Okay here's the next chapter!!! God I'm having so much fun writing this now! I've had so many brainwaves and I'm getting closer to the parts that I am dying to put in! In other words their summer vacation! I've had it planned out for a while now so I'm really excited for you guys to read it so I'll try and get to it asap!!!

But for now we have chapter six! ^.^

"If we go into the whole concept of the book then we'll see that Ralph has the… ability to be the same as Jack," Fang explained, leaning back in his chair with a casual elegance that had some of the girls in our English preening and batting their eyelashes hopefully. I resisted the urge to scowl at them.

"And if we delve into the character of Ralph then we would understand that the only reason he is not like Jack is because he knows that he could be like that and he refuses that part of himself," Fang continued.

"Very good, Fang!" Miss Elissa stated, clapping her hands together and beaming at him. "That is exactly it. Ralph knows that if he let himself he would be the same as Jack, and that is proved with Simon's death and Ralph's reaction to it. Thereafter Ralph fights savagery and tries to be who he was brought up to be: a polite, British boy."

Brigid raised her hand and Miss Elissa nodded at her.

"So are you saying that Ralph is not at fault for Simon's death?" Brigid asked.

"Does anyone want to explain their feelings on that?" Miss Elissa asked. "How about you Max?"

I frowned. "I suppose that they are all at fault for Simon's death," I decided. "Jack started the war dance and sent them into a crazy frenzy, as Piggy said, and they were frightened but none of them had to join. In fact, Ralph, Piggy, Sam and Eric didn't have to stay. They could have left if they wanted. So they do remain partly responsible for it but Jack was the main instigator."

Miss Elissa nodded and smiled. "Very well reasoned Max. Jack is most at fault but each boy is responsible in some part because they all killed Simon."

"But how do we know Ralph actually touched Simon?" Brigid asked and I tried so hard not to groan. Fang glanced at her, interested. I'd never seen him look at a girl like he was interested before… it kind of irked me.

"It says that they attacked him," I pointed out.

"It also says it was hectic," Fang reminded me. "But Max is right, Ralph was part of it. His reaction the next day proves it. He knows he had a hand in Simon's death and he is truly guilty." The last part was for Brigid and she blushed under his gaze and looked at her notes, embarrassed.

Fang was top of our English class, something that I hadn't known until Iggy told me. Fang had an apt understanding of literature and Miss Elissa adored listening to his interpretations of books. For once, I think I actually topped Fang when I asked if we could compare our English grades. He seemed impressed by mine but his were really close.

"Also, the diplomatic reasoning that Ralph used towards the end of the novel is important," Miss Elissa stated. "Why is that so, Miranda?"

Miranda looked up from her nails and then gazed at her notes. I don't know how that bimbo got into the advanced class but she had and now we had to put up with it.

"Uh… because he's the real leader?" she said, making it sound like a question.

"You idiot!" Dylan groaned. "It's important because it proves what Fang was saying about Ralph knowing that he can be different from Jack. He was trying to bring about a peaceful end to the conflict through words rather than actions. It's how all conflicts should be solved. Instead of invading countries and bombing we should be talking."

Miranda huffed and went back to gazing at her manicure. Fang rolled his eyes in annoyance but looked at Dylan and gave him a stiff nod. Fang and Dylan didn't hate each other per say but they didn't get along either except in class where they backed each other up because they thought kind of similarly.

"Thankyou Dylan but could you refrain from insulting your class mates," Miss Elissa requested. "Alright, so we know that Ralph wants to be diplomatic about the whole situation but it ends in Piggy being killed by Roger on Jack's orders and with a manhunt for Ralph being staged. Sam and Eric are tortured into revealing Ralph's whereabouts. How is this significant? What does it mean? Your homework for tonight is to write your responses to Sam and Eric's betrayal and then continue on to interpreting the last few chapters of the book. Class dismissed."

The bell sounded about a minute after we'd finished packing up so Fang and I slipped out of the classroom as I shoved Lord of the Flies into my bag.

"William Golding had some interesting ideas," I stated.

"He did indeed and it's interesting how many ways people find to think of them," Fang agreed. "I bet you our English Final will be mostly Lord of the Flies."

"And Macbeth."

"Oh yeah. That doesn't leave room for anything else then."

"Finals are really close now," I stated. "Only three weeks and they are upon us."

"Then three more weeks and freedom of summer vacation," Fang sighed. I grinned and nodded.

Believe it or not but I've been here for almost the rest of the year now. It's half way through March, Finals start second week of April and end halfway through may. Then we have three weeks of unimportant work in class and summer is here! I can't wait.

Fang and I met up with Iggy who was flirting with Tess. Fang and I hung back wearing exasperated looks as Iggy finished up with a wink and Tess scribbled something on a scrap of paper and slipped it into his hand with a shy smile.

