Chapter 4

Disclaimer: I do not own Maximum Ride

Fang

I closed my bedroom door behind me, watching as Max sat on my bed. A comfortable silence settled between the two of us as we took out our books and our research material and we set off to work. We didn't say much; we had shared the work in class and had decided that we should each research one aspect and then combine the two and work out what experiments we should do from that. It suited me just fine, sitting here, browsing on my laptop, next to her. Next to Max. We were sitting quite closely, looking over each others work from time to time. I could feel her warmth besides me, and I felt myself sit closer besides her- or was it her? I didn't know; all that I knew was that I know, our shoulders were touching and our feet kept colliding into each, causing Max to catch my glance or me to catch hers. And every time we both looked away, Max with a little smile painted on her rosy lips.

I knew I would not be able to bear this for any longer. This: the proximity, the closeness, how she felt near me, they way she smelt so good. I just wanted to cup her delicate cheek and kiss her senseless. And the way those tight jeans fit her perfectly did certainly not help. Half an hour passed by. An Hour. An hour and a half. Every minute my hand was gripping the pen tighter as I copied down the notes from my computer screen.

I stood up, nearly throwing my notepad and my pen on the floor as I did so. I ran my fingers through my hair, even though I knew fully well that it would only mess it up any more. But right now I could not care less; all I could care about was Max. And I didn't want her to know. God knows what she would do to me if I just grabbed her and kissed her. Who did that anyways?

"What's wrong?" I heard her ask. I turned to her and daw with surprise that she seemed just as flushed as I was. I simply shook my head, knowing that if I spoke I would simply stumble over my words. Trying to make it seem as if nothing were wrong, I made way to my window.

"It's just a bit hot in here. Do you mind if I open the window?" Without waiting for her response, I opened the window as full as possible, enjoying the breeze as it flowed in and cooled my burning face; I nearly let out a sigh of relief right there and then.

Of course, at that moment, I noticed a car parking in the driveway. My father's car. My sigh turned into one of despair. I turned back to Max.

"I'm sorry, my dad is home earlier than expected," I walked back to my bed and started tidying my room up: I knew that if I did not my dad would make a comment about it, and I didn't feel like getting into trouble tonight. I noticed Max's watchful glare as I cleared all of my things and put them neatly on my desk.

"I hadn't pinned you down as a neat freak," she commented.

I didn't answer.

"Why are you afraid of your dad?" I instantly stopped moving.

"I don't know what you're talking about," I mumbled angrily, walking once again. I wasn't scared of him. I was aware of his presence, not in the mood for trouble. My father made me angry, he frustrated me, but he had never made me scared.

"So why is it that every time your father is mentioning there's that frown that appears on your forehead?" she asked. I subconsciously moved my hand to my forehead, and true where her words- I could feel the frown etched in my skin. I ran my fingers once again through my hair. I knew it was something I did when I was nervous, and I was pretty sure that Max had noticed too.

"I hadn't realised," I replied lamely.

I felt a hand on my shoulder, and turned to find Max facing me. Her eyes were open, and honest, and just oh so breathtaking. I couldn't help but stare back into her brown eyes that just offered me hope. Never had I seen her this way: so overt and unconcealed. It was something new, another memory that was forming in my head, another thing that I wanted to remember about her. She was so intricate, with so many hidden facades, and every time I spent more time with her, the more I learnt about her, and every time a new facade was revealed.

"I know what it feels like," She murmured, still staring at me.

I couldn't move; her stare was keeping me fixed. It had me immobilized.

"What do you mean?" was all I could muster.

"To feel like you have to be perfect, like everything has to be perfect, or someone will just come and tell you all the things you've done wrong, and not even consider what you've actually done, all of your effort, all of your hard work, the fact that you had them in consideration. How it feels like when people have just stopped thinking about what you want, what you need. I know what it feels like," and with that she reached up to cup my cheek.

It felt strange, but right at the same time. The warmth of her soft hand radiated onto my skin, but that warmth was soon replaced by cold as she moved backwards and grabbed your rucksack and made her way to the door.

"Are you free this Saturday?" I couldn't help but ask. I knew what Iggy had said. I was braced for the disappointment. But I had to ask.

She turned to look at me with a grin on her face.

"Don't push your luck Fangy boy."

And with that, she was gone.

A/N: AAAND ANOTHER CHAPTER. gosh. I shouldn't let you guys get used to this. sooo... a bit of angst and a teeny weensy bit of Fax. I hope you liked it and please review! x ~S