If you need clarity on what I'm talking about, PM me, but here is chapter 4 of Football Love, and Highschool…
Disclaimer: If I owned Max Ride, would I really be sitting at home typing this fanfic? Would Fang have left? No, and oh wait-no. ~Gracie
Fang POV
Okay so I admit it was shocking taking a look in those wide brown eyes of the new girl. I was tempted to ask her name, and then my girlfriend led her away. Girls. Why do they have to be so dang social?
The guys and I continued to muck around, tossing and scrimmaging, making jokes and comments, mostly about our new football idol Ari Martinez.
Ari, as the stories go, took up football before he could walk, and in elementary he was so involved and competitive he played with adults. By middle school, they were asking for him, and in high school, everyone was crawling over him. When he entered college, he got so many full scholarship offers, and he declined two thirds of them. Nobody knows why he chose Auburn, but some deal went down that not only made the coaches happy, Ari was happy too, and paid for his entire tuition and nobody knows what happened to the scholarship. He has no siblings as far as anyone knows and people imagine him with his little brother or something.
Or that's how it's told, what I heard. See, I'm the quarterback for my high school, and I want to be just like the legend Ari, so much I might be looking at Auburn for a year of mentoring from him. Zane, his two brothers Dane and Duke go to Auburn as linebackers. Stupid bastard of a friend is getting to meet the legend himself. Dammit.
Out of the corner of my eye, I see Iggy walking towards my girlfriend and the newbie, and somewhere in there he gets a whack on the back of his head. Thank you Lissa. New girl stands, her dog standing up with her. Lissa's face falls and I'm resisting going over and yelling at newbie, when she says something that puts a smile on Liss' face.
"Fang! I'm going with Max!" she calls out. Max, the name suits the girl. I put a thumb up to let her know I heard her, bending and squatting at the knees to keep my eye on Zane.
"Set, hut!" I command. The ball is snapped back and I throw it long to Zane, auto TD. Loud laughter comes from my right, Max and Lissa watching us and giggling. Oh brother, why, why, why of all things did guys have to decode girls? I will never get it.
"Fang! Head out of the clouds man!" Gazzy barks. I roll my eyes, my emotionless mask never wavering.
"Yeah I'm coming." I shake my head and follow my friends.
-~random time lapse line~-
I sat at home watching CSI and ignoring my dog's stares. It began to slowly creep me out.
"Fang! Weed the garden please!" my mother yelled from the kitchen, I heard the smash as she started whacking the crap out of some poor food item.
"Yeah whatever."
Outside was sunny, and when my dog followed to stare some more I chucked some toy at Dixie, my little cousin's pitbull. Alex the malamute hauled his ass up to roll over on the porch, eventually sitting and watching Dixie hit the tree in an attempt to return whatever the hell I chucked at her.
Muddie, the black German Shepard on the other hand had started rolling in the flower bed, hence the name-
"Muddie!" I snapped. God that dog is an idjit. I weeded the flowers in silence, and stood, staring at the mountains beyond my home. As the sun went down, a soft orange and red sunset seemed to set Pikes Peak on fire. Alex bumped my thigh with his nose. Roscoe, our Great Dane and bull mastiff Newfoundland mix came ambling to the door.
He's a big dog, that's all I can say, frickin huge. He's taller than my eight year old cousin, on all fours, taller than my dad on his back legs, and my dad is 6'6. Yep he's a monster.
"Move it Ros." I nudged his square head with my hip, and carried the trash bag to the side of the house to throw it out. Roscoe stood on his hind legs, his head above the fence.
"Hey Sandlot! Your dog's loose." A familiar voice came drifting over the fence. I climbed up while Roscoe woofed, a deep rumble that shook the fence. I scratched his ears when the other barking dogs shut up, especially the rat dog next door. I saw Max and Athos, another German at her side, actually four, two golds and two black German Shepards, a retriever, and a boxer.
"Got enough dogs?" I joked. Dixie whined below Ros and me, so I pulled a bouncy ball from my pocket and hurled it across my back yard, watching her follow the erratic bouncing. Alex only rolled onto his stomach and watched Muddie dig at the fence.
"Haha very funny. As if you're one to laugh. Lissa said you had four dogs, and by the looks of it two and a half are crushing your fence."
"Who Ros? Nah he just wants to say hi." I glanced at Ross, his spotted coat almost like a pit-rott mix but the great Dane dappled it down, and the Newfoundland part of his mutt line was coal dust, he was huge and he was handsome, but the mastiff? Why do you think Max can see him? My fence is five and a half feet tall.