"Iggy, you're shameless, you know that?" Fang asked when he finally joined us.

"Am I?" Iggy chuckled. "Yeah, I suppose I am."

I rolled my eyes. "Come on Ig, lunch," I stated, gesturing towards the cafeteria. We walked over together, Iggy talking about his plans for his date with Tess while Fang and I pretended to listen.

"So, Spring Fling," Iggy stated. Fang and I froze.

"What?" Fang asked, eyeing Iggy like he was from another planet. Iggy shrugged. "I thought we agreed no Spring Fling."

"Yeah but I think I want to go with Tess," Iggy stated. "You know… I actually kind of like her and if all goes well then I'll ask her to be my girlfriend…"

"Whoa man," Fang stated and he and I exchanged a glance. "Max, this is serious, Iggy's thinking about not being such a flirt anymore and sticking to one girl."

"Wow," I gasped. "I never thought I'd see the day." Iggy looked kind of embarrassed.

"You know, I'm fifteen, I think I should probably have a steady girlfriend," Iggy explained. Fang and I exchanged a look, wondering what was going on with Iggy. He'd been quieter than usual and now this? Something was up.

"Iggy, is everything okay?" I asked gently.

"What? Yeah, I'm just… thinking, you know," Iggy stated. I searched his expression was signs of deceit but his light blue eyes were clear. "So, if I go to the Spring Fling, will you come Fang? Max?"

"Spring Fling is so not my thing," I stated.

"Mine neither," Fang agreed.

"Please guys, I'd feel so much better if I knew you were coming," Iggy pleaded. Fang and I looked at each other and sighed in unison.

"Sure," we agreed together. Iggy grinned.

"Thanks, guys."

We started back into the cafeteria and I was thinking that I was really going to regret agreeing to go to the Spring Fling. Then a worse thought occurred to me: I was going to have to wear a dress which meant dress shopping.

--

"Spring Fling isn't until May, we have to pass Finals before we're even allowed to go," I grumbled. Mum just rolled her eyes at me and Ella and Nudge giggled. "I don't want to go dress shopping."

"Look Max, do you even know anything about dresses?" Nudge asked.

"No," I growled.

"She's never worn one," Mum stated and Nudge stared at me with her bright brown eyes. She looked astounded.

"You've never worn a dress?" she asked.

"I didn't plan to either until Iggy made me agree to this." I scowled. "I hope Fang is as uncomfortable as me."

"He's going to be wearing a suit and he wears them for his gigs sometimes," Nudge laughed. "He'll be fine."

"I hate you. All three of you." Mum and Ella rolled their eyes and Nudge just smiled at me.

"We'll make you look gorgeous! I'll even do your hair and make up on the night," she promised.

"Do I have to?" I asked.

"Yes," Ella replied. "Of course you have to. Spring Fling is the dance. Unless you're a senior, in which case, Prom is the dance."

"I hate dances…" I folded my arms and looked at the windows of the dress shops we were passing. "Why do I have to buy a dress now?"

"We're not buying yet," Mum stated. "We're grabbing catalogues and browsing the selections. Look, there are girls from your school. It's what you're meant to do. Right, I'm going to talk to my friend Janice in that formal wear shop about what she recommends and you girls can go and look around." Mum walked into a dress shop and I tried to turn and leave but Ella grabbed my arm.

"Stay with us Max," she stated.

"I really don't want to," I stated.

"You made that clear when your Mum said what we were doing," Nudge replied. I rolled my eyes as they dragged me towards a small boutique. My phone buzzed and I pulled it from my pocket. A text from Fang. Save!

I flipped it and opened the message.

Fang: Hey, watcha doin?

Me: I'm getting dragged into dress shops to decide what I want to wear to that stupid dance.

Fang: Spring Fling is ages away.

Me: Trust me that chain of logic is not working. Can you come and save me? Please?

Fang: Do I have to? I mean… dress shopping!

Me: Why do you think I'm asking?! Please!

Fang: Eh… We'll see…

I growled and snapped my phone shut and tried not to notice Nudge and Ella looking through a book with colours and styles in it.

"Do you want a long or a short dress?" Ella asked. I just glared at her.

"It's not Prom," Nudge stated. "We'll go with a shorter dress but not too short, that wouldn't suit Max."

"Don't I get any say?" I asked.

"You don't want a say," Ella stated. "You wish we weren't doing this."

"That doesn't mean I don't want a say," I replied. In ten minutes Mum had joined us and had a bag full of catalogues.

"Come on girls, we'll go to the food court, get something of the chocolate persuasion and convince Max that she'll look gorgeous in a dress," Mum stated. I rolled my eyes but went with them, glad to be out of the dress boutique.

