HEY ALL! So I know its not super long, but I wanted to get one more chapter in before 2011! Happy New Year everyone!

-Lil Q

Chapter ten:

I took a deep breath. I was standing outside the door of my first period class, Advanced Literature.

Show time.

The second bell had yet to ring so I walked in, and chose a desk to sit in. Back corner, where people had to turn around to stare at me.

And then shrink back into their seats once they saw my death glare. I flipped up my hood so it was harder for people to see me.

I watched with nonchalance as the rest of the class filed in. I noted that I saw none of the jocks come in.

Then, to my horror, I saw Iggy and Fang enter the class. Being surprised would be mean. Being surprised would be mean. I chanted.

Iggy saw me and waved enthusiastically. I managed a sort of half-smirk in his direction. Which is kind of like a quarter smile. Whatever.

After the class had filed in a short, stocky woman with greying hair and little spectacles came in.

She cleared her throat and immediately the class silenced.

Her voice was smooth and practiced; the kind of voice that must read aloud a lot. "Welcome to Advanced Literature of senior year. As most of you probably know, I am Mrs. Weber and have probably taught your English classes since freshman year." I looked around the class at the students, and it appeared that everything this teacher was saying was true, everyone in this class had been with the same students and the same teacher since freshman year for advanced literature, and it was probably the same with the rest of the advanced classes. Great. "Although, this year we have a new addition to our graduating class, and I hope you will welcome him with the same respect you currently show to your peers. Is Mr. Maximum Ride here?" She asked in conclusion, scanning the class for anyone out of place. The room was dead silent with the exception of Iggy's suppressed chortles at this woman's ignorance.

I tentatively raised my hand.

Mrs. Weber raised her spectacles up the bridge of her nose and said, "Ah, Mr. Ride welcome to our class, but you should know, hoods are not allowed." After which she looked at me expectantly.

I shrugged indifferently, flipped my hood down, and shook out my long sandy hair. That was when the talking started. Murmurs and whispers flooded through the classroom as I looked at the befuddled educator keenly.

She once again adjusted her glasses and said "Oh, I'm so sorry, Miss Ride." She looked around the room flustered while she spoke. Iggy's snickering was apparent now.

Mrs. Weber cleared her throat, and the whole class silenced. "Now, I will read the attendance, and when I call your name say "here" or "present" and come up to the front to pick up a text book."

*-*-8_8_

History class preceded much the same as Literature, the teacher, at first looking at my dame and calling me Mr. Ride, apologizing profusely after I raised my hand, and the murmurs of the students after.

After History class, it was lunch. Thank God, I was famished.

I had just gotten out of the cliché long cafeteria line, and was heading towards and empty table when my name was called, twice. Iggy and Ella.

"Hey Max!"

"Max over here!"

They were sitting at the same table so I made my way over to them. Both Nudge and Fang were also there, along with three other people I didn't know. A girl, about my age was there, with light chocolate brown hair and hazel eyes. She was holding hands with a boy, again about our age with thick dark brown hair and green eyes.

And then there was her. I am not a believer in love at first sight, I mean those things take time, you have to wait for trust to build. But oh boy, do I believe in hate at first sight.

And after seeing this girl my opinion of it multiplied by about a thousand. She had flaming red hair and beady green eyes. She was pale and wore very- ahem- revealing clothing.

I don't judge people on looks; I'd like to think I'm not that shallow, I was judging her on what she was doing. She was practically sitting on Fang's lap with her ankle entwined with his and her hand wrapped around his neck trying to pull him even closer. I almost snickered at the look of discomfort on his face.

But my emotionless mask was still firmly in place as I looked at Iggy and Ella expectantly.

"Do you want to sit with us?" Ella asked, her blue eyes warm.

My eyebrows furrowed together out of habit when someone was nice to me. "Um, sure. Thanks." I sat down strategically. As far away from sitting next to Fang without sitting next to Nudge who would talk my ear off. This put me beside the girl with brown hair.

