"Happy" New Years

"Max?" I tried to hear Ella's voice over the loud crowd. "Just come to the party will you? Fang's not here so you won't run into him," she was screaming now. Everyone was busy having a blast at Iggy Jones's New Year's Eve Party. I was enjoying watching Dick Clark Rocking New Year's Eve Bash with Ari and Angel upstairs in my room while my mother had another one of her parties for all the adults in the neighborhood.

"I'm not going," I said into my cell phone. "I'm watching my brother and sister right now and I don't want to be anywhere near kids in school that are not you, JJ, or Nudge." I heard Ella sigh in frustration. "Seriously, not going and I'm too stubborn for you to change my mind. You know that!" Angel was dancing to Hannah Montana's performance at Times Square while Ari covered his hands with his ears.

"Max," Ella pleaded. "For once act like a hormonal teenager and go to a party. You're single and something tells me there might be someone here for you…or maybe you should give up on this break from Fang and call him up." I sighed, no way was that going to happen.

"I'm three seconds from hanging up on you Ella. Stop trying to do anything that involves with me and a guy, especially Fang." My eyes drifted to the bed where I knew the photo was lying underneath. I could almost feel Ella rolling her eyes at me. "Bye Ella, have a happy new year. Tell JJ and Nudge I say the same." I shut my phone closed before I could hear her response. I threw my phone for the second time this month and watched as it fell between the space of my wall and bed…disappearing forever.

By then the Hannah Montana performance (which would later be questioned in the news most likely) was over. Angel was standing there looking up at me. "I think you should go to see Fang," she suggested. "Just to tell him you're still in love with him," she reasoned.

"Yeah," Ari said nodding his head before grabbing a handful of popcorn. "You should do that Max. Besides, the way you spend your New Years is the way you're going to spend the rest of your year."

"Where did you learn this?" I asked.

"Mom was watching The OC again," he stated. I laughed. My mother and her shows, if it wasn't The OC then it was Days of our Lives or more emotionally challenged acting shows. "But seriously, why risk it Max?"

That was a damn good question- why risk it?

Fang and I were celebrating New Years together. We had decided to screw the parties and the big deal counting down while playing a game of beer pong with others for this- relaxing in my bed room, sitting and watching the big ball drop. "Who came up with that?" I asked pointing towards the disco ball that was in times square making it's way down the poll. "Why not just a giant clock?"

"All I know is that a guy named Jacob Star made the first one in 1904," Fang stated. Of all the things to know, he knows about a giant ball dropping and who made it. "And it also signifies the old year dropping away for the new one." I raised an eyebrow, my first New Year's Eve with Fang as a couple and I get a history lesson.

I laughed and he raised an eyebrow. "You're cute," I mumbled before giving him a quick kiss. Down stairs loud voices from my mother's party could be heard screaming and cheering after the countdown had finished (ever notice drunk people scream a lot).

"HAPPY NE-" I jumped away from Fang as my mother's loud voice echoed through the room. She stopped and stared. I could tell she was using the door as support. A look of disgust spread across her face. "Max," she hissed, "What are you doing?" But then, Angel and Ari were there, telling her to go back to her party. I sighed, completely happy to see her gone, and rested my head on Fang's shoulder.

"Sorry," I muttered. Fang ran an understanding hand through my hair.

"Next year, we'll go to my place," Fang promised. Next year…my heart skipped a beat.

"I'm going to his place," I decided. I grabbed a blue hoodie to slip it on. Angel and Ari were smirking with their success. I picked up my keys to the car and decided to sneak out through my window which was perfectly next to an easy to climb tree. You may ask why I was sneaking out like this…well, I wasn't about to go bother my mother's party while she's been drinking. All hell would break loose if I did. "Wish me luck," I called to Angel and Ari who were sticking their heads out the window to watch me. I needed all the luck I could get…I was performing a very unlike Max move.

I turned on the ignition and pulled out of the driveway. Sixteen minutes to midnight…one chance to make it right or else, I'd be spending my entire year all by myself- if what Ari said was true. I knew one think- Losing Fang forever was not a risk I was willing to take.

