Prologue: Hidden Affections
Hello everyone. Some of you may be reading this because you read my other stories, some of you may have stumbled upon it, but here's what you need to know.
The Flock lives at the E-House, like the first book never happened. Jeb never left and he did introduce them to Dr. Martinez and Ella, so they will be there. There is no Total (I find him terribly annoying) or Dylan or any of those other random characters. Max, Iggy, and Fang are 15, Ella is 13, Nudge is 12, Gazzy is 9, and Angel is 7. Oh, and the story starts in October, just before Halloween. I think that's all. Well, off we go. Enjoy!
Disclaimer: I disclaim Maximum Ride for the whole story.
Max POV:
Ugh. I hate Halloween. I don't like dressing up, I don't like crowds, and I don't like surprises. Yeah. Definitely not my holiday.
I really don't want to bore you with a whole long introduction because, let's face it, you know who I am. You know my Flock, you know what we look like, and you know that we have wings. But you don't know everything, because many things you've heard about our lives are pretty crazy and definitely not reality.
Anyway, I'll just get going with my story. Where was I? Oh yes. Halloween. It was less than two weeks away and the kids were driving me up the wall. "Max, you have to take us now, or all the good costumes will be gone!" Gazzy begged. "What if they're out of Link costumes when we go?"
"Then I'll buy you a green hat and a plastic sword and it'll be the exact same," I said. My patience was wearing thin. I looked over at Fang, who was lounging against the wall silently. He wasn't arguing with me, but as my right-wing man, he should have been helping. But of course, he decided to lean against the wall expressing amusement with only his deep eyes.
"Can you help please?" I asked him over Nudge wailing for a deluxe make-up kit so she could make herself look like a zombie.
Fang smirked. "You've got it covered."
I glared. "Okay, SHUT UP!" I yelled. Their mouths snapped shut. I ran my fingers through my hair, catching knots. Time for a haircut. "Look, my mom and Ella are getting here the day after tomorrow. If you wait until they get here on Saturday, then we can go with them. If you continue to bother me, no one will go trick-or-treating this year. Got it?"
Iggy, Nudge, the Gasman, and Angel nodded their heads. I turned to Fang who pretended to duck his head in shame. I rolled my eyes. "Okay, go…I don't know, do something that won't bother me."
"But Max, everything we do bothers you. Like that one time I just wanted to help you so I threw out all your ratty clothes and bought you those pretty new clothes with the sequins and rhinestones but you got all mad 'cuz they were all you had and-" Fang cut her off, slipping his fingers over her mouth.
"Thank you," I said. He just nodded and took his hand off of her mouth. For some reason, Nudge's face had turned a little pink.
"Just go do something in your rooms for a little while," I said, pointing to the hallway. They turned to walk off, but not before Gazzy took the time to let a big one rip.
"Gross!" Nudge shrieked. "Gazzy ew!" The Flock squealed and ran. Holding my breath, I ran over and pushed open the window. Fang beat his enormous black wings, blowing the rancid air out the window.
I coughed and walked back over to Fang. "Screw Erasers. These kids will be the death of me, " I complained.
"Well, you're not alone," Fang said. He rubbed the back of my neck a couple of times before giving me a smile. A real smile, the kind that made the whole world just a little brighter. Then he too headed off to his room.
I sat down to watch TV, and for some reason, Fang's profile flashed across my mind, angular and sexy. No, I am not crushing on my best friend. He's not good looking. His eyes don't smolder, his hair isn't perfectly messy, and I certainly don't ever look at his six-pack abs when he doesn't wear a shirt to bed and eats breakfast shirtless.
Ugh, I need television. Something to help me stop thinking.
"Max, are you sure you don't want to come?" Ella asked for the umpteenth time.
"No, Ella, I do not want to go costume shopping. The whole point of waiting until you and Mom got here was so that you could take the Flock and I wouldn't have to go!" I explained.
Jeb had introduced us to my mom and half-sister Ella less than a year ago, in February. We were shocked at first, and we definitely didn't believe him, but we came to trust them. And my mom bakes killer cookies. Killer as in amazing, unlike my cookies, which actually kill people.
"Aw, but Fang won't come either!" Ella whined. "I thought you guys liked spending time with us," Ella insisted.
"I do," I assured her, "But I don't like shopping or Halloween. We can spend time together when you get back."
"Fine," she pouted as Mom called us to the living room.
