All the Right Moves

Chapter 2:

I'm so human and flawed,

I break down even though I'm still strong,

And time, will make fools of us all…

All That You Are by the Goo Goo Dolls

"Max…

"Max...

"Max, there's someone here for you."

Seriously, Coach Shinbou? I wanted to let out a frustrated growl. Couldn't she see I was in the middle of a new routine? I'm sure that person could wait just a few minutes. It was hard enough to hold a handstand on the balance beam, let alone with someone trying to interrupt with chit-chat.

"Maxine, don't make me repeat myself."

Finally, I gave up. Twisting my weight to the side, I let my legs descend back to the beam and I stood upright. I felt slightly dizzy from inverting myself so quickly, and had to blink the white from my vision. When I did, I saw my middle school gymnastics coach looking at me with a frown. "Straighten your back more on that handstand. You're not hitting the full angle."

"Yes, Shinbou-sensei." I replied back, making sure to keep the annoyance out of my tone. I didn't need another whack on the head.

Kaito Shinbou has been my gymnastics coach for almost a year and a half now. And as much as I love the old woman, I can't help get irritated every time she commented on my handstand form. It's one of the most basic gymnastics moves and she always found something to nitpick about mine. And anytime I give her an attitude about it, she smacks me on the back of the head with her clipboard.

"Who's here to see me?" I asked as I sat down on the beam, letting one of my long legs dangle in the air and keeping the other folded against me with my foot flat on the beam.

"Someone I think you'll be interested to meet," my coach smirked before turning away and walking towards her office. That was Coach Shinbou for you— never actually answering the question.

Grimacing in annoyance, I hopped off the balance beam and quickly caught up to my coach. I ignored all the curious glances I got from my teammates and friends. How could I answer their questions when I didn't have any answers myself?

Coach Shinbou led me to her office and opened the door. Inside, a woman stood looking at the trophies and medals that adored Coach Shinbou's wall.

She looked older than me, but younger than Coach Shinbou, maybe in her early thirties. Her long, dark hair was pulled back into a pony-tail and whatever bangs she had were slicked back with a headband. She wore an outfit that looked like it cost a fortune, complete with black pumps that showed off her toned legs. All in all, she looked like a severe woman. Upon hearing us enter, she turned her brown eyes first to Coach Shinbou, then to me. Her eyes squinted with interest before saying, "She's taller than I'd like."

I furrowed my eyebrows. Excuse me?

"Believe me, it won't be a problem." Coach Shinbou smiled before moving to sit behind her desk. The woman sat in a chair across from her. I chose to stand.

Coach Shinbou smiled at me before saying, "Maxine, this is Chyio Kinmu. Do you know who she is?"

I shook my head but stuck out my hand, then quickly retracting it when realizing my error. I've been in Japan for four years and I still tried to shake people's hands. I just hoped she didn't see the scars on my palms. Instead, I bowed and said, "Pleasure to meet you. My name is Maxine Chase."

Kinmu smirked, as if she knew what I had tried to do, and bowed her head towards me. "I know who you are, Maxine. You've made quite a reputation for yourself in the gymnastics world. So much so, that word of your success had reached the ears of…higher classes."

I looked at her strangely. What was that suppose to mean?

Kinmu stood up so she was eye level with me. "Let me just cut to the chase," she smirked at her own word-play, "I work at Ouran Private Academy. I assume you know what that is?"

Duh, it was the school that shared the same district as Ouran public schools, only insanely more expensive and only the famous and wealthy populace attended it. Everyone in the Ouran public schools knew about the Private Academy, but it didn't mean they liked it. Being on the lower end of the totem pole wasn't something "commoners" enjoyed being reminded of.

Instead of telling Kinmu that, I settled for nodding my head.

"Then you should know that the high school's girl's gymnastics coach was let go this year."

I had to prevent myself from scoffing at that. By saying "let go" she meant that the last coach was fired for having sexual relations with one of the girls. While the school system did a good job at keeping the whole scandal hush-hush, rumors were always there to provide the missing information. And while I despise gossip, I always believed a rumor stems from some grain of truth.

I again nodded my head.

"I have been chosen to replace him, and I have been given permission to rebuild the entire gymnastics program for Ouran Private Academy. I have also been given enough money for two partial-scholarship students to join our team."

Now that was news to me, and I couldn't keep the surprise from my face. Scholarship students? To Ouran Private Academy? Was she insinuating what I think she was? Suddenly my mouth felt dry and I felt the need to fiddle with my long, frizzy pony-tail. "Am I to assume you want me to be one of those scholarship students?"

