Notice: I still don't own Max Ride or the content of the series. )
After what seemed like a decade, the girls and I reached the site of our old home's peril. We sat around, between bouncing with excitement and shuddering with being impatient. The boy's should have been here by now….
Like we were all in some unreal dream, Fang drifted out of a group of trees, followed by Iggy and Gazzy. We all, with the exception of Fang, drew our breath in a gasp. I knew we, the girls, looked a bit different….but they….they looked so different. And yet, they looked…the same….Gazzy had longer blond hair, his cheeks angled so they appeared older, his former boyishness faded away. His eyes kept their usual look of excitement and wonder, though. I almost laughed. He had muscles. Iggy had slightly longer hair as well, though it was dyed a mystifying brown. He also had more defined muscles, and a sleeker style. Fang…..oh, Fang. I loved him. I had accepted it years ago, when we parted. I knew I loved him by how much more torn I felt when he left; like my own heart had torn in half.
Fang looked the most different. Fang was even more stealthy-looking and mysterious, if that was even possible. He wore a close-fitting black sweater that brought out his muscles. It seemed everyone was gaining muscles these days. His hair was the same, though it shone with a dark, alluring light. The shock wearing off slightly, I realized the full extent of the changes. I was horrified at some of them. His eyes, his usually detached but uniquely caring eyes, were lit with dull, numb ice. He no longer frowned in thought, but frowned…just like that. A frown. Gazzy and Iggy glanced with concern at him before rushing over to bombard us with hugs.
Angel and Nudge ran to meet them, but I stayed where I was. Frozen. What had happened to Fang? What had stolen the life from his eyes? The unexpressed caring, loving? And in that moment, I wondered the most important question. What had the years done to him?