Fang stepped in behind me, his toned arm brushing against mine. Have I mentioned that he has really nice skin? It's all tan and…totally not attractive. Why would you think I even thought about Fang in that way?
"Okay, so Max and Fang are not going shopping, right?" Mom checked. Fang and I nodded. "Alright, then I would like you two to make some pumpkin-shaped cookies for us to decorate after dinner."
"Um, I can do that when we get home," Iggy said nervously. "If we use cookies Max baked, we can decorate them and reuse them every year like they're ceramic."
I reached over and smacked the back of his head. "That's why Fang is going to supervise," Mom said.
"Yes ma'am," Fang said. I glared at him and he gave me a smirk that made my heart…I mean, that made me want to hurt him. Angel giggled.
"Okay, the instructions are on the fridge. And you two behave!" Mom scolded.
"Yeah, behave," Iggy said. But he added an eyebrow wiggle to make it perverted. I smacked him again, this time across the face.
"OW!"
"Okay, we're leaving before things get out of control. Bye guys," Mom said, pulling a red-faced Iggy with her.
Fang chuckled and we headed into the kitchen. "Nice hit," he complimented. I grinned.
"Okay, we need butter, sugar, vanilla extract, flour, baking soda, and eggs. Normal baking stuff," I said, reading the recipe stuck to the fridge.
Fang and I got the stuff out and I turned on the oven. "So, you really don't want to be Edward Cullen for Halloween this year? You really won't go around naked and covered in glitter?" I teased.
"Guess not. Don't want random girls drooling on me all night," he said.
They practically do that anyway. I thought. Every time we were out in public, downtown our just at the grocery store, girls were mentally undressing Fang. I could see it in their eyes. It gave me a weird burning feeling in my stomach. Angel said it was jealousy, but that's stupid. What was there to be jealous of? Fang was my best friend, nothing more and nothing less.
"Max?" Fang asked. I realized I had been staring intently at the mixing bowl without doing anything.
"Sorry," I said, pouring some baking soda into the bowl.
"Are you okay?" Fang sounded concerned.
"I'm fine," I assured him with a smile. "I was just spacing."
Fang smirked a little. "Distracted by my hotness?"
"Oh, you wish," I said, shoving him. This resulted in him spilling the small spoonful of vanilla extract he had been about to add down his shirt. It was just enough to create a dark stain on his already black T-shirt.
"Oops," I giggled.
"That's okay," Fang shrugged, pouring another spoonful. I turned back to the bowl-a stupid mistake-and Fang poured the vanilla onto my chest.
"Fang! This was one of my favorite shirts!" I shrieked, rubbing a paper towel on my orange blouse.
"Oops," Fang mimicked. I slowly looked up and saw him smirking. Bad mistake.
I dropped my paper towel and grabbed a handful of sugar. "Oh shit. I'm sorry Max, really," Fang pleaded, but I ignored him.
"Watch your language," I reprimanded, throwing the sugar all over his shirt.
"Oh, it's on," Fang's eyes narrowed and he reached for the flour. I dodged his first throw, retaliating with another handful of sugar. This time it coated his hair.
"Looks like you could use some dandruff shampoo," I snickered. Then something hard splattered on my head, making something wet drip down my head.
"Oh no. You did not just throw an egg at me," I said dangerously.
Fang's lips curved up halfway in a smirk. "What if I did?"
I gave one short laugh and tossed an egg at him. The first one missed and hit the wall, but the second one burst on the back of his shirt as he turned to dodge it. Then I grabbed the bag of flour. Fang, anticipating what I was planning to do, lunged just as I moved to throw the powder all over him. There was a poof and the bag erupted between us, coating us and the kitchen in a powdery mess.
I looked at Fang, who was white from head to toe save the yellow splotch on his shirt. I couldn't help it. I started laughing at his expression and how stupid he looked covered in flour.
"You look like a snowMax," Fang said, also chuckling. He had fallen over me as we landed on the ground, his arms on either side of my torso. I sat up and he leaned back, keeping his arms on either side of me.
We stopped laughing, but Fang didn't move. His position kept me pinned to the ground, so I was stuck staring into his mesmerizingly sexy obsidian eyes. Uh, I mean, um…okay who am I kidding? Fang is hot. Hot, hot, hot, hot, hot. With a capital "H", the-sun's-got-competition hot. But I would never let him know that.