"Roscoe? Really? That thing is a monster." One of the Germans tugged and Max whistled sharply. Muddie stopped digging.
"You have six. Dogs that is." I pointed out.
"Only two are mine. The Goldie Shepards. The Darkie Sheps are my sister Ella's and the other two belong to my brother. He's at college right now but his dorm waived the okay for pets, his roommates have dogs too."
"Is that a gold retriever?"
"Ace. He's a good dog. Our last retriever Jabaw kept herding us. You'd be walking one direction when his teeth are on your elbow dragging you a different direction. You follow him and he drags the original direction."
"How old was he?"
"Fourteen when he passed. He was our only family dog at the time."
"Sorry for your loss, sounds like he was a great dog."
"He was. I'm sorry but I should get home. I have to go shopping with Lissa and Ella tomorrow. My sources say a Nudge is coming too, and that it's not a good thing."
"Good luck young Max. You will be sorely missed."
"I'm sure I will be. Take care Fang." She clucked softly to the dogs wrapped around her, and I watched fascinated as they untangled themselves and started walking as close to her as possible, wagging tails and turning adoring looks only a dog could give to her. Roscoe whined, his massive head resting on the fence. I never really bothered to question how she knew Ros was short for Roscoe. Hmm-oh well maybe another time I'd ask.
"You break the fence you owe me a new one." I told him, hopping down. I heard a not so quiet thump as Ros dropped to all fours again, lumbering with huge steps after me.
Why use an alarm when you have Roscoe? He's too huge to mess with, sometimes it's scary.
One look at a stranger, he goes berserk with the woofing, it's like a cannon blast that wakes up the whole neighborhood. Added to the fact that he jumps on people and has a tendency to growl as a way of greeting and people would be scared shitless to do anything but heave the mammoth off and book it downtown. But he is a gentle giant thank god or we would have had to put him and Dixie down. Dixie 'cause she's a pit and Ros because he's an elephant of a dog.
"It all works out when small children can ride your dog like he's a flipping horse." I mutter, walking into a small coat room type space for the dogs to eat.
Later that night I sat up thinking about football, Lissa, and Max. Football 'cause it's been my life, Lissa obviously because she's my girlfriend, but Max left me puzzled and confused. I could swear I've met her before. I think.
Eh thinking hurts. Within five minutes I was passed out next to Roscoe, Muddie somewhere under my bed, and Alex off in my closet. Dixie was with Angel, or was until she landed on my stomach.
MAX POV
I sat down at my desk, smiling to myself, while Athos was sprawled over my feet. Hera, my other Goldie was on my bed curled up like a cat in the dying rays of sunshine. Mom and Jeb had brought the other two home, a Darkie and a Goldie with the deigns of family dogs. But when I named the other Gold Shepard Hera and she sat on my feet, Ella's new Riley went into her room and burrowed under her bed. There went that idea.
Jeb got me my first guitar for my ninth birthday. He's been working with me since, teaching me to sing, to dance, to play, he shaped the better part of my artsy side. Mom however gave up on teaching me to cook the more fancy stuff. I usually went out to play ball with Ari or Jeb. Sometime even Uncle Daniel sometimes. Dan-o we called him.
After yesterday and meeting Lissa, mom had let me put the groceries away before taking Ella and I to meet Jeb at the pound. They had a well teamed Boxer two year old and a gorgeous year old retriever. Ace, and Jake, whom Ella and I sat and played with while mom and Jeb explained that Auburn allowed pets on campus. I sent Ari photos and he let Ella and I decided his pets. Which ended with Jake and Ace, the youngest, most friendliest puppies in the pound who were old enough to be trained already.
My thoughts had turned melancholy for unknown reasons, and I had leashed all the dogs and went wandering through the neighborhood. I amazingly had not gotten lost, with the dogs to sniff and tug me around, but the cannon blast from a huge ass dog had pretrified me.
Seeing Lissa's boy Fang hop up next to the behemoth had me laughing to myself, as only Fang would have a dog that big. I think he practiced his tackles and footwork with that thing. A paw wound up in my lap, and I looked into Ace's big brown eyes, his gold fur highlighted in the sunset. I stood and sat at my window seat, to watch the sun fall, the dogs sitting at the ledge. I stood to draw the curtains around my little hidey hole, the cream and peachy red calming and soothing as I strummed my guitar, watching the moon sink below the horizon, the tip of Pikes Peak lit with flame.