Kinmu shook her head and I instantly felt color rush to my cheeks from embarrassment for jumping to conclusions. If I wasn't, then why the hell did she call me in here, then? To shove it in my face?

"I want you to be the only scholarship student."

Oh.

I gave her a confused look. "I'm afraid I don't understand."

"The Academy only gave me so much money to give to scholarship students. I can either have two students on partial scholarships, or one student on a full scholarship. I am a firm believer in quality over quantity, Ms. Chase, and I understand that even with a partial scholarship, your family couldn't afford to send you to the Academy."

I scowled at the mention of my family's financial situation, but kept my mouth shut. That was a touchy subject for me, but she didn't know any better. Then again, she didn't have to be so blunt about how poor we were.

"The athletic scholarship would pay for everything from your books to your classes. It even covers your uniform. The only thing you'd have to provide, expense wise, would be your own lunch."

She paused to see if I had anything to say. "You're not giving me much to go off here, kid. If you're interested I need to know now, or am I just wasting my breath and need to go to the next talented kid?"

"Of course she's interested!" Coach Shinbou said before standing up and putting a hand on my shoulder. "It is a lot for a girl to take in, is all."

I finally found my voice and blurted out, "Why are you asking me now? I still have over a year and a half before I even go to high school."

Kinmu grimaced at that. "Ah, well, according to the Ouran Athletic System Handbook, rule number 67 states that a student who transfers into a new school for athletic purposes must be enrolled into that school for at least a year before becoming a part of that school's athletic team. The rule still stands even though you'd only transfer from Ouran's Public School to Ouran's Private Academy."

I looked up at Kinmu with wide eyes, "So I'd have to finish middle school at the Academy's institution instead of here?"

Kinmu nodded her head. "Believe me, I argued with the chairman for days about it. There's no way around the rule. The good news is he at least agreed to pay for your middle school education as well. We agreed that it would be best that you finish the rest of this semester here, and then move to the Academy and finish your second and third year of middle school there."

"But...I…" I honestly had no clue what to say. This was an opportunity of a lifetime, even an idiot could see that. If I graduated from Ouran Private Academy there would be no university in the world to turn me down. But that also meant leaving my friends here. The ones that took so long to make because of…

My thoughts trailed off and my fingertips subconsciously rose to the bottom of the scar that marred my face from my left cheek to the top of my right eyebrow. This scar was probably my biggest insecurity. Because of it, so many people avoided me like the plague. Even when I found solace in my team, I was still constantly reminded it was there. What if when I transferred schools, the same process would happen? What if no one would accept me this time? After all, people with wealth and power were more obsessed with perfection than anyone else.

Kinmu took one look at me, then my coach. I noticed a flicker of understanding in her eyes. Was it really that obvious how I felt? "I see this is a lot to take in. How about you sleep on it, talk to your family, and then I'll come back tomorrow for your answer."

"That sounds like a good idea," my coach agreed.

Kinmu bowed one last time before leaving the office. As she opened the door, six girls fell into the office in a tangle of limbs. "Uh…"

"I'm sorry about that, Chyio, please—"

"No, no, it's fine Kaito," Kinmu smiled before stepping over the girls. I'd have to say I was impressed with how gracefully she did it with those monstrous heels on. "Have a good evening, girls."

When Kinmu was out of sight the team jumped up and bombarded me.

"Was that really Ouran Academy's coach?"

"How could you not say yes to that?"

"What are you talking about, Kimi? Who would voluntarily go to that snob school?"

"I bet that place is full of cute boys."

"Get your mind out of the gutter, Ayume. Max could go to school for free!"

"Girls!"

As if a dog whistle had been blown, the team stood at attention. Coach Shinbou did have us trained quiet well, I realized. I just wanted to go home, and I think she realized that.

"Practice is over and will begin same time tomorrow. You're all dismissed." The scowl that accompanied those words made it very clear how she felt. No one was to speak to me about my offer.

As we all left the office and headed to the locker room, I felt every girl's gaze on me. I shrugged on some sweatpants and a t-shirt before grabbing my bag and quickly made for the door. As much as I loved my friends, there was no way I was going to talk about the offer right then. If only because I had no clue what to say.

"Max, wait!"

Ayume, while a pervert and a loudmouth, was the only one I could call my best friend. And that's the only reason I didn't ignore her and continue walking out the door. Instead, I looked back and saw the entire team watching me with smiles. Ayume walked forward and said, "Whatever you chose, Max, we'll support you all the way."