We found a table outside of a café and Mum ordered us all thick shakes and chocolate cake and she spread out the catalogues on the table. She, Ella and Nudge oohed and ahhed at the dresses while I scowled and wished Fang wasn't so annoying.

Just as Ella opened another magazine and I finished off my second shake, I saw Fang walked through the mall, his hands in his pockets and looking casually hot like he always did. Wait, did I just say that? Forget I said it, it was ridiculous. The other girls' gossiping in the change rooms was getting to my head.

"Fang!" I called and waved. He spotted me and nodded, causing several nearby girls to sigh at the casual way he did it, his fringe flopping over his eyes in a way that every single girl in the school (even the seniors) agreed was 'so cute'.

Fang reached us and smirked at me before looking at Mum.

"Hey Doctor Martinez," he greeted. "Ella, Nudge."

"Hi Fang," Mum said. She fixed me with a suspicious look. "I don't need to ask why you're here."

"Hi Fang!" Nudge and Ella chimed. They were too happy and easy-going to care that I asked Fang to bail me out. They probably knew I'd do it eventually anyway.

"So, dresses?" Fang asked, his eyebrows raised at the multitude of catalogues that my mother had gotten. "Jeez, what is it about dances that do this to people? I mean, it's just Spring Fling. Prom, I understand. It's the graduating dance. It's, dare I say it, kind of special. But Spring Fling happens every year."

"That's what I've been saying," I stated. "Listen to the genius boy."

"I'm not a genius, I just think," Fang stated. He pulled a chair around and faced it backwards to the table and sat down, resting his arms over the back of it and his chin on his arms. "Besides, Max doesn't wear dresses."

"Thankyou," I stated.

"It wouldn't make any difference, she'd still look…" Fang trailed off as I glared at him. He looked at Mum's still half-full thick shake and then back at me warily. Yeah, he didn't want to finish that sentence or I'd pour chocolate ice cream all over his smooth, black hair and new black t-shirt. That I had actually picked out for him… maybe I wouldn't have poured the thick shake on him.

Mum coughed. "Anyway," she stated. "I suppose you both are right but I just wanted to get ahead so that you can get the dress you want."

"I don't want to wear a dress," I stated. Then at the sad looks from Mum, Ella and Nudge I sighed. "I promise I'll pretend to be into this or even try to be into it but can we at least wait until finals are over."

"That's too late, then we only have two weeks!" Mum stated.

"Alright fine, most of my exams are in the first two weeks anyway so one month from the Spring Fling, which is halfway through the finals, I will actually get into this and be helpful about what dress I want, deal? But leave me alone about it until then."

"Okay Max," Mum stated. She scooped the catalogues into her bag. Ella and Nudge looked disappointed. "That's okay, we have other things to do. Your birthday is soon."

"Fifth of April," Fang agreed. "Very soon. So what do you want?"

"Nothing," I stated.

"Oh come on, I know you want something."

"Here we go," Nudge sighed.

"Come on Mum, before it blows up in front of us," Ella insisted. Mum nodded and the three of them hurriedly said goodbye and went to look for my birthday presents. Fang and I stared after them.

"Are we really that bad?" I asked.

"Must be," Fang stated. "Come on, I want to show you what I've got on order for Angel for her birthday." I smiled and stood up, going with Fang to the escalators. We went up a level and he took me to this toy store and showed me a poster on the window.

It was a picture of a beautiful wooden dollhouse. It opened up into a beautiful set of hand-crafted and hand-painted rooms.

"How are you paying for it?" I asked.

"I have a few months, instalments of pay each fortnight," Fang explained. "I got a job this morning at the music store. They pay big bucks, fifteen an hour, less tax."

"Sounds good," I stated.

"Yup and I got that special thing where your first five thousand bucks earned is tax-free so I'll be able to buy Angel's present and yours."

I folded my arms and looked at Fang with my I-ain't-gonna-lose-this-argument look and he fixed me with his it-isn't-going-to-work look.

"I don't want a present," I told him sternly.

"You're getting one whether you like it or not," Fang replied coolly. "Even if it's a CD or something, I'm getting you a present. Wait, I know!" Fang looked away from me.

"Oh, Fang, no, seriously," I said.

"Ah, Max, yes, seriously," he replied. "You can't stop me."

I sighed and turned away. "Right, well, let's just go look at music," I sighed. Fang nodded agreeably, looking very smug, and we went into the huge music store, that Fang now worked at. I knew he was happy about it. He'd be able to give people good advice on the instruments and he knew his way around the CDs better than anyone else. He practically lived in this store, so it was great that they'd let him work here.

"Hey Fang," Matt, the manager said as he walked in. "Hey Max."

