Nudge POV:
I watched Max as she struggled to find the words to say. My body jumped as Iggy moved a little closer to me, not being able to see Max's death stares that were practically burning a hole in his face. I squirmed under Max's gaze, feeling like an eleven year old again, being punished for dying Fang's hair blue or something stupid like that.
The others were laughing by the fire, Collin occasionally glancing over to us, concern in his dark eyes. Iggy started to casually devour the marshmallows he had left over in his pockets, nonchalantly slinging his hands across the back of his head, yawning. Max rolled her brown eyes, looking towards me in exasperation, trying to figure me out.
'Look, Nudge...' She started, breaking off as her words failed her again. Her frown creased in concentration as she looked away, I could practically see the wheels turning in her head, as she stared at me with that look again. The one that screamed change! and made me want to turn back the clock to the day I was "killed." I could see Collin itching to run over, and even Fang was looking slightly curious as he poked the dying fire.
Max started to shout at Iggy, her hands gesturing wildly, but I wasn't listening. I was so confused about everything; my mind felt like it was being fried, my head pounding like crazy. I caught Collin's eye, my tortured ones appealing to his dark pupils, begging him to come save me. He took it the wrong way, immediately jumping up, ignoring Fang's attempts to stop him. Collin marched over and tapped Max on the shoulder, his hair damp and tousled. Max stopped in mid rant, turning to find Collin staring at her.
'What?' Her voice was tense and with ice, her eyes daring Collin to say something. He side-stepped her, his attention only on Nudge.
'Are you okay, Nudge?' I looked away, tears streaking down my dark-skinned cheeks, embarrassed that I was showing weakness in front of anyone but Collin. 'Nudge... it's okay if you don't wanna deal with this. Everyone will understand.' I looked up at Collin with tear-filled eyes at him, my shoulders silently shaking.
Iggy shoved Collin out of the way, putting his long arms around me and pulling my shaking body into a hug. I didn't resist, melting into his arms, crying softly until I finally pulled away, my sobs reduced to slight hiccups. My red rimmed eyes flickered over to the rest of the Flock who had come over hesitantly, giving Fang a small smile to assure him that everything was okay – he looked like he was about to punch Collin.
Iggy turned my face back to him with his soft hands, looking me more or less in the eyes. 'Nudge... I love you.'
I gasped as he leaned in and gently kissed me. The kiss was amazing, everything I'd hoped for in a few short seconds. We were cut off brutally by the over-protective Collin tackling Iggy to the ground, pinning him down and yelling in his face, 'What the hell, dude? Can't you see she doesn't know what she wants? Don't you dare take advantage of her like that.'
He was quickly pulled away from the struggling blind mutant by Fang and Max, the Gasman helping an enraged Iggy up, holding him back from attempting to strangle Collin. 'You bastard! Nudge doesn't want you, she wants me.' The wingless mutant struggled to get out of Fang and Max's tight hold at this, his dark-ish hair flopping into his pitch black eyes.
I watched the whole scene with crystal teardrops spilling from my big brown eyes. I wanted to move, to stop them from fighting like animals, but I was frozen. My mind was numb, I couldn't even imagine deciding between Collin or Iggy, it felt like my heart was ripping in two.
'No!' I yelled, just as Iggy ripped himself out of Gazzy's hold and flung himself at Collin. Both the teenage boys stopped instantly, their eyes darting to me as if I was a magnet. 'I—I just can't choose between you guys. Collin, I love you so much, you're my best friend, and you're like my brother. You protected me when we were in the School, you broke me out of my shell when I was isolated, and you help me realise what was important. Iggy... I think I love you too and I... But, I need Collin as well—' My voice was shaky and my whole body was trembling.
I was cut off by Angel taking my hand in hers and squeezing it tight. Slowly, Iggy glanced at Collin, turning slightly so I couldn't see the meaning in the look. Iggy, not being able to see Collin's response, then carefully made his way over to me, making no sudden movements as if I was a scared animal.
'Nudge,' He reached out and touched my arm softly, 'I don't want you to choose if you don't want to. You do whatever you need to do, because I'll always be here for you... I don't want to hurt you.' Collin edged up beside him and slowly squeezed my other shoulder. I looked up at him, wanting to know what he thought, but scared.