I smiled back, thankful to have a team like them.

"I'm home," I yelled as I took off my shoes by the door. As I did, I noticed there was an extra pair of shoes I didn't recognize by the door. It was a pair of pumps with red soles, so they were obviously Louis Vuitton. The only reason I knew that was because my sister swooned over those expensive shoes like a love struck puppy. And if shoes as pricy as those were here, that meant Fuyumi Ootori was somewhere in the apartment.

"Max!"

Speak of the devil.

"Hello Fu—" I wasn't able to finish my sentence as Fuyumi enveloped me into a bone crushing hug. For a girl who was built like a string-bean, she sure was strong.

I looked over her shoulder to see my sister smiling at us from a safe distance. She knew better than to get in between Fuyumi and her object of current affection. And I just happened to be her favorite object on multiple occasions.

I had no clue how it happened, but somehow my sister became best friends with the only daughter in one of the richest families in Japan. I came home one day, a few years back, and there Fuyumi was, sitting on one of our shabby couches and chatting the day away with Tori.

At first, I didn't understand why Fuyumi hung around us. What would a rich girl want to do with a bunch of second-class citizens? Then the more I got to know her, the more I realized she was just a sweet, and if not a bit lonely, girl. Apparently it was hard to find a real friend in her society, one that wasn't there only because they wanted to get closer to your parent's company. It was hard to find a friend that wasn't looking for something to gain. That's where Fuyumi found solace in Tori.

Fuyumi was also pleasant to be around. She never condescended or acted better than us, in fact she was one of the better human beings I've known, but I always couldn't help feeling inferior. She was so glamorous, so perfect looking, wearing the latest trends and designs from only the best fashion makers. Her sweet nature was the only way I was able to stand being around her. And at the sight of her today, I was reminded of my latest offer. How was I going to tell Tori and Joey? I guess I could wait until Joey got home from his new job.

Joey graduated from Ouran Public High School last year. Tori and I were so proud of him. And while Joey was a smart guy, he didn't make high enough grades to get a sufficient amount scholarship money to go to college. He decided to wait until we could afford it, and in the mean time he got a job as an apprentice at a martial arts studio and was able to hold his part time job at the tattoo parlor down the street. His dream was to graduate college with a business degree and open up the first MMA studio in the city. He said he might even double it as a tattoo parlor since he found he had a knack for body art. The only down side to his jobs were his inconsistent hours. Tori and I never knew when he'd be home, and it didn't help that he still participated in those underground fights.

"Max!"

"What?" I snapped out of my musing as I stared at the dark haired beauty before me.

"I said did you notice anything different about me?" Fuyumi asked, fluttering her hands about her face.

"Uh…" I looked her up and down but I couldn't spot a difference from the last time I saw her. "You got a hair cut?"

Fuyumi pouted and turned towards my sister. "I swear, Tori, if Max wasn't so angelic I would compare her to your brother."

Tori laughed while I made a face at Fuyumi behind her back. When she turned around I returned to an indifferent façade.

Ha. Angelic my ass.

Fuyumi put her left hand right before my face so I couldn't miss the giant rock that adored her ring finger. My eyes widened and I gasped. "You're getting married?" She nodded excitedly in response.

"Who's getting married?"

The three of us turned to see Joey entering the small apartment with a smile on his face. He was home early today. Joey took a look at the three females in the room before his eyes landed on Fuyumi's raised hand. "So Daichi Shido finally asked you, huh, Fuyumi? And here I thought he wouldn't have the balls to ask your dad."

Tori promptly threw the nearest thing, which happened to be a table coaster, at her brother. He had no time to react and it hit him square in the forehead. Tori wasn't very athletic, but she was deadly accurate when she was angry. "What did I say about using that language around Max? Fourteen years she has been alive and you have spent every one of them running your sailor's mouth. Even when we were younger, you had a terrible potty mouth."

"Oh," Joey rubbed his forehead before looking irritated at his sister. "Yeah, yeah, whatever you say, sis." He then looked down and winked at me before ruffling my already frizzy hair. I swatted his hand away before trying to fix it. I seriously needed to do something about my hair. I only kept my wavy mahogany colored locks long so I could pull them back for gymnastics. If it wasn't for that, I would have cut my hair short enough to where it wouldn't frizz out so bad. It drove me nuts.

Fuyumi luckily found our family antics funny, and didn't take offense to what Joey said. It also helped that she was use to Joey's brash and loose tongue. "Yes, he even asked father before hand. I was actually surprised as well. Father can be a little intimidating."