"Hi," Fang and I said.

"Oh Max, those 3 Doors Down CDs came in yesterday," Matt said, smiling at me, his blue eyes twinkling. "Want me to grab them?"

"Sure," I replied. Matt was cute. As in, really cute. The senior girls flirted with him all of the time, only because Fang was too young for them, but still I could see why they liked Matt. His sandy hair was short, messy and spiky and his blue eyes were so bright they looked like twin swimming pools. He had a great smile and he had his ear pierced and he had a slight beard that made him look charming in a roguish way.

Fang worshipped his skill with an electric guitar. It was Matt who'd gotten Fang into music and they were pretty close.

Matt brought out the CDs I'd paid for weeks earlier and gave me the bag. I smiled.

"Thanks a bunch for these," I stated.

"Can I guess?" Matt asked. I frowned. "Fang got you into them didn't he?"

"Wow, how'd you know?" Fang asked. Matt laughed.

"You loved that kind of music. Nickleback, Foo Fighters and 3 Doors Down are some of the only modern bands that you like. By the way, want to see the new twelve string?" Matt's eyes were sparkling with excitement and I saw Fang's light up too.

"You got a new one?" he asked.

"Just a few minutes ago. I haven't opened it yet, I was waiting for you."

"Okay, let's see it. Coming Max?" Fang seemed excited about the new guitar so I shrugged.

"Sure, why not?" I asked. "Let's see it." Fang and I followed Matt into the employees part of the store and Matt led us past all of the lounges and to the counter where he'd sat the box. The picture showed a black and blue electric guitar with silver metallic swirls through it and twelve gold strings strung across it.

Matt ran his hands reverently over the box and Fang looked at it eagerly.

"Will you do the honours Fang?" Matt asked.

"It would be my pleasure," Fang replied and he opened the box and took out the case. He and Matt flipped a lock each and opened the case together. They stared at the guitar inside each wearing the kind of look I would expect to see a father wear as they gaze upon their new born baby. Men, what is with them?

"It's better than I thought it would be," Fang stated, gently brushing his fingertips along the shape of the neck and then around the body.

"I know," Matt agreed. "She's a beauty isn't she?"

"Definitely." Fang looked the guitar over and then picked it up. "Can I?" Matt laughed and pulled the cords out of the box and plugged the guitar to an amp. Fang plucked a string and listened to the sound. He sat down to make holding it easier.

"That doesn't sound right," I said. Fang flicked the tuner at the top and tuned each of the strings and then turned it off when he was happy. Then he started playing Blaze of Glory and hummed the words.

"That sounds awesome!" Matt said, his eyes closed. Fang grinned and stopped playing, resting his arm on top of the guitar.

"How much is it?" Fang asked.

"It'll be about six hundred," Matt stated, opening his eyes. "But with an employee discount it's three-sixty."

"You get a forty percent discount?" I asked.

"Yup," Fang stated and then he sighed. "But only after I've worked here for six months, until then, no discount." He sighed and lovingly ran his fingers over the guitar. "Someone will buy it before I can afford it."

"Sorry, mate," Matt said. "But rules are rules."

"Yeah, I know." Fang placed the guitar back in its case and looked at it longingly. "I've been dying for a guitar like that but I guess I'll have to find another one when I can afford it." Matt gave him a sympathetic look as he took Fang and I back into the shop.

Fang went to look at some vinyl records and I stepped over to Matt, a crazy idea in my head. Yeah, Fang was my friend… okay now that was a lie. I'd known him for nearly four months now and we got along so well. We could exchange thoughts with a single look and we got each other so well. Yeah we argued a lot but still, nobody got me like Fang did and I got him really well too. He wasn't my friend. He was my best friend. But I still couldn't believe I was doing this.

"Matt," I whispered. He looked at me.

"What is it?" he asked, following my lead and talking softly.

"How long are you allowed to hold a product?"

"Four months to let people pay it off in fortnightly or monthly payments. Why?" Then he frowned. "You aren't going to are you?"

"He had his heart set on that guitar when you and he spoke about it a month ago," I explained. "His birthday is only four months away pretty much… well in two weeks it'll be about four months and you haven't processed the guitar."

"He's so lucky he has a girl like you," Matt laughed. I rolled my eyes. "Chill, I know you aren't 'his girl' but he's still lucky." I smiled and Matt pushed a piece of paper over to me and I scribbled my phone number down.

"Call me when you process it and then I'll pay it off each month," I told Matt. "Fortnights will be too suspicious. Then I'll pick it up when you've held it for four months."

"Deal," Matt agreed. I rejoined Fang and we left, him still looking kind of down but me feeling very pleased with myself. Fang was going to be so happy on his birthday and that made me ecstatic already.