'I—We—Listen, Nudge, I love you like a sister, and you are my best friend too... You don't have to choose because I'll be around for as long as you need me to be. Just say the word and I'll be here.' I hiccupped slightly, before throwing my arms around both of them and pulling both my guys close. I let go of Collin as Iggy pulled me away and kissed me again, this kiss full of raw emotion and passion – everything I had tried to escape from in the last few years.
I vaguely registered the click of a button or something, but I ignored it. I mean, we were in the middle of the woods, where the hell would an electrical thing come from? The sound of Gaz's best evil laugh interrupted me, and I whipped around to see him with a mashed up thing with wires poking out of it, covered in mud, with a red blinking light on it. The closer I looked at it, the more it started to resemble... but it couldn't be...
'Is that a video camera, Gaz?' I asked, incredulous. 'What the— where did you even get that?' The others were snickering now, Lindsay enclosed in Collin's strong arms, her chin resting on his muscled shoulder. I locked eyes with him, giving him a thankful look. He winked back at him, the corners of his mouth curling up as his dark eyes stared into mine.
'Nudge and Iggy sitting in a tree, K-I-S-S-I-N-G and—' I froze; God only knows what the kid would do to with that tape. Visions of YouTube and every other freaking video posting website started to spin around me, millions of hits on the video of me and Iggy making out, sound effects and other Gazzy-like things being added. I had to get that damn tape.
I lunged at Gazzy as he waved the camera above his head, cackling like only the Gasman could, his blue eyes glinting with excitement. I collided with him in mid air, falling to the ground as I tackled him playfully. I pinned him down, shrieking with frustration as he chucked the camera at Fang just as my fingers grazed it. 'Fang, catch!' The mutant teen clad in his typical black outfit caught it easily in one hand, giving me a rare smile as I scrambled up and ran at him. He threw it to Max just as I reached him, laughing softly as I punched him in mock anger.
Max tossed it back to Angel, who passed it to the Gasman again. He stuck out his tongue at me as he flexed his wings, ready to take off and make me hunt him down. I extended my wings too, my eyes narrowing as I prepared to pounce. The rest of the Flock (plus Lindsay and Collin) were laughing loudly now as Gazzy and I circled each other, Iggy practically rolling around on the ground as Angel described the scene to him.
'Just gimme the tape and no one gets hurt...' I said quietly, feeling like an animal stalking my prey. Must get video. He pretended to consider for a seconds, tossing the tape from one hand to another, a mischievous smile on his cheeky little face.
'Fine... But on one condition,' I nodded slowly, inching forward carefully, 'First you have to catch me though!' With that he shot up into the air like a rocket, me following closely, like a heat seeking missile, ready to destroy.
'Hey! Don't go too far,' I heard Max shout after us as I spun around in the cool night air, loving the feeling of wind on my face. The Gasman was weaving in the air, making it hard for me to try and grab him. He suddenly tucked in his wings and dropped out of the sky into a random part of the forest. I followed, a smile on my smooth brown face, ready to wrestle him for that video.
'Okay, what's this condition?' I asked once we were settled in a large tree, sitting comfortable on a large branch around a hundred feet off the ground. My feet dangled into space as I grinned at Gaz. This was just like the old days. He was silent for a few seconds, looking down at the forest floor.
His face looked up at me after a few moments, suddenly dead serious, 'I just—I want you to promise you won't ever leave again... I missed you so much,' A tear dripped down his check and he wiped it away furiously as more started to fall. I pulled him into a hug, remembering how it felt to have a little brother. His small but powerful arms hugged me back tightly as I held him close.
'I'm not going anywhere, Gaz, I swear. You can't get rid of me that easy,' I heard myself say softly as I stared into the depths of the forest. We stayed like that for a few minutes until Gazzy untangled himself from my arms, trying to rid all evidence of his crying with his dirty sleeve. I punched him lightly on the arm, my eyes slightly teary, remembering how empty I'd felt without the Flock there. 'Now gimme the damn tape. Where did you even get the thing?' I said, seeing the mushed video recorder in his pocket.