Fang's POV

I had my hands in my pockets, trying to listen in on the conversation, which was hard because I could only hear one side of it. "Max?" I heard Ella say into her cell phone, one hand pressed against her ear. "Just come to the party will you? Fang's not here." Of course, Ella was lying because I was standing right here off to the side of Iggy Jones's party. Technically, I wouldn't have been welcomed here if the school didn't know that Max and I were on a break.

So, I had come dressed in my black and wearing my emotionless expression. I honestly have never felt so emo in my life and I wasn't even emo. It was just the fact that being around these people without Max, it felt so pointless and ridiculous. But I was here for Max, which is why I stayed.

With a little help from her friends (which sounds like a parody on a Beatles song), Ella had called up Max to convince her to come. It was a cruel sort of plan that Max at first would probably hate. But I knew the only way to convince her that we had to be together was to keep fighting, to keep seeing her. Max was stubborn, it was an asset and flaw for her at the same time, but I was also just as stubborn. Eventually, Max won't be able to fight anymore and she'll give in.

A hand wrapped around my arm and pulled me into the dancing crowd. Not one neuron in my brain considered this to be a good thing. I saw before me, Brigid dancing away in front of me as if I danced. Hell no- that is one thing I do not do. I went to get a good football-field sized shape from her but she grabbed me by my hips and pulled me in. "Come on, dance. You know the best way to get over heartbreak is to find love again." Oh god, I bet if Max was here, she would be initiating the gag reflexes right now. I placed my hands on Brigid's shoulders and pushed her away. No way was I going to dance with her, be with her, or stand next to her in any way ever.

I could hear her pout as I turned my back to her and made my way back to Ella. "Is she coming?" I asked. My question was quickly answered when Ella gave me this sad face. The answer was a no, she wasn't coming at all. Damn it Max, why did she have to be so stubborn? Then again, I chose to fall in love with her. I can't just love certain things about Max, with her it's all or nothing. I definitely chose the all as you can see.

Our second New Year's together, it was similar to the first in the sense that we were together and that it was a secret, which no one else could possibly know. We chose my house this time. My parents were never around. Max had found that interesting. She was sitting up next to me on my bed. I was rubbing the space between her shoulder blades, which she absolutely loves (it's cute really). "So why are your parents never around? Do they avoid seeing each other as much as possible like Jeb and my mom?"

Although Jeb was technically her dad and her favorite parent, Max always called him Jeb. I had met him once and he had actually approved of me, which is a weird thing for dads to do- accept the daughter's boyfriend so easily. I sighed as I tried to explain to Max, "They love each other…but they never intended on having me." I guess that was a good enough explanation. My parents loved each other so much they didn't want to share it with anyone else. I was an unexpected dent in that so they barely stayed in the house once I was old enough to take care of myself while they worked, went on vacation, and stayed together forever as if they never had a son. Don't feel sorry for me, I prefer it that way too. It was the reason why I was so silent really, I just never had much talking to do.

"Hey, I still remember," Max said, moving on from the subject, "Jacob Star, 1904, to symbolize the old year dropping away for the new one." I smiled at her while she gave me this wide victorious grin. Max never ceased to amaze me. She wasn't like the other girls, if her life sucked she rarely complained about it unlike girls complaining about shit like their broken nails. Max placed her hand on my knee and brought me back from my thought on how great she was. "What?" she asked.

"Nothing," I replied. What can I say? One-word responses are my specialty and Max totally had the hots for me when I did that. She laughed as if she knew what I was thinking and leaned down to kiss me. Sometimes, friends try to get together and its all awkward but not for Max and me. This was perfect with the way our mouths moved in time together and how her hands moved up to my hair just as mine moved down to wrap around her waist.

I heard the unforgettable sound of a door opening but we didn't have enough time to break away. I saw my mother standing there. People always said she looked like me, and I could tell now because Max, who had never seen my parents before, was exchanging glances between me and my mom. "Oh, hello Fang." My mother stated, "Just letting you know I was only here to grab my scarf and leave. So sorry to intrude. Hello, I'm Fang's mother."