"That's an understatement." Tori muttered under her breath. It took me a minute to remember Tori had been over to Fuyumi's family home before, and had met her father and three brothers. She said that every one of them were nothing like Fuyumi, and as rigid as a rod.

According to Fuyumi, however, her second oldest brother, Akito, had the hots for my sister. While I found this funny, and Fuyumi found this thrilling — she would love to have her best friend as a sister-in-law — Joey found this irritating, and Tori was clueless to the whole situation. That was probably a good thing, considering Tori freaked when she actually understood she was getting male attention. And this happened all the time considering she had a body of a model and the face of a beauty queen.

"What was that, Tori?"

Tori flustered before saying, "Is that a new Hitachiin dress?"

Fuyumi glowed with delight, "why yes! I'm so glad you noticed!"

"Well how could I not? I love all her designs…"

Blah, blah, blah. I didn't care to hear about designer outfits all that much, and that's all those two ever seemed to talk about. I decided to tune out the rest of their conversation and moved into the kitchenette to prepare dinner for four, knowing Fuyumi was going to stay for a while.

"You want help, Maxi?"

I looked at Joey with a deadpanned look. "No way, Joey. You're cooking skills are so amazing that you burn water." I laughed as he crossed his arms in annoyance. It was then that I noticed a new tattoo amongst the others on his sleeve. I pointed at it and said, "Why did you get a peacock feather? That's a little feminine don't you think?"

Joey smiled at me. "A new guy came in yesterday. He wanted to practice and I've seen what he could do, so I let him put this on me. He's a Buddhist and said the peacock symbolizes the ability to thrive in the face of suffering. It sounded pretty cool so I agreed. He did a pretty good job, huh?"

I looked at it and smiled. I think Joey had a deeper reason for getting that tattoo but I chose to not voice that opinion. "Yeah, I like it."

While preparing dinner I kept thinking about Kinmu's offer and how I was going to bring it up to Joey and Tori. Did I even want to go in the first place? Would they want me to go?

During dinner Tori, being the ever observant one, noticed something was wrong.

"Max? Are you feeling alright? You're not talking much."

I looked up from my food to notice all three of them were looking at me curiously.

"Actually…something happened today."

"Did someone mess with you again?" Joey asked, narrowing his eyes.

"No!" I instantly shouted before blushing and putting my hands in my lap. "I mean, nothing like that. It's not bad news, but…I'm not sure what kinda news it is."

"Just tell us, Max."

"Ouran's Private Academy's new gymnastics coach approached me today and offered me a full athletic scholarship." I kept my eyes on my hands as I said those words. I didn't know why I was being so shy about telling them.

There was silence around the table and I snuck a peak to see three relatively surprised faces staring back at me. Finally, after what seemed like forever, Tori smiled and said, "That's great, Max!"

My head popped up and Joey gave me my second bone-crushing hug of the day. "I'm so proud of you, Maxi! To think you'll go to one of the best schools in the country."

"You guys are okay with this?" I asked.

"Of course we are, Max! You'll get such a great education if you go there! How could we not be?"

I had a few reasons in the back of my mind but it seemed they didn't care.

Joey suddenly let me go before looking me in the eyes with a somber face. "Do you want to go, Maxi?"

"I…" Did I honestly want to go to a full out prep-school? Where I was guaranteed to get ostracized for not being a blue blood? Where my scars would make me an outcast again? Where I wasn't even sure if I could handle such an intense school system? Where I didn't even know if I could pass the entrance exam?

But at that moment, with Joey and Tori looking at me so proudly, I felt like I could handle anything.

Screw the blue bloods, and screw the system! If this was the best way to obtain my dream, then gosh-darn it I was going to do this.

With my mind made up, I nodded my head. Joey smiled and pulled me into another hug and then kissed me on the forehead. Tori came over and did the same thing with a smile on her face.

Fuyumi suddenly came into the picture again and swung me in a circle, laughing joyfully. "Oh this is wonderful! You'll be going to school with my little brother! He's a grade above you, but I'm sure you'll be the best of friends!"

Somehow, according to Tori's small description of Kyoya, I doubt that was going to happen, but I smiled at Fuyumi anyway. Her happiness was just infections.

A/N: I know Max seems kinda whiny here but just bare with me, she gets better. The song that inspired this chapter is All That You Are by the Goo Goo Dolls. To me, it's like Max's character theme. Reviews appreciated.

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