Chapter 5~ Of How.. It Wasn't A Date!

PREVIOUSLY ON BECAUSE OF A FIGHT, BELIEVE IT OR NOT:

"UGH!" I fumed. "I HATE YOU!" Fang smiled at me knowingly.

"No, you don't." And then he kissed me on the cheek, walking out the door. Leaving me red from embarrassment and anger. "See ya tomorrow, on our date," he winked.

That jerk.

Well, at least he's a sexy one. With scrawny buttocks.

You know what? Just ignore me.

MAX POV:

Note to self: When being given a makeover by the she-devils, never (ever) try to resist. It'll only get worse.

"GUYS! It's not even a date!" I yelled, as I was forced into a chair next to my mirror. Being changed into "a sexy mama" is not how I wanted to spend my morning. I could've been doing much more productive things at six am. Like, sleeping, for example.

"Not a date?" Ella scoffed. "My dear sister, the definition of a date is when a guy and girl go out together. Alone. And besides, Fang himself said it was gonna be a date. So honestly, shut up and let me do your hair."

So much for Ella being the soccer-playing tomboy. And dates only happen if the guy and the girl have an interest in each other, which, as far as I am aware, we do not.

I rolled my eyes as she proceeded to take a long chunk of hair from the front and started to braid it. "You know, Max," Nudge began as she rummaged thought my closet, "Iggy and I were thinking about the gang going to the beach next Saturday. You know, it's still really warm, and the surf and sand will feel nice. Besides, it's going to be a nice way of ending this hot weather, before the chills come in, and I have to get all my longer sleeved clothes out."

"I'm all for it," Ella quickly said. "We can invite Fang to come with us also," she added with a wink.

Not even trying to think about it, I voiced my thoughts. "Sure, but only as long as you guys don't try to put me in some skimpy swimsuit like last time," I warned.

Yeah, they made me wear this "pretty" bikini. Please don't ask what happened.

"Fine," Nudge agreed, yet I still saw a gleam in her eye. Oh, jeez.

"And... done!" my sister announced, as she finished pinning the braid around my head.

"FINALLY!" I yelled, immensely overjoyed.

"Now it's time for your makeup!"

"I HATE YOU."

"Oh, don't be such a killjoy!" she said. Taking out her makeup bag, she started applying black stuff on my face.

"Don't put on too much; it gets in the way," I reminded.

She waved that off, and continued with whatever crap she was doing to my perfectly normal face. "It's just mascara and eye shadow, don't worry." Um, Gesundheit?

"OMG. Max, put this on NOW." Nudge threw a bunch of clothes at me.

"Now? Ew, I'm not going to change in front of you!"

"Fine, then. In the bathroom."

I sighed. This was like last Friday night all over again. Except it's in the day. And it's a Sunday. Oh, well. Details, details.

I quickly changed into the clothes and stepped out of the bathroom. "Guys, how do I look?"

Nudge smiled. "Ooh, Max! You look nicer than usual. At least there's no ketchup stain on your shirt!" Ella snickered in response.

I looked at myself in the mirror. Smiling, I thought I cleaned up pretty nicely. But I didn't recognize the clothes I was wearing. "Nudge, these aren't my clothes."

"Huh? Oh, I know. I brought a bunch from my house," she replied, gesturing to a mountain — er, pile of clothes near the bed. I was wearing a striped zigzag tank top with black denim shorts and thong sandals. Simple, comfortable, and suitable to the weather conditions. Plus, this could actually be something I would wear. Fine by me.

"One last thing!" Ella yelled out and tossed a brown feather necklace at me. Catching it with accuracy, I threw it over my head.

Nudge sat in a chair next to me and said "Okay, Max. Fang said he was going to come bright and early today so he might be here any min —," the doorbell rang and her eyes widened. "Shit, guys! That's Fang. Somebody go get it!" she screeched.

I walked out to get the door. Stupid Fridays. Stupid fight. Stupid Fang. Stupid things that start with the letter F. Like my math grade. Stupid, stupid, stupid Fang, I thought as I opened the door and saw Fang leaning against the door frame with his signature smirk on his face. "Ready for our date?" he drawled out.

Blushing, I tried my best to glare at him. "It. Is. Not. A. Date," I said with my teeth clenched.

He chuckled. "Whatever, Maxie." Raising an eyebrow at my outfit, he asked, "Ella and Nudge get to you?"

"You have no idea," I agreed.

"Oh, Ma-ax!" a voice sang out.

Well, then. Speak of the devil.

Nudge rushed up to greet Fang. "Hey, Fang! Before you guys go, there are just a few things we should go over. First of all, bring her home by midnight. Second of all, do not under any circumstances give Max onion rings; she despises them. Max is not a dinner and movie type of girl, so stay away from that. If she spills anything on her clothes, remind her to dab and not rub. Max, I'm giving you a bag of clothes in case of emergencies. Also, I..." At this point, Fang grabbed my wrist and led me to the car.

What a gentleman. NOT. I know how to walk myself. But, I maybe, sort of, kind of, didn't exactly mind his hand on my wrist. Just saying…

As I stepped into the car, Nudge was stilling rambling, but louder. "And remember to close your eyes!" she called out.

Erm, what?

Fang started the car, which unsurprisingly black, and backed out of the driveway. Five minutes passed on the road and an awkward silence filled the car. "So," I started, "where exactly are we going?"

Keeping his eyes on the road, he replied, "You'll see."

