Chapter 1
Turns out you shouldn't scare your best friend when she's asleep in English. JJ nearly impaled her pencil through my hand when I woke her up into wakefulness.
"Watch it," I hissed, barely avoiding my hand from being staked.
"Well don't wake me up that way," she said trying to stare me down.
"Then don't fall asleep during class," I said and turned around to look at my other best friend, Nudge when I saw that the hottest guy in school, Fang, was staring at me. I smiled shyly at him and he nodded to me and then went back to staring at me with his dark, mysterious onyx eyes.
I blushed and turned back around to JJ, who was looking at me with a big smile. I shook my head and gave her a warning look that said Don't-even-think-about-it-that-way.
She just gave me an even bigger smile and pulled out her phone and preceded to text who I assume was Nudge. I rolled my eyes and gave up, deciding that I would take a nap myself but before I could even close my eyes, my phone vibrated. God, if that's JJ I'm going to kill her, I thought to myself
I quickly looked up and saw that Mr Brian our science teacher had his back to us so I pulled out my phone and read the message.
Max,
OMFG! The hottest guy in the school is frickin staring at you! I think he might have a little crush.
Nudge.
I shook my head and gave her a glance. She was looking at me with her eyes wide open.
You might know this but you're crazy and you look like a bug with your eyes like that.
Max.
I sent back and sneaked a glance at Fang. He was still staring at me and he caught my eye and waved. I blushed again and quickly turned to face the black board where Mr Brian was explaining atom sizes and stuff with big long names. My phone vibrated again with a new message but I ignored it. Pulling it back out of my pocket meant facing Fang again and I couldn't do that.
"Nudge!" Mr Brian's voice whipped across the room like a whip.
"Yes sir," Nudges voice was timid and I looked over at her. She was sitting in her chair with worry stamped over her face.
"Can you please repeat what I just said?" he said staring her down.
"Um, well, you were talking about Atom sizes and what they were," she replied and smiled triumphantly.
"Can you explain for me what they are then?" he shot back and looked close to smiling himself.
"Uh-well-um they are things that are different, particles? And um, ah, they uh, group together to become a piece of energy or something like that?" she said stammering and shot a pleading glance over to JJ, who promptly ignored her. (A/N I don't even know what atoms are so just pretend that they're that.)
"Thank you and can please tell me why you weren't listening?" Mr Brian said seriously.
Nudge shrugged, "Coz I was texting about something important,"
"Ok that's enough smarty pants give me your phone and you can get it back at the end of the day," he said and held out his hand in which Nudge glumly placed her pink rhinestone phone in.
"Thank you, and can everyone please pay attention," he said shutting his hand with a snap and walking up to the blackboard again.
For the rest of the lesson I completely ignored my phone which was going off like crazy, Nudge who was trying to get my attention by hand signals and waving; the tingling in the back of my neck that I was getting because someone was staring at me, and the blush that was creeping up my cheeks to form a rather large rose bloom.
When the bell rang I quickly stuffed my books into my bag and raced to the table in the cafeteria where Nudge and JJ and their boyfriends and I sit. It took them forever (5 minutes) to finally get their asses to connect with the seats.
"So Max, Nudge told me that you have a secret admirer," Iggy said, getting straight to the point.
"Shut the hell up Ig or you'll find that you would not only be blind but unable to speak," I said threateningly. Yeah, I like to use the threat to make him permanently blind again. He was blind when he was born but they gave him an operation in year 1 and he got his eyesight back.
"Oh touchy touchy, someone's in a bad mood," he grinned and pulled out his lunch.
"Yeah, so it's a good idea to not piss that someone off more," I said and glared at him.
"Well, I don't know what's so bad about having a secret admirer, I've always wanted one, and your even more lucky Max, it's the hottest dude on earth," Nudge said unrolling her salad wrap delicately with her pink manicured nails.
"Have you even met all of the guys on the earth?" I asked, staring across the room where Fang sat with his jock friends or as JJ and I like to say, Jerk friends. He must've felt my gaze when he turned around and I quickly dropped my eyes to Dylan, the dude sitting the table that was next to his.
"No but, c'mon, Fang is like, way hotter than Brad Pitt and Johnny Depp put together and you know what, he goes way past them in the hottie ladder," Nudge was saying.
"Why, why Brad Pitt and Johnny Depp?" I asked turning to her.
"Huh? Waddya mean Why Brad Pitt and Johnny Depp?" she said in puzzlement.