"Fang," I began, fully intending on asking him to move. But he had something else entirely in mind.
"Max," he replied. But it was a sigh, and he had a dreamy look in his eyes. Before I could ask him what was going on, Fang closed his eyes, leaned in, and kissed me, full on the mouth.
I was so surprised that I couldn't react. I just froze, not kissing him back or pushing him off. I slowly realized that the kiss was nice. It wasn't hot or horny. Fang was putting almost no pressure on my lips, just letting our mouths rest against each other. But…oh God. This was Fang, kissing me, but we were just friends, and, and….
I pulled away. "Max?" Fang asked.
I jumped up and started backing away. "Fang, I don't…I just can't-" I turned and ran. I forced open the front door and jumped into the air, snapping out my fifteen-foot brown wings pumping them to gain speed and altitude. I ignored the regret burning in my throat and the pained look that had been in Fang's eyes as I smashed his heart across the floor.
Fang POV:
Stupid. Stupid stupid stupid. Why the Hell had I kissed her? She didn't want that. She didn't like me that way. I snarled in frustration and punched the wall. Then I realized what a mess we had made. I sighed and figured that, since I had all this time alone, I should probably clean up.
I let myself think as I cleaned. Max. Stubborn, tom-boyish, beautiful Max. I hadn't looked at her as more than my best friend until I was about thirteen and a half. It was just one day, when Nudge was sparring slowly with Iggy and he had twisted her arm. I watched Max comfort her and ice her bicep. That was when I realized that my best friend was pretty, and my crush started to blossom.
Recently I had realized my crush was much more than little. I was in love with Max, but I kept it in. I really hadn't meant to kiss her, but she was so hot when she was angry, and so beautiful when she laughed, and she had been just so close that I couldn't resist.
After the kitchen was clean, I flew quickly to store for fresh ingredients. Max was still gone when I returned, so I finished the cookies alone. Then I headed into my room, ignoring the temptation to knock down a wall.
Nudge POV:
"Ooh, fake blood, perfect!" Ella squealed. We were going as zombies this year, and Dr. M had already bought us a huge make-up kit.
After we realized it was okay to trust the Martinezes, Ella and I had quickly become best friends. It was nice to have someone to talk girl stuff with, because Angel was a little too young and Max just wasn't like that. At all.
"Cool. Hey, can Gazzy and I borrow that when you're done with it?" Iggy asked from behind us. "We could play some crazy good pranks with that."
"Except now me, Nudge, and Angel know about it," Ella pointed out.
"That's okay. Max and Fang are the most fun to prank anyway. They have the best reactions," Iggy shrugged and went to help the Gasman with something. I watched Ella's eyes follow him all the way down the aisle.
"Girl, that crush is out of control," I told her softly.
"Hush!" Ella's cheeks turned pink. "I can't help it, okay?"
I knew how she felt. Ella cocked her head for a moment and asked, "What do you mean, you know how I feel?"
Angel! I protested. I heard her giggle from somewhere nearby.
"Nudge! Come on! I told you about my crush," Ella pressured me.
"Fine!" I looked around and motioned for her to lean in closer. "So, I sort of might have this little crush on Fang-" I had to stop there and slap my hand over her mouth to keep her from squealing. "It's nothing big! I just think he's kind of hot."
"But I thought he and Max had a thing?" Ella asked incredulously, her eyes wide.
"What?" I asked, surprised. "No, definitely not. They argue, like, all the time, and they usually can't stand each other."
I meant what I said. All I thought was that Fang was good looking. It was just a small crush. No biggie. We finished getting what we needed and went home. Max wasn't home when we got there, and Fang was tense and silent. Of course they had fought while we were gone. What did we expect, leaving them alone?
Max POV:
A stupid Halloween party. Mom was taking Nudge, Gazzy, and Angel trick-or-treating, but she wasn't willing to leave us in the house, so Iggy, Fang, and I were going with Ella to a party one of her friends was having.
Fang and I still weren't talking. It was super awkward, and I didn't like it. I don't know if I really wanted to be Fang's girlfriend per say, but I was sick of avoiding him. This wouldn't be a problem except he was pointedly avoiding me as well.
Ella made me dress in a stupid candy corn witch outfit, which was too short, too low cut, and had slutty tights. The hat was on the back of my neck rather than my head, hanging on its strap. I looked around for Fang as I fought away from an overly kind boy named Sam. He was about the tenth boy to pay me a visit, and we had been here for less than an hour.