Max was blushing and sitting on the other side of the bed away from me. She lifted a hand casually and said, "Hi Mrs. Loretts. I'm Maximum Ride." I saw my mother tilt her head at the confusion of Max's name. I hid my hand in my face, hoping and wishing that my mother wouldn't go there with Max's name. I hated hearing it from the guys in the locker rooms, especially when I couldn't defend her without raising up the question of us.

"Use protection dear," she said before closing the door. I watched Max's shocked expression. We waited several minutes until I heard the familiar sound of the car backing out of the driveway. Had I seriously been so engulfed in Max that I hadn't heard them arrive? Oh god- I had a problem.

"Sorry," I mumbled.

Max shrugged and I saw that familiar look in her eyes, she was thinking. Sometimes, I swore she had a voice in her head and they were having a conversation. "What do you think? I'm mean, it's clearly unfortunate to have a parent walk in on you once on New Year's Eve but what is it called when you get caught twice by a parent on two separate New Year's Eves?" A sign, I thought solely to myself, that we should tell people and let them know that Max and Fang were together. But of course, I wouldn't tell Max that at the moment. It was New Year's and we had a lot more kissing to do before the count down even began.

"I'm going to her," I finally decided. If she wasn't going to come to the party under the false pretenses that I wasn't here than I was going after her. JJ and Nudge, who had been witnessing this entire thing, clapped and cheered me on. Just then, as I stepped into the crowd, I heard a voice.

"Like to dance?" I turned around and sure enough, there was Iggy (who wasn't staring at me for those of you who jumped to that conclusion). He was holding his hand out to Ella as the music switched to a slow song. My jaw almost dropped open but as you probably already know, I have a great sense of self-control.

Ella nodded her head and I almost lost focus of what I was doing. Maybe Iggy was moving on, which would be great for Max and I. Max- oh right! I had to go find her, there was only two minutes to midnight- enough to get to her house. I ran down the street to where I parked my car only to find it was block in. I could care less, I kept running towards her house.

Max, I kept telling my aching muscles from running. My pounding heart in time with my thoughts- Max…Max…Max…Max…Max…you get my point. My breath was a thick cloud pressing into my face as my hair was pushed away by the wind. I could hear the voices along the streets n their houses as they started the countdown.

30…29…28…27…

I pushed forward hoping to make it there on time. The thought of seeing her, the idea that she might run to me with her arms open, the very sense of feeling her lips on mine, it was enough to keep going.

19…18…17…16…

I found her house only to see that the entire bottom half was lit up with the familiar lights and people of her mother's New Year Party. I snuck behind easily to the back yard and lifted my head up to the one window that was lit up. I could almost picture her there, lying on the bed dressed in a jeans and probably a blue hoodie- she always wore blue during the cool of the late December winters whether she did it on purpose or not. I pulled out my cell phone and texted to her.

3…2…1-

Happy New Year!

…look out your window.

Fang.

I won't even tell you the number of minutes I waited only to find she didn't come to her window. I sighed and decided now would be a good time to see if my car was open. There was no skip in my step and the fact that I had run the path in about two minutes said something when I walked it back in a matter of more than four minutes. I slipped into my car, which was still blocked by the rest of the others, and found myself going nowhere.

"Happy New Year Max," I muttered to no one but myself.

Max's POV

He wasn't there. He wasn't home. I sat in my car staring up at the window that was his room. No sign of life.

3…2…1…

Happy New Year.

12:01

12:02

12:03…

…12:13

I finally turned on the ignition. I stole one last look up at Fang's room.

"Happy New Year Fang," I muttered to no one but myself.

so... what did you think? The facts about the Times Square Ball is true although don't hold me for my word, it was on a website and it was the best and clearest definition I could find. I especially liked this chapter. Hope you did to. I'll update after just 1 more review is posted and for being such wonderful people, I'll give you the title of the next chapter. It will be called "Rumors and Secret 3".

Watching Great Gatsby for school research,

flyerac1029