What was Ari doing? Had he already seen the sunrise and thought about the times when he would sit with Ella and me, talking and planning? Were people nice to him for his personality? I worried endlessly, turning the questions in my mind. Ace stood, and walked through the haze of fabric to what I presume to leave. Instead he came back in with the book I'd been reading last night.
Sense and Sensiblity, of course. I took the old book from him, surprised at the zero slobber on the leather cover. A slip of paper fell from the ancient book. I picked it up, setting my guitar back on the front step to my little stage. Glancing at the ceiling first, I looked at the pencil lines for the inner layer of curtains I would set up and the track for the sliding doors I wanted to install to the stage part of the platform, since the bump out was deep enough and far enough back from the section of wall with my closet and media cabinents, my stage was technically a room within the room. Sighing, I unfolded the note, taken aback at Ari's scrawl.
Hey Maxie. How's it going?
Look, I know you didn't really like Minnesota, and I think now is a good time to tell you I kicked the crap out of Mick. I talked to the dean and if you want to visit anytime here at Auburn, you're always welcome. You and Ella even have a practical scholorahsip to Auburn if you girls wanted it. I can't wait to see you and Ells at Parent's Day.
But we know that's not what I want to say. BE CAREFUL.
Be safe Maximum. I know it's tough but check it with the attitude. You'll make great friends and if you don't I'll come kick butt for ya. Watch Ella. Call me, email me, Don't be a stranger.
I love you both. But you need to be careful Max, some people are not at all who they appear to be. Chris was one hell of an example. You run into trouble call me. Don't hesitate.
Remember, if you need it, come visit, come find me, hell come kick it with me from time to time. I miss our days together, you me and Ella-Bella.
~Ari
Oh that jerk. He knew I hated guilt trips. But I took his warning in stride. Chris was indeed one hell of an example that fucker. I hated him, Ella hated him, Jeb hated him because Mom and Ari were traumatized by him. That drunkard. Abusive blackguard. My dark thoughts were turned to my cell phone, vibrating on my desk beside the bookcase, the desk I'd assembled at five this morning after I had taken the dogs for a jog around the neighborhood.
Hey Max, coming in fifteen-L
Cool, be outside-M
I walked into my bathroom, taking a brush to my hair, and sweeping my hair up into a high ponytail. I walked into my closet for dark wash blue bootcut jeans, and a black and neon green splatter t-shirt. I pulled on white DCs, and grabbed my phone, setting Sense and Sensibility on my desk with Ari's note still clutched in my hand. I left my door open, letting the breeze from my open window draft through, glad I'd swept the outer curtain layer back into the ties in the wall. Our house wasn't exactly small, we'd learned to have a larger house since Ari usually brought friends home from school, or Ella wanted sleepovers with friends. I was solitary.
I had ten minutes to kill so I grabbed a water bottle from the fridge, and a second for Lissa, going out the open front door, sitting on the deep set wraparound porch. The side of the porch stopped at the side of the house before the six foot tall gate and fence, the other side drifting up. Customized, my mother had asked the builders to make small alcove for the front door, and the porch sloped up onto the roof of the garage, we had rails of some kind so we didn't fall off, and the south end of the house's porch curved to the roof, a small ladder connecting the two levels out of three, Ella and I shared the top floor.
I swung my way up onto the garage roof, sitting with Hera on the shingles. Her head rested on my knee as I dragged my fingers through her hair.
Did Ari really think that I wouldn't tell him if I ran into trouble-oh hold on and shut the front door. No I really wouldn't tell Ari, which is why it was so bad in first grade. I heard the teasing in my mind and squeezed my eyes shut.
A car horn blared and I glanced down to see the SUV Lissa was driving. [A/N: they were born in Summer so they're already fifteen and have permits…shh they don't have an adult…] A Nissan SUV from the looks of the ski rack on top, the chrome color glinting in the early morning sunlight. I kissed Hera's furry cheek and slid down the sanded railing to the ramp leading over the front walk to the front door, and landing on the first level.
"Yo Ella! Come on!" I yelled up the stairs.
I strode out to get in the front seat of the SUV, turning to Lissa.
"Ready for hell?"
"We won't be back." I butchered Arnold and the Terminator to sound like a spoof. Lissa cracked a smile and reversed.
"Is it okay to leave your dog on the roof?"
"There's rails and a ramp. I left the front door open since Jeb's home." Ella shut the door behind her and walked to get in back.
"Umm Ells?"
"Windows." She replied. Lissa pulled out, and we went to get Nudge.
And begin the ever long hell of shopping.