'Found it in the forest and then I fixed it up...' He toyed with the thing, tossing it around to tease me. I growled in mock fighting mode.
He looked wickedly up at me, before finally handing me the tape which I immediately shoved in my pocket. The flight back to the others was slow and relaxed, both of us just enjoying the freedom of flying and letting go of all the stress. The Flock was laughing and joking as we sauntered towards, me ruffling the Gasman's fluffy blonde hair as I walked over to Iggy.
As I sat down on Iggy's lap, feeling perfectly safe for the first time in a long time, I looked around at the people who were laughing and swooping funny stories, the people who were stretched out the people who I considered my family. I felt complete, for the first time in years, almost wishing time could freeze forever and we could be stuck in this perfect moment. I could feel Iggy's arms securely around me, keeping me safe, I could reach out and touch Collin if I wanted to, just to make sure he really was here with me, I could see the Flock everywhere I looked, it was almost a dream.
I fell asleep curled up next to Iggy, in the middle of the Flock, Collin and Lindsay sleeping side by side. Max took first watch, then Fang, Iggy and then me. I hardly slept though, waking up every half hour just to make sure everyone was still there, and that this wasn't some big elaborate dream. They were all there when I woke up each time, making me sigh with relief and gladness.
When the morning came, we were all half asleep as Max forced up into the air, well, Collin was running below us, her paranoia levels at an all new high. Iggy was moaning at Max, pissed off at being woken up and forced to fly. His hand was intertwined with mine, our wings beating in unison.
We dumpster-dived for breakfast at the nearest town, scavenging whatever we could find... which was surprisingly a lot. Like, Jeesh, people don't appreciate the values of a tinfoil wrapped sandwich anymore. After our dumpster pig-out, we were sprawled across a few park benches, trying to figure out what to do next. As we brainstormed, I noticed a flash of gold out of the corner of my eye. I whipped around, jerking out of Ig's arms, my eyes trying desperately to pick out the flash of gold that I had seen.
The others stopped talking, looking at me strangely as I stood up, my head twitching to the side slightly as I looked around feverishly. 'Nudge...?' Collin said quietly, a note of concern audible in his low voice. I shrugged his question off, finally finding the object of my search. I fell to my knees beside a small bush, shoving my hand inside it and rummaging around until my fingers caught hold of something small, hard and plastic.
I snapped out of my trance as I pulled the small card out, exchanging a freaked out look with Max. I tossed the plastic square at her, desperate to have it out of my hands; it felt like it was burning me. She read out the small words imprinted on it as I shakily made my way back over to the others, 'It says, "Maximum Ride"... It's like a credit card, almost identical to the one I found in New York. How did you know where it was, Nudge?'
They were all looking at me now, 'I dunno... it was like someone was controlling my body,' I shivered, creeped out by what had just happened. Iggy squeezed my hand reassuringly as I stared at Max, desperate for answers, 'So, what now?'
She passed it to Fang, a thoughtful look on her face, staring into the bush where I had pulled it out. Fang toyed with it in his hands, turning it over to read the back, 'Well,' He said softly, 'It looks pretty legit...' It was passed round everyone, my fingers tingling as I touched it for a second before practically flinging it at Collin. He caught it with both hand, giving me a slight smile as I trembled. His eyes never left me as he held the card, seeing straight past my barriers and into my mind, an eyebrow going up with concern.
I shook my head at me, I was fine. He nodded, slowly taking his eyes off me as Max started talking again, 'I guess we could try it...' As we made our way to the nearest ATM machine in town, Iggy hung back with me, kissing me softly on the cheek as I smiled at him. Max broke me out of the haze I was in, yelling loudly form across the street, 'Hey, Nudge! You any idea what the password might be?'
I went over to them, studying the machine with the password application open. Then I thought about my life so far, all the good and bad parts, all the tests and rewards, 'Try family,' I said quietly, knowing it would be right somehow; because family was the most important thing, whether they be related or not. The Gasman started cheering as money poured out of the machine, with us hastily stuffing it into any pockets we could find.
