I do not own Maximum Ride. I think I'll try to take over the world instead.

I was pacing around my room listening to the cd that Gazzy had made me for my birthday while Nudge pieced together various outfits from our "Day of Shopping". She had decided to use her gift cards and shopping opportunity yesterday.

"How did I get myself into this?" I muttered for a third time that day. It was Friday and Dylan was collecting on his date.

I examined the note in my hand again to make sure I had read it right. Dylan had left it next to my alarm clock while I was taking a nap earlier.

Dear Max,

I'm out running errands for tonight, but I'll be back at 6 to pick you up. Bring an appetite for dinner and don't worry, I told Nudge no dress. You can thank me later. I can't wait to see you.

Love,

Dylan

The whole note unnerved me. Running errands? It was a date, what possible errands could he need to run? Dinner…well, that sounded okay actually. No dress…that was a plus, but he couldn't wait to see me and he signed the note with love. That was no good. I was in no way, shape or form ready for this.

"Okay, so I want you to put on this tank top and these jeans. Oh, and these slip on shoes. They're super cute and pretty comfy. You totally lucked out about the dress thing, but Dylan said maybe later, which is good because I picked out a really cute one for you and I have the perfect shoes too! Oh here, don't forget the necklace!" Nudge reminded me putting the birthday gift from Dylan around my neck. And he was already planning another date…we'll see about that. Not gonna happen, I resolved mentally.

I filed down the hall realizing Dylan would be here any minute if he wasn't already. Sure enough, there he was standing in the kitchen. I tried to play it cool, but I can't lie. I was checking him out and taking in his appearance. He looked gorgeous.

His blonde hair was still messy and falling in his face. His collared shirt matched his sparkling blue eyes and showed off his muscles. Even though I'd lived with him for a year now, I'd never seen him smile that big before, not ever. It was hard not to stare.

"One for the bird kid photo album!" Iggy called, but it was too late. I'd already seen the flash go off and heard the click, and despite Iggy's blindness I knew the picture would come out perfectly.

"You ready to get going?" Dylan asked with a smile. I shrugged, as ready as I would ever be. We said bye to the Flock and flew out the back door.

"What are we doing here?" I wondered out loud. I hadn't been on many dates but this one was the weirdest one so far.

We were standing outside of the hardware store when I felt Dylan grab my hand. I

"You wanted me to paint the walls in my room, so here we are." He explained leading me in.

"Um, in case you've had a temporary case of amnesia, I lost the bet, remember?" I reminded him, irritation in my voice. I hated losing.

"Oh, I remember beating you…" he smiled, "but I think it's time for a fresh start."

I thought it over for a second and realized what he was talking about even if he wouldn't say it out loud. I'm sure Dylan didn't like being reminded of Fang's presence even by something as small as the black walls of his room all the time.

Before I realized it Dylan and I were in the paint section looking at paint samples.

"Hot cocoa." He murmured, pulling out a dark brown square.

"Needs marshmallows." I retorted with a gross face.

"California oak…" He offered, pulling out a greyish green square and passing it my way.

"It looks more like pine sap…" I rejected another one.

I pulled out a dark bluish gray. "Stormy night?" I asked passing him the square.

"Kind of drab." He commented. We kept bouncing paint colors off of each other, holding onto a couple that were maybes.

"I like this one. It's 'Cobalt'." Dylan commented .

"That sounds…manly." I peeked over his shoulder to see a bright, vivid blue.

"I approve. Let's go…wait, how are we getting this back to the house?" I wondered out loud.

"Under control. Jeb is picking it up in an hour and taking it to the house. He'll also be checking to make sure that the house is still in one piece, dinner has been fixed and that everyone has taken a shower and is getting ready for bed."

Huh. Dylan had everything under control. It actually wasn't surprising though. This is what he'd done since Fang left. He made sure nothing blew up, dinner was fixed, and kept the kids in order when I couldn't do it. I'd gone through my biggest display of weakness, which you know how much I love, and Dylan not only saw it all, he pulled my weight. It was embarrassing to look that weak, but because he'd helped so much I trusted him. I mean, as much as I trusted anyone.