"I mean, why do you have to compare guys with Brad Pitt and Johnny Depp? Brad Pitt is married to a slut, and he's not even cute, Johnny Depp is old, do you even know how old he is, and he is like weird and freaky," I said, wishing that I could take that back instantly. (A/N I don't actually think that Angelina Jolie is a slut but Max does)
Nudge blew up like a puffer fish and launched a non-violent, very verbal attack.
"What the hell are you talking about? It doesn't mean anything that frickin Brad Pitt is old and that, that he's married to a slut and he is so cute, in fact he's even cuter than cute, he's almost hotter than hot, and Johnny Depp is not freaky, and he's not that bloody old, if you had a better taste in men-wait, scratch that, if you even had any taste in men- or even women in fact, you would take that back right this instant!" she exploded all in one short breath.
I waited until she got her breath back and calmly replied, "Done yet?"
She took a deep breath and looked at me and said, "Sorry, but, just, don't diss my boys ok?"
'Fine but first I have statement to say and promise on your favourite dress and wardrobe that you won't say anything, you won't comment or shout or do anything after I say it, well you can talk but not about what I've just said, ok?" I said and looked at her hesitant face.
"Fine," she agreed and everyone waited to see what I would say.
I took a deep breath, "It does mean something that Brad Pitt is married to a-"
A shadow fell over us and I quickly closed my mouth and looked up, kind of praying that it would be Fang, and kinda praying that it wouldn't be.
It wasn't him; it was my arch-enemy, Lissa, the cheerleader.
"Hello freaks, what were you saying at my husband Brad Pitt?" Lissa said all snobby.
"Oh, so he's your husband is he?" Nudge said said giving Lissa a once over.
"Yes he is why?" she replied sticking her nose up in the air.
"Huh, thts funny, coz I was just about to say that he is married to slut," I butted in with a smirk.
"Whatever," she said and looked down. I smiled smugly. Checkmate bitch!
" So what's on the menu today, salad wrap," she noted from Nudge, trying to get back to her normal self, instead of her face turning as red as radish, "Or-what in god's name is that?" she said pointing her chin in Gazzy's direction.
"It would be your face if you don't piss off," I said vehemently to her. Gazzy had his mum's favoured spaghetti out in a little blue Tupperware container.
Lissa took a step back and gave a look of pure hatred. My face became an emotionless mask but my eyes displayed not only hatred, but a very scary warning.
"Hey, what's going on here?" Fangs voice came out of nowhere.
"Oh nothing we were just having a little chat," Lissa said sweetly, tossing her red hair back from her shoulder.
"Um ok then," Fang said and gave her a smile. I rolled my eyes and turned back to see both Nudge and JJ staring at him with starry eyes and their mouths nearly hit the tabletops. Only Gazzy and Iggy looked unimpressed. I bit my lip when I saw Gazzy cast a jealous look at Fang, knowing instantly that it was because Nudge looked so into him.
"Hey you guys," Fang greeted putting his hand up with a wave and Nudge and JJ snapped from the reverie.
"Hi, Hey" JJ and Nudge said and they immediately both blushed. Thank god I'm not the only one that can blush really bad.
"Hey Max," he said smiling at me when I didn't say anything in return. I pretended to study Gazzy with and interest with a frown on my face to look like I was trying to work him out.
"Huh? Oh hi," I said shaking my head and giving Gazzy a fake look of puzzlement.
"So what's been happening Fang?" Lissa said trying to steal Fangs attention and fluttering her eyes like a bat.
"Nothing, me and the boys were just going out play a game of football when Dylan over here," Fang jerked his chin to his direction where Dylan was tossing the ball from one hand to another, "Noticed that there looked like a bit of a catfight starting,"
I looked up at Dylan to find him staring at me too. God! What is it with boys liking me today, I mean, it's not like I'm wearing any magic perfume or a boy attraction magnet.
"No, Max and I were just bonding," Lissa said with a glare over her shoulder that read say-anything-and-you-die.
I completely ignored it and muttered under my breath, "Yeah bonding with an argument about Brad Pitt,"
"What? You guys like Brad Pitt? He's married to hoe and he's not even cute," Fang said like a typical guy.
"Finally, someone who who actually agrees," I said and and turned to look at Nudge.
"See, people who have actual taste knows that Brad Pitt is soooo last minute," I said smugly.
