A/N: Hey guys, sorry it's been months. I didn't really have time to upload because I had some family issues...

I can't go on fanfic at home either, because my parents have blocked the site...irritating, I know. I can only get it done in school.

Anyway, I hope you like this chapter. It's kind of a cool down chapter after all the drama, so I hope you like it.

XD

Disclaimer: Maximum Ride is not mine. James Patterson got there before me. Damn.

I wake up screaming. Again. I swallow trying to get my breath back and calm myself down. Usually, I don't get nightmares. This has been the third time this week, and I've been losing sleep because of it. Ugh. It's always the same thing. Kaleidoscopic images of emerald green, eyes like chips of arctic ice, roaring flames, pitiful screams... (And the occasional flour baby).

Once I've calmed myself down, I shower and change, and chew on an energy bar whilst booting up my laptop. I feel guilty as soon as I log on. 22 missed calls from Mom. Damn.

It's not like I'm avoiding her intentionally… Oh, screw it. I'm avoiding her, because I can't look at her. Ugh, I close my eyes, rubbing my temples, recalling the call last night.

**********************************Flashback****************************************

I fall into my chair, exhausted. Note to self: Never ask Fang to tutor you in German, EVER. That boy could work for Satan. I rub my eyes tiredly, before deciding to do something that's been on my mind. I call my mom. Her face pops up onto the screen, big, washed out, and altogether so real that it makes me want to cry. Over pixels. Am I PMSing or what?

She smiles at the screen, tucking her ruffled brown hair back from her lined face. Is she tan?

"Hey mom,"

"Hey sweetheart, you called," she says.

"Yeah mom, how are you?"

"I'm fine, how are you? How's school? I hope you're actually learning something there, because I've heard from Yvette that these college girls-"

"Mom, chill, I'm fine,"

"I know…I wish you were here though, it's just too amazing Maxie. My god, the sausages are to die for, and the weather! It's boiling outside, I could fry an egg and-" I forgot that she's in Germany.

"Valenzia? Who eez eet zat you are talking to Val?" I hear a groggy male voice. I jump at the proximity, before realising that my room is empty. I look back at the screen to see a man leaning in at the computer screen over my mom's shoulder. Oh my god, this cannot be happening. My mom's face flushes red, as she fiddles with the lilac neck of her pyjama top. The man leaning over her shoulder is still looking at the computer, wondering why there's a slack jawed teenager gawking at them from the screen. He's attractive in a strange way, with a wide jaw, hairless, pale, wide face, and long fair lashes, thick enough to catch dust. Pale eyes gleam from under thick curtains of lashes. He has a long, aquiline nose, with a long face, and has a cold, hungry look, that- to me- seems thawed when he touches my mom (or Val's)'s shoulder. He seems like the kind of person who would choose his food from the fish tank, watch it live, then eat it. And yet only one fact registers with me- he's shirtless.

"Right gotta go mom, have fun," I say, breathless, slamming the lid of my laptop shut. I lean back in my swivel chair, breathing fast. Then I cringe, as I remember my last words. 'Have fun', yeah, because that's reallywhat I want…

********************************* End of Flashback***********************************

I had just fallen asleep last night, too overwhelmed to actually think. Now, I just feel slightly nauseous. She was with a shirtless man, at 6:30 in the morning. That does not bode well. Especially when she's alone with him in Germany.

I know that she has a boyfriend, but somehow, I expected them to be 'taking it slow', or something like that. Not jumping into bed with each other.

Ok, that's unfair, but still. It's not every day that you see your mum in bed with a creepy guy with an awesome accent. (What country does he come from?)

It's a shock, to say the least, and I don't know how I feel about it. I don't know what to say- but I don't think I have a right to.

Thump. Ow. My head falls off my arm onto the desk. I wince, lifting my head, looking around. Great- Mr Milbern doesn't seem to have noticed. I gingerly rub my head, and sighing, lean back in my seat. I turn to my right, and immediately wish that I hadn't. Fang is sitting beside me, arms crossed behind his head, jean clad legs stretched out long under the desk. He doesn't fit in with the scene. He looks more like he belongs on the front cover of some glossy headliner. Life is unfair.

He tilts his head to look at me, and smirks. Greeeaat. I now vaguely resemble a tomato. The blush still rising high in my cheeks, I sink my head into my arms, still crossed on the desk. Ugh. Mom troubles aside, all the woes of being a teenager still hound me. First kiss.

I sound like a 13 yr old- unsure of how to act around her crush. Fang's gone back to normal…mostly. Smirking, sarcastic, witty, silent, emo-y hottie boy as he is. WTF did I just think?!

Ok, scratch that. He's gone back to being a good friend. No hottie boy, no awesomeness, no amazing eyes. Woah, woah, woah, get a hold on yourself girl! You did not mention awesomeness and 'amazing eyes' before! You're adding to the list! List of what? List of why you think Fang is hot and why you like him and- Mental mind- shut up.

I turn to look at the 'hottie boy' with the 'amazing eyes' next to me. He smiles at me, eyes twinkling. I shiver. Right. Maybe maths is a better subject to concentrate on. Yep. Good lord, anything that doesn't make me turn into a giant blushing tomato is sweet bliss at this point. That's right, bring it on decimals, try and make me blush. Imagine dividing decimals on Fang's- EWWW! MIND- SHUT UP BEFORE I DIE OF THE RED HEAT IN MY CHEEKS….ass cheeks.

AAAAAAHHHHHHHHHH!

RIP

Maximum Ride

Cause of Death: Spontaneous combustion and Teenage angst

God, pity me.