After the machine stopped randomly spewing notes, we stood in silence for a few minutes, 'Well, that went well,' Collin announced cheerfully, pulling the card back out and handing it to Max, who shoved it a random pocket.
Half an hour later, found us up a large tree in the park, a ridiculous amount of junk food surrounding us. The branch I was on had the most food, due to the fact that Iggy and Gaz were beside me, stuffing their faces with whatever was closest. 'Are we going back to Dr. Martinez now?' Angel asked as she snuggled up next to Max.
'I don't think so, Ange,' Fang said as he looked at Max who nodded slowly, thinking the situation over.
'It's just not fair to put them in danger anymore; I don't think we should go back. If there was some way we could get a house in the middle of nowhere or something, we could hang out there until...' She trailed off, noticing the smile that appeared across my features, the way my fingers twitched slightly in anticipation, 'What is it, Nudge?'
'Just get me to a computer.'
They all watched, in astonishment as my fingers flew over the keyboard, my forehead burrowed in concentration as I hacked some random estate agent's site. 'Uh, okay guys, here we have a remote house in the middle of freaking nowhere, beside some cliffs, and... Then there's another one in the middle of a forest. Any takers?'
The codes they put up to stop people from doing this kind of thing were no match for me, their passwords stupid and easy to crack, the website under my control within a matter of minutes, 'Holy shi—spit...' Lindsay muttered as pages and pages of data appeared up, with me navigating quickly through them. I was filled with an indescribable rush, the hum of the generator coursing through me as I typed.
Our voices were hushed as we were in a public library, all crammed around the one computer screen, looking at different houses to "buy". The Flock expressed their opinions as I pulled up yet another page of newly built houses in isolated locations, my eyes shining as they focused on typing another long and complicated code to get access to the classified information. I saw Max exchange a bemused look with Fang as Angel and Gazzy started fighting over a house with a Jacuzzi or one with a diving board.
'Okay, okay, guys, calm down,' I said quickly, noticing the librarian who was sneaking a peek at us over her desk. I peered at the screen again, my sharp eyes picking out a potential winner, 'How about that one?'
So here we are, three days and a load of illegal hacking later, getting settled into our new home; a huge house with glass windows everywhere, looking over a steep drop, with a forest to its rear and lots of space, in the middle of nowhere. It was no trouble to get the property to mysteriously disappear off the face of the internet, me deleting every possible record of the place online.
The tape of Iggy and I kissing was heavy in my pocket, concealed by my large hoodie, making a smile burst across my face. I had watched it last night on a computer we had bought, rewinding it over and over again in the dark. I would never throw this out. Our first real kiss...
I turned around to watch the guys lugging new furniture –thank you, Internet, yet again!—everywhere, under Max, Angel, and Lindsay's command, their instructions changing every time the heavy furniture was moved. 'No, a little to the left I think... wait, try over in that corner again,' Lindsay's face was shining as she directed Collin around the room, trying to decide where to place the red leather couch.
Collin and Lindsay had both decided to stay with us, they had been gone for a few years now and it wasn't really safe to go back to their families. They were happy with us, slotting right into Flock-mode with ease. I caught Collin's eye and smiled at him as he dragged the sofa across the room for the fifth time. I was so glad to have him with me; it didn't feel normal without him beside me anymore. He is as much my brother as Fang or Gaz are now.
Iggy had given up, sprawled across the floor, laughing as he heard Fang and Gaz try and manoeuvre their pieces of furniture around him. 'Get off the ground, Ig, you lazy ass!' Max was yelling at him, as Fang nearly dropped the coffee table on the blind teenager.
As I looked around at these people, the people who made my world complete, I realised I had come home.
I was finally home.
Wow. I'm finally finished this... I honestly never thought I'd get past the first few chapters! Thank you so so much to everyone who reviewed, favourite-d, or put this on story alert – I couldn't have done it without you guys :)
There might be a sequel in the future so feel free to PM me if you have any suggestions, or leave your thoughts in a review or whatever. I hope you guys thought the ending was good; it took me awhile to write because I wanted to get it just right.
I guess this is it... For now! I will defiantly be posting more stories and stuff so keep an eye out :)
Peace Out,
addicted-2-oxygen