"So guys, this is my, um, foster-sister, Max." Real sister, actually. Ella said. "Max, this is Sam," she pointed at the boy with brown hair and green eyes "J.J.," the girl sitting next to me, "And Lisa." She pointed to the girl wrapped around Fang.

Sam and J.J. smiled at me, while Lisa completely ignored me, which I was fine with.

"So, Max, where are you from?" J.J. asked. Alright Max, show time. Let's see how much of a teenager you can be.

"I've lived in lots of places. Most recently, though, Washington." I said.

"Wow, I bet it's wierd going to one of the places with the most precipitation in America to one of the places with the least." Sam said. I decided I liked him, he seemed non-pigheaded and smart.

I shrugged. "Arizona has nothing on Africa."

"You went to Africa?" Ella asked. "You never told me that."

"Never came up."

"How long were you there?" J.J. asked.

"I lived there for two months. My parents are... were... um, missionaries." Yeah that worked.

"OMG so you're like a world traveller Max? That's so cool! I'd totally love to see France! And Milan! Get the latest fashion like, straight from the runway. Or Italy, the shoes! Where else have you been?"Yep, you guessed it, Nudge asked with wide eyes.

Jeez, as soon as I start talking a little they expct me to give a speech! "Um, Newcastle, England, Sydney, Australia, Dublin, Ireland, um, I spent some time in Germany, but I'm not sure the city, all over Africa, I was in Canada for awhile in a small town outside Vancouver, I've been all over the states..." I trailed off.

"Yeah, well, I was in the Caribbean for two weeks last summer." Lissa suddenly said, in a horrible nasally, high pitched voice.

"Never been there." I muttered looking down.

Lisa starting ranting on about all the thing she did in the Caribbean, all the guys that asked her out, telling Fang how lucky he was.

J.J. smiled at me kindly. "Don't mind Lisa," she whispered. "Its not you; if anyone steals her "spotlight" she decides to fght to get it back."

I gave her that same quarter smile thing I gave Iggy earlier. "thanks."

Nudge interrupted Lisa by asking me "So Max, what did you do in all those places?" Lisa glowered at me, while everyone was leaning in slightly to hear what I had to say.

I'll admit, I panicked. See if your stuck living in a small dog crate for any part of your life, let alone my record of two years you would develop a bit of claustrophobia.

So right now I felt like a cornered animal; my only thought: get out.

I pulled back slightly and shook a bit of hair in front of my face. My Dad had called it a defence mechanism I had developed in the School.

"Um, actually I gotta go, I need to, um, text my uncle." Wow. That was the best I could do? I really need to re-teach myself how to lie; four years of down time with my dad had made me soft.

I slung my bag on my shoulder, got up and dumped my lunch in the trash, my apetite lost.

Out of the corner of my eye I saw Ella's friends with various levels of confusion on their faces. Except Lisa, she was smug. I heard Ella mutter to Iggy "Something's wrong, she said she could only talk to her uncle when he called her." I quickened my pace to the cafeteria doors with my face heating up. I went into the closest girl's bathroom I could find and put a paper towel soaked with cold water to my forhead, and attempted to calm myself down.

This day had so far been a total bust. My teachers pointed me out, I didn't fit in, I couldn't even talk to a few people without having a panic attack, for God's sake!

Great, now I'm worked up again. I thought to myself.

"Max?" was called into the bathroom, and Ella walked in. Her eyes widened when she saw the paper towel on my forehead. "Are you okay?"

I executed my famous shrug of indifference.

She walked up to me and asked "What's wrong? Are you sick?"

I decided the truth would fit best here, she would twll her friends to back off and not be all wierded out by me. Hopefully. I rubbed he back of my neck. "I'm sorry for ditching back there." I nodded to out side the door.

"it's okay, they don't take it personal, they just want to know if you're okay. So do I." Ella said this with suxh compassion and kindness in her eyes I couldn't help but be reminded of my Dad.