My lack of sleep in recent days has been due to a number of reasons.

Reasons - Nightmares.

Classic nightmares that chase away the sleep most nights of the week, meaning that I wake up sweating and screaming and generally too terrified to get myself back off the floor.

Example numero uno.

'Flashes of emerald fire flicker behind my eyelids, in the overwhelming darkness. Cold, churning seas crash against glaciers in some bleak, distant land. The fire erupts suddenly, filling the darkness with green light, and I hear screams. My own screams. Echoing in the darkness, screaming Ella's pleas. I'm being raped, amidst the crashing waves and flickering fire, but there's no one left to hear my screams.'

Example numero dos

'I hum to myself, moving about in the kitchen. I open the kitchen cupboard, and scream. Flour babies. Everywhere. I scream, frantically pulling open drawers and cupboards and doors to send sacks of flour piling into the kitchen. Pink lace and frills emerge from the sea of flour babies, and there stands Wheat, in all her floury glory.

"Hewo mommy," she says, her voice mechanical and bass.

"I want to make cookies. Will you make me cookies mommy? I weally wike cookies." Oh my god, Wheat, I'm sorry!...

"I have a secret to tell you mommy…."

The pink frilly flour sack leans down to my ear.

"I'm…an Iggy"

"NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!" '

Reason number two- Nudge.

Nudge is sweet, and funny, and caring, and an amazing friend…but at times I just want to stick a sock down her throat.

Example

At the sleepover…

'

"Goodnight Nudge," I say, turning off the light.

"Goodnight Max,"

There's silence for a few moments, and I take the opportunity to snuggle deeper into my pillow. I sigh in content.

"I wonder why they say goodnight."

I groan.

"I mean, I wonder where the tradition came from. I get that you're trying to be nice by wishing for someone to have a good night, but doesn't it sound kind of perverted? I mean, 'have a good night doing whatever you do at night!' It just sounds so dodgy! Or maybe it just sounds dodgy to me…maybe it's because I'm spending too much time with Iggy! OMG! Am I? I don't even know! I don't think I am….but then again, how would I know? I'm the one doing it! Well, I would know that I'm spending time with Iggy, but would I know that I'm spending too much time with him? I don't know! GAHHH! OMG, It's like, sooooo late, we should really sleep, I mean, we have a long day tomorrow,"

Phew.

"That's actually really weird,"

God dammit.

"I mean, every day is 24 hours long, it's certified. So how can one day be longer than the other? I mean, it actually will feel like a short day tomorrow because we have school, and I love school, because I can be with my friends, and when you do things you enjoy, time goes faster and the day seems shorter- but shouldn't the day actually feel longer because I'm doing more work? Thing is, it should, but it doesn't. I wonder if length is just perceptive, but OMG, I sound like a science nerd. I don't want to be totally stereotypical and bitchy but I really think that I sound nerdy, and no offence, but no one wants to sound nerdy. I wonder, do nerds know that they sound nerdy? Or do they just think that they sound smart? Isn't that really stupid of them- not to know what they sound like? OMG, nerds are secretly dumb! Or are they? They might actually know it, but just be nerdy anyway, but that's really stupid! So they are dumb. That's so weird! I never thought of it like that! I wonder, does anyone else? Think like that, I mean. Goddammit I'm being ambiguous again! Yes! But I'm going off on a tangy- a tanen- a tangent. That's it. A tangent. I'm going off on one. Does anyone else think like I do? Well they can't! Teachers are smarter, so if someone says

'the economy is the state of money in a country' blah blah blah, cue the dictionary definition- they would go 'aaah, but no, you see, a better definition would be-' whereas, I would go 'huh?'. That proves that our brains don't work the same way. Scientific experiment complete! Yay! Mr Bertrand will be so proud of me! SLEEPOVERS ROCK!" '

Reason number three- Homework.

Teachers feel the need to have someone else take over the night shift, of making my life hell, and so they introduced homework, to make sure that we do something 'productive' overnight. Sure, by all means, make me do an exercise or two. BUT A WHOLE DAMN ESSAY WORTH 3 A4 PAGES ON THE NEATIVES OF USING FERTILISERS?

I have boatloads of homework from every subject because apparently, teachers seem to forget that we have lives outside of school. They also, conveniently seem to disregard the fact that I have other subjects every day too, meaning that I get homework from every class. This means that you do not have to set me enough work to last me the whole evening, as other teachers can help you with this.

I do more work outside of school than during lessons. WHERE IS THE SANITY ON THIS PLANET? LEAD ME TO IT O DEMONS!

Reason number four- bad experiences I have had with beds that prevent me from sleeping.

Jumping off the bed when I was four, thinking I could fly, and fracturing my wrist.

Jumping off the bed again when I was six, again, thinking my wings would have grown by this time, and spraining my ankle.

Getting rugby tackled onto my bed aged 8 by an aggressive cousin, making me hit my head against the bedpost, and cracking it open.

Jumping off the bed aged 14 because I was a loon, fracturing two toes and a finger.

Being confined to bed aged 15 because of late chickenpox.

Bed: Connotations with sex, traumatisation through linkage to the current feature of my PSHE class: Sex education.

Bed: Connotations to sex, leading to my awkward reactions to any males attempting conversation.

Ella's blackmailing preventing me from sleeping properly due to stress and nightmares.

The fire happened while I was in bed.

Intense make out session with Fang on a bed renders me unable to sleep without turning red.

The list goes on…

And this has been,

Max's insomnia Mania.

Stay tuned folks, for more. Yay.

Not.

A/N: HOW WAS IT? REVIEW ME!