Second Chances?

By MyNameIsCAL

This fanfic is something I'd like to actually take time to make a decent story. Do not expect updates for this as fast as my other ones. I really hope you enjoy this. Chapters alternate between Max and Fang's POV. Comments and suggestions are welcomed.

Disclaimer: As always, Fang, Max, Iggy, Nudge, Angel, Gazzy, Ella, Dr. Martinez (Mom), and all those other characters from the Maximum Ride books belong to James Patterson. I thank him deeply for the chance to use his characters in my own stories.

---Fang's POV---

I don't know what I'm doing. There are syringes that surround me and Max is pounding on the bathroom door, but my body does not cooperate to let me go open it. Instead, I shoot some more drugs into my vein and climb into the tub, clothes and all, into the warm water. I've got a knife in hand too. What the hell was I doing?

And somehow I was just driven to do this, without any thought or any reason. I see the blood fill be water in the tub, the knife swishing around in the water, hitting the bottom. Closing my eyes, darkness consumes me. The last thing I heard was Max screaming my name.

When you wake up every day to solitude, to nothing but a grey wall, it's hard. But that's where I'm at. I was driven into drugs, into self-inflicted pain because of what I did. It's been over a year ago since I tried to kill myself. I'm getting out soon, but I still have to make peace with myself. With Max and the flock and especially Alex, my daughter.

My world has been turned upside down since I got in here. Max was mad at me, as much as she wants me to get better. In fact most of the flock was mad, even though they would visit every now and then. Iggy, and Max who seemed reluctant at times, were the only ones who visited weekly. The doctors knew them, my shrink knew them, and even some of the patients knew them.

But what happened to me? Well after we helped bring Itex down, after I settled down and got serious with Max, the government hired me to work for them. It was an undercover job, to work the streets of New York City and get friendly with the scum that plagued the city every day. I had discovered thousands of drug dealers and how their operations worked. Yet me, myself had fallen into that, under the pressure of keeping a job and being there for my family.

The job required to be like the people I was fighting. I had to get inside their heads and in the end it almost killed me. My mental stability fell apart and everything went with it. Max was able to take the FBI to court and we got some money. They paid for my hospital bills, for my rehabilitation, and continued to issue me a paycheck until I got a new job which wouldn't be for a while.

"Today's your big day," the nurse smiled, trying to sound excited.

I was indifferent to getting out of here now. Max was under a lot of pressure. She had walked in here with divorce papers one day and I signed them. We had joint custody when I got out of here, as long as the doctor signed off that I was stable enough to take care of Alex. This was supposed to be a mutual agreement, but I only agreed for Max's happiness, and not mine.

"Yup, big day," I tried to smile back, forcing myself out of bed.

I meet with Dr. Johnson one last time. I'll be seeing him once a week, sort of like an outpatient thing, so he can check up on me. Then I go and pack all my things. It's time to say goodbye to the people I've spent time here with. Most of them come and go. I've just been here the longest because I came with a lot of anger, a lot of pain.

"Max is coming to pick you up," Dr. Johnson smiled as he led me to the front of the facility.

"Max?" I questioned. She said Iggy would come with Ella.

The doctor nodded. "I'll see you next week on Friday. And please, don't forget to take your medication."

I nodded, clutching the prescription paper in my hand. His handwriting, of course as a doctor, unreadable to me, as I look down at it. Max's car pulled up to the curb outside. I started to go out and the doctor gave me one last farewell. I would see him soon anyway.

"Hi, Max," I said anxiously.

She opened the trunk and put my suitcase inside. Then she turned back to me and hugged me. I hugged her back, confused.

"It's good to see you, Fang," she muttered.

I didn't want to let go, but I had to. Max and I were no more than friends now. I got into the passenger seat and watched the hospital fade into the distance until we turned the corner.

"Where are we going?" I asked, just to fill the silence.

"Home," Max answered. "Wherever you want to go."

I suddenly hated the city and everything about it. Maybe I would move out of here. Well, actually I couldn't. I sighed as we pulled into the parking garage under our apartment.

"What?" Max glanced at me.

I shook my head. "Nothing."

She gave me one last look before getting out of the car.

"Who is home with Alex?" I suddenly realized that someone had to be watching her.

"Iggy." But his name came out stiffly.

"What about Ella?"

Max locked the car. "Mom is sick. She's in Arizona. Iggy is leaving to head out there today. The doctors say that she has Alzheimer's. I'll tell you later. C'mon Alex is waiting for us."

I followed her up the stairs to our eleventh floor apartment. Well, I think it was hers now since we were divorced. The only thing I could get over was how she wasn't resentful towards me right now. I had half expected her to tell me to gather my things and find a new place to live. And I would have deserved it too after being absent for an entire year. For being an absent father off on a job. In fact, I probably couldn't remember the last time we had even had time for just the two of us. Then I just fell apart.

The door still reads "The Home of Fang and Max Ride." The governments made us make our names official. For the most part, we all kept our names, except the Gasman who decided he was going to be Zephyr. We all had different last names. Well, I had taken Max's last name. I didn't really want to pick one. The others came up with their own. I'm pretty sure Gazzy had the most ridiculous name ever.

"Daddy!"

Alex is running at me. She's gotten so grown up since I was gone. I scooped her up into my arms and spun her around a few times. Smiling, she plants a kiss on my cheek and then I put her down.

"Daddy! I missed you!!! Are you gonna read me bedtime stories again?" She wrapped herself around my leg.

"Of course," I promised, patting her head.

Iggy emerged from the kitchen holding a bottle of water. He barely acknowledges me as he sits down on the couch. Whatever was going on with Mom, I could tell, was bothering both of them a lot. I sat between them after Alex surrendered my leg. She plopped down in front of the TV and turned it on.

"You want to go out for dinner tonight?" Iggy suggested. "Because I really need to get out."

"Sure, we'll go wherever you want, Ig," Max agreed.

"I'll watch Alex," I heard myself say.

"Nah, you two are coming with us. What makes you think we wouldn't bring you?" Max replied.

I hesitated. "I don't know. I just thought you wouldn't want to be around me."

Max frowned. "You're still my best friend, Fang. I'm not kicking you to the curb."

If I'm your best friend, then why did leave me? I almost asked that, but then Alex ran up to me and sat on my lap.

"Daddy?"

"Yes, honey," I responded.

She curled up into a ball in my lap. "Why were you gone so long?"

I sat there and watched her stare into my eyes. I didn't know what to say to her. In fact, I actually felt like crying and curling up into a ball myself. Eventually, Max answered, "He got hurt at work, so they had to keep him at the hospital."

"Oh," Alex said, as if it all made sense now. "Well I'm glad you're ok."

She jumped off me and sat on Max's lap. I muttered, "Yeah, me too, Kiddo."

Thanks for reading. :D