I cold practically hear him saying "Don't be afraid to let a few in." Why not Ella? Or Valen- Mom?

I mean they were my freaking family!

"I'm just really claustrophobic." I told her. "And when all of you were crowding around me..." I trailed off.

"Oh." She said. Great, is she wierded out? She smiled at me. "How come?"

"Bad experience with a dog crate." I muttered instinctively. I froze. Did I actually just say that.

But Ella just continued like nothing happened. "That sucks." She said.

I snorted. "You have no idea."

Ella smiled. "Well do you want to come back with me?"

I smirked and shook my head. "I think I've made a fool out of myself enough for today, I think I'll wander around and try to find my next class."

"Sure."

"And Ella?" I asked. She looked at me expectantly. I smiled,a bit uncertainly, but it was a full smile, first one to someone here above the age of six. "Thanks."

She looked surprised. "For what?"

"For caring."

Ella grinned. "Anytime."

*-*-8_8_

I walked into the science lab hesitantly. In science class you had to work with a partner, and I doubt anyone would be willing to be mine.

"Hey Max, over here!" Well, maybe not.

I walked over to Iggy who was sitting at a lab table with one side empty.

"Um, yeah?"

"Do you want to be my partner?" He asked.

"Um, why me?" I was honestly curious, its not like I had been outright nice to him before.

"I figured you were badass enough to be my partner. Everyone else in this class are wimps." I saw some people in the class look at him nervously.

He rolled his eyes just because a few of my partners got their eyebrows burnt off doesn't mean its necessarily going to happen again."

My eyes widened in surprise. "What happened?"

He pretended to be very interested in a vile on the desk "Just a few minor explosions..."

I smiled and sat down next to him. He looked at me in surprise. "Sounds like my kind of thing, I'm in."

He grinned. Maybe these people weren't as bad as I thought.

*-*-8_8_

Iggy and I walked to our next class, gym. This school was so small that they didn't have different gym classes for different genders. I had to admit, I was a little excited to whip some major ass.

I went into a stall to change into the gym clothes in the blue and white school colors. I had ordered two sizes to big for the shirt so it wouldn't hug close to my back, exposing my wings. Most of the girls shirts were already too big with the correct size so they tied them back. Yet another way I stick out.

I stepped into the gym and was surprised by J.J. skipping over to me. "Hey Max!"

"Hi." Wow. Creative.

"You skipped out pretty fast at lunch, are you okay?" she asked with concern in her eyes. She seemed pretty nice, too.

"Yeah, sorry about that, I needed to text my uncle."

She nodded. "Look! There's Iggy and Fang!" she said as they walked over to us, well Iggy did he was kind of dragging Fang.

"Hey guys!" she said "Are you ready for Coach Jefferson? Sam said he made his class run 8 laps of the track for the period!"

Iggy winced. And Fang looked calm. "You like running?" I asked him.

His eyes widened about half a millimetre at the fact that I was talking to him. He collected himself and shrugged. I almost snorted; that was my shrug.

J.J. answered for him instead, God she was almost as chatty as Nudge. "Yeah, Fang has been the captain of the track team since sophomore year."

Just then we heard a horrible screech of "NICKY!" and Fang pinched the bridge of his nose between his thumb and forefinger.

I couldn't help it: I snickered. The boys looked at me in surprise (I was getting that a lot), right, they hadn't hear me laugh before.

Before they could comment on it Fang was tackled. He didn't move an inch but he was still tackled.

Lisa had her arms wrapped around his neck and was sucking his face in a second. Iggy made an 'ick' face and a wretching sound.

Lisa detached herself and glowered at him. "Mind your own beeswax James." I scoffed at her attempted insult.

She was about to say something to me when a balding man with a big gut, a baseball cap and a whistle came out and said "Attention! We'll be starting out the semester reviewing your fitness, so outside, 8 laps, hustle!"

Groans came from about the whole class. But on the inside I smiled. This was going to be fun.