's barely home. Which also means she has no idea that Jeb abuses me. Nobody does. I've kept quiet about it because, for some reason, my mom actually loves him and I don't want to ruin it for her.

Jeb likes to blame me for the fact that she's never home even though he's the one who isn't contributing at all. He uses that as an excuse to beat me whenever he gets angry. No matter what is wrong, it's my fault. Oh, the tv is broken? Max, this is all your fault *smack*. There's no food in the house? Max, you're useless *punch*. Your mother is out working two jobs to pay for this house while I sit and watch tv? Max, shut up and do something with you're life *pushes down the stairs*. Unbelievable right? I was lucky I was able to make it out of the house without him hitting me, but I guess he's saving it for when I get home so it has some time to heal before school.

Well, anyway, what I was trying to say before I got off topic there was that, I love music. I play the guitar, the piano and I sing. I also write my own songs which is a great way to get rid of some pent up feelings, if I do say so myself. My dream is to become a famous singer/songwriter and be able to share my songs to people around the world. I've already started to do that, actually. I have a YouTube channel where I post videos of me performing my songs. So far I have a pretty good amount of subscribers, but I'm hoping to be discovered by a record company, so I also play a few gigs at a nearby bar. Since I'm underage, nobody knows about it except for my best friends, Iggy, Ella, Nudge, Gazzy, Dylan and Angel.

I finally made it to the music room and sat down with one of the guitars. I decided to play one of my own songs called "Silent". I wrote this when I first realized I wanted to become a singer. I closed my eyes and began to play. When it was time to sing I took a deep breath and...

(Silent by Tori Kelly)

Wake up in a new day but it don't feel that new

Same faces around me with the same point of view

Everything is perfect, everything's ok

Just swallow the lies and let your emotions fade

But my heart won't be quiet, I feel a change

No more black and white

This life's too colorful, beautiful

Don't know what lies ahead but

I'm ready now, it's time (gotta go, gotta get out of this town)

And leave my fear behind (nothing left for me here can't stick around)

My dreams are loud and my heart's wide awake

And all I know is I'm not meant to be silent

Wake up to a new voice telling me where to go

It sounds like I got no choice but to keep on this road

Got my own opinion, my own words to say

Got my own visions, so I know I can't stay

There's no looking back now, I feel a change

No more black and white

This life's too colorful, beautiful

Don't know what lies ahead but

I'm ready now, it's time (gotta go, gotta get out of this town)

And leave my fear behind (nothing left for me here can't stick around)

My dreams are loud and my heart's wide awake

And all I know is I'm not meant to be silent

No more black and white

This life's too colorful, beautiful

Don't know what lies ahead but

I'm ready now, it's time

And leave my fear behind

My dreams are loud and my heart's wide awake

And all I know is I'm not meant to be silent

I'm letting go it's time yeah (gotta go, gotta get out of this town)

And leave my fear behind me (nothing left for me here can't stick around)

I'm ready now it's time yeah (gotta go, gotta get of this town)

And leave my fear behind me (nothing left for me here can't stick around)

My dreams are loud and my heart's wide awake

And all I know is I'm not meant to be silent

As I sang the last few words, someone started clapping and my eyes flew open in shock.

I turned to where the noise was coming from and saw a tall boy I had never seen before, dressed completely in black, standing by the door. "Who are you?" I asked. He slowly stopped clapping and started walking towards me. As he got closer I was able to see his face better and realized that he was actually really good looking. He had olive skin that fit perfectly with the all black thing he had going on. His hair was just as dark as his clothes and was short at the back but was a bit longer in the front which covered part of his eyes so he ended up flicking it out of his face every couple of minutes. Every time he did I was able to catch that his eyes were just as dark as his hair but had little specks of what looked like gold. They were mesmerizing.

During my whole analysis of him, I realized that he had been doing the same to me as he walked closer. When he finally got to where I was sitting, he held his hand out and said, "Hey, I'm Fang." Now you would think I would take his hand and say something like "Hi, my name's Max," but nope, I didn't do that. Instead... I burst into laughter. Yeah, laughter.

Lollll well, that's all for now :D

Please review and tell me what you guys think so far and if I can improve on anything.

Thanks for reading!

- Pages