She glared at me and muttered, "People who have actual taste will be saying the next minute that Michael Jackson is the hottest white/black guy in the whole frigging universe,"
"Oh c'mon, if people are people who have actual taste then the world would produce a lot more cuter babies don't ya think?" I replied and looked at her with a winning smile. She mumbled something unintelligent and glared at her salad wrap.
"You guys are seriously big freaks," Lissa said and motioned to her posse to follow her. "I'm sorry but we have business to attend to but I'm sure we'll talk again," she said and walked off with her butt twitching with every step.
"If she shakes her ass anymore she's gonna hit something and then complain that there's a big bruise on her left cheek," I said and shook my head.
The whole table was in hysterics and even Fang cracked a smile. Ok, it was a faint one but so what, it classified as a smile.
"Yeah um, we gotta go too now so we'll catch youse later," Dylan came up and pulled Fang away.
"See yas," Fang lifted up a hand and walked off. I sighed and my eyes followed him out of the door.
"Ahem," Iggy cleared his throat meaningfully and when I looked at him he was grinning from ear to ear. I sighed again but this time it was because I knew that he would say something like a smart ass comment.
"Save it," I said and pulled out my salad sandwich and ate in silence for about 4 minutes, thinking about Fang and what just happened before.
JJ was the first one to break the silence. "Soooo, Max, whatcha going do about it,"
"Huh? What am I going do about what?" I said confusedly.
"Don't play dumbass on us, whatcha going to do about Fang," she said and then sighed when my face was blank.
"I don't know, there's really nothing to about whatever you're talking about," I replied and looked down at the table where our names were written down. Bad idea. I felt a thud on my head and I looked up bewildered. "Hey, who did that?"
"Let us help you understand, you like Fang, Fang likes you, that add up to, boyfriend and girlfriend," Nudge cut in.
I looked at the ground where I saw a tennis ball next to the chair leg. I looked back up and shrugged, "I don't know what you're on about,"
"Oh c'mon Max, every time he looks at you, ya blush, and you won't even look at him properly," Great, even Iggy is joining this conversation. I looked at Gazzy in desperation, trying to plead to him with my eyes to join the good side. He just shrugged and help up his hands like he had nothing to do with it. Fine, I guess a little blackmail is necessary.
"If youse guys aren't going to shut up about it all, well, Nudge, I'm going to tell your mum that you not only ripped her favourite evening gown but you tripped and broke her leopard high heels, JJ I'm going to tell Dean that you think he's car is in need of a new colour paint," I said knowing that Dean is very touchy touchy about his car, " Iggs, I'm working on it and Gazzy well, I'll inform Angel that you let Bugs Bunny out when you were drunk just to piss her off," I said and smirked to myself when I saw everyone bar Iggs face blanch.
"Fine, fine, but you have to promise that they will never know, so that means that you can't tell them and you can ever use them as blackmail ever again," Nudge said hurriedly.
"It's a deal," I nodded and finished my sandwich.
"So what are we going to now?" Gazzy said looking around us the cafeteria.
I looked at my watch, 1:30, "We have fifteen minutes left, oh, I know, how about we stage a break in to get Nudges phone outta Mr Brian's office?"
Everyone looked at each other doubtfully.
"Aw, c'mon guys, since when have we ever been caught doing it?" I exclaimed.
They sighed and nodded. I grinned and started scheming.
Fangs P.O.V (I'm being nice)
I couldn't stop thinking about Max. She's probably thinking I'm a major weirdo when she caught me staring at her like a billion times today, I thought to myself.
"Oi Nick! Hurry up and kick the bloody football!" Sam, my best mate yelled on the other side of the field.
I looked at the hard ball and lined it up towards the goals (A/N this is Australian football since they live in Australia) and kicked it. It sailed straight through the middle poles and rebounded off the fence.
"Wahoo! Yes, we won again, suck bananas Dylan!" Sam and the rest of the team came up clapped me on my back and shoulders but all I could think about was Max. Has she ever noticed me when I kick a goal? Has she ever been to one of my games?
"Keep it to yourself Sam, I challenge you to another 15 minute round this lunch," Dylan challenged and crossed his arms.
"That's all cool, but I warn ya, prepare for another ass kickin'," Sam grinned and we all took our places. My team took their places and I stood near the posts. Tom, our umpire, threw the ball up in the middle and everyone struggled to get hold of the ball. Finally Sam managed to grab it from Dylan and passed it Guy, who passed it along. When it was my turn I quickly passed it back to Sam and he kicked it but unfortunately it only went through the point.
We did that for the rest of the 15 minutes and by the time the bell went off, my mind was almost completely off of Max.