"My name's Lissa. My family is visiting from Virginia," I located Fang and found a redhead sitting next to him. She was clearly trying to flirt, but Fang was lost in thought. Fang had his dark wings open behind him, totally still. Ella had dressed him as an angel of Death. And I just got a stupid costume.
Iggy was also a zombie, and his cloudy, unfocused eyes really added to the effect. Ella was giggling as he scared a couple of girls, making them run away squealing.
"Fang," I interrupted. "There you are!" I plopped down next to him on the couch. Lissa's eyes narrowed.
"Oh. I didn't realize you had a girlfriend," she said poisonously. She was dressed as a character from a movie I vaguely recalled seeing previews for, but couldn't place.
In the drama of the moment, I couldn't resist playing it up. "Yes, and she just so happens to be the jealous type," I said in a venomously sweet voice. I slid my fingers down Fang's thigh, resting my hand on his knee.
"Baby, don't tease," Fang murmured, playing along.
I smirked and turned his head with the tips of my fingers on the other hand. "Don't tease her, or you?" I purred. Fang growled and leaned in, nuzzling me and making me giggle. Oh Jesus, what were we doing?
"Ugh. Screw this," the ginger moved on.
Fang pulled away, and I missed him immediately. "I think I'm gonna go get some snacks," he muttered awkwardly.
"Wait," I grabbed his arm as he made to walk off. "Fang, we need to talk." He hesitated. "Fang, I'll order you as a leader if I have to. We are going to talk, if I have to tie you to a chair."
Fang sighed and followed me as I walked to the back of the house. We passed a bedroom and heard high pitched giggling. The bed was shrieking unhappily under something I didn't want to think about. Fang and I shared a nauseated look and he pointed to the door.
"No, that's not what I had in mind, you idiot," I hissed as we kept walking. I swear I could feel his smirk.
We did go into the next empty bedroom. Fang shut the door and leaned against it while I sat on the bed.
"Fang, about what happened when we were baking," I started.
"You mean the food fight?" Fang asked.
"No, after that," I said.
"When I had to clean up because you bounced?" Fang asked again. Why was this boy so deliberately difficult?
"Dammit Fang, I'm talking about when we kissed!" I snapped. We were both quiet for a moment. I realized he was waiting for me to continue. "Fang I-I didn't mean to run." He raised an eyebrow. "Well, I mean, I don't know why I did. I guess I just panicked. The kiss was…well, I guess it was actually kind of nice," I just about whispered the last part.
Another moment of silence before Fang said, "It hurt, when you left. You could have rejected me in a nicer way."
"I didn't mean to reject you," I said. "As I just said, I liked the kiss. And I-I like you."
Fang came over and sat beside me. "I like you too. A lot," he admitted. We were both quiet for a moment, looking at each other. "So…what do we do now?"
I shrugged. "I can't be sure, but this seems like a good place to start." I put one hand on his leg, one hand on the back of his neck, and kissed him.
It was like our first kiss. No crazy hormones, just holding our mouths together. His lips were soft and warm. We pulled away and looked at each other.
"You're not going to run, are you?" Fang asked.
"Are you?" I replied.
Fang looked surprised. "No. Why would I run?"
"I don't know. To get even or something?"
"No. I could do that, but I'd rather do this." Fang pulled me in for another kiss. This time it felt hot. He pulled away and kissed me again, over and over, readjusting his mouth each time. Oh God. Was I really about to have my first make-out session…with Fang?
I moved and pulled him over with me so we were lying on the pillows, still kissing fiercely. "Mmm, baby, I thought this wasn't what you had in mind?" Fang teased. He looked happier than I had ever seen him.
"It's not." I pulled him close to me. "But we can still make out."
We ended up making out for about half an hour. One couple did walk in on us, and the guy told Fang that if people couldn't tell the room was occupied, he wasn't doing me right. Needless to say, this guy was drop-dead drunk.
We decided to keep our relationship a secret from the Flock, for now. But we were so drunk with happiness, it was a wonder no one noticed. They were probably too high on chocolate.
Yay! That chapter was purely to set up the story and Max and Fang's relationship. Nudge's crush will be very important later as well. No, this is not a Fudge story. The rest of the story will take place at Christmastime. Thanks for reading, and hopefully I'll update soon. :)