I tried again. "Could you please tell me where we're going?" Silence. "Pretty please?" Nothing. Of course. "Fang, if you don't tell me where we're going, I refuse to stay in the car."

He remained silent. Yeah, I know. So infuriating. I sighed. "Alrighty, then..." I trailed off and put my hand on the handle.

Then, Fang grabbed my hand. "Don't." What? Is this the part where he tells me he wants me to stay and tell me where we're heading? "If you're gonna jump out the car, do it when we're going above eight miles per hour."

Damn.

I huffed and crossed my arms. "Fine, then. Don't tell me."

"OK."

I rolled my eyes. Ten minutes passed when Fang said, "Since we're really close to our destination, I'll tell you."

Finally.

"Alright, so what exactly is our destination?" I asked.

He pulled into a parking lot in front of a building. I looked up to see it and my eyes widened. He has got to be kidding me.

"We're going to a sparring session."

-line-

"A fight. Out of all the things we could've done first, you choose to fight? Do you want to mock me?"

Fang looked at and smirked. "Well, I figured you'd want a rematch, but if you're too chicken, I guess not..." he trailed off.

Whoa, whoa, wait.

Chicken?

He just crossed the line. I narrowed my eyes. "Actually, you know what?" I began. "I think I might just feel like kicking your ass again."

He raised an eyebrow. "Again? Babe, you know it was definitely me who kicked your ass last time."

I turned pink. What? Shouldn't he be the one blushing? Damn him. "Loser, no one calls me 'Babe' gets away with it!" I grilled. Quite lamely, I must admit. I mean, loser? I've come up with way better.

"Then let's take it to the mat, shall we, Martinez?" he challenged.

"You're so on, Walker." With a smirk, I got out of the car, slammed the door shut, and walked toward the building without looking back. Why? 'Cause, honestly, I'm so awesome like that.

Brushing aside the fact that I almost tripped over my own feet on the way to the door.

Inside the building, the room had white walls with blue mats covering the floor in neat rows. I saw a few people in white uniforms practicing their new moves. I also saw other people like Fang and I who seemed to be sparring just for fun. There were chairs bordering the mats for people who wanted to watch or just taking a rest. In the corner, there were vending machines for drinks and snacks.

Damn. This place had everything.

I took off my shoes and stepped onto the mat. "Ready, Fang?" I asked as I turned around, only to see a fist flying my way.

FANG POV:

She blocked my punch. Of course.

With my fist in her hand, Max attempted to roundhouse kicked me, but I swerved to the side. Seriously, what is it with her and roundhouse kicks?

I managed to extract my hand from hers, but she aimed her fist at my chest. I ducked and kicked my leg out in a circular motion. Max tripped, but landed upside down on her hands.

Clever. By putting weight on her hands, she managed to balance her body straight and flipped over, getting back on her feet.

Maybe Max is secretly Ninja Max...

MAX POV:

Despite the fact that the move made my hands hurt like hell, I thought I was doing pretty well.

I advanced on Fang and side kicked at his face. He ducked and jabbed my sides. I bent over, but moved aside before he could use the move as an asset.

I landed on my back and kicked my feet out, tripping Fang in the process. He landed on top of me.

Oops.

I blushed at our close proximity, and Fang wiggled his eyebrows. Jerk. I remember what happened last time he was on top of m - shit. I need to get out of this situation.

I kicked him off of me and stood up. Then I rose my fist in the air and landed it on his cheek. Displaced by the sudden move, he staggered back, his hand cradling his cheek. I tried to punch him again, but this time he blocked it by grabbing my hand.

I wriggled my hand out of his grip, but then Fang used a backfist punch to my arm. I howled out in fury. "Ow, my arm!"

Fang's eyes widened. "Holy shit, Max. Are you okay?"

I faced the wall. "I don't know, Fang. It, it just hurts a lot," I said, hiding my smirk.

"Here, let me look at it," he suggested, and I nodded in agreement. Fang came over and and laid a hand on my arm when I turned around and punched him solidly in the gut.

He went down with an oomph and I followed him down.

Grabbing his wrists and pinning him to the floor for five seconds, I grinned. "Who's the winner now?"

FANG POV:

She beat me. She actually got me this time. And to think, I thought the legends weren't true.

I sighed from my place at the floor. Max was still on top of me and honestly, she's not as light as she looks. Besides, her grip on my wrists hurt. "Okay, okay. You win. Can I get up?" I asked.

"Under the condition that you'll be my slave for the day," she decreed.

Oh, Lord. "Max, that only happens at parties. I just said we'd spar." Her nails were digging into my wrist now.

"Yeah, but you said we'd be having a rematch. That applies to the bet," Max insisted.

But I don't wanna do your dirty work! I screamed in my head. "How about we reach an agreement?" I suggested.

She raised a brow. "Oh? Like what?"

"You get off of me, and I'll do one thing for you. Anything you want. Agreed?" Please agree, please agree, please agree.

She thought about it for a second, and spoke. "Anything at all?" I nodded frantically. "Alright, then."

And wait for it — SHE FINALLY GOT OFF OF ME.

MAX POV:

So, after an hour of fighting and and a couple of Gatorades, the clock struck one. Yeah, it had been time for lunch, and I. Was. Starving. I barely had breakfast before I was so rudely pushed out the doors. I have a high metabolism, but Nudge just won't understand that a banana and a glass of milk doesn't help at all.

Now I was in the car with Fang, headed out to a diner somewhere. No one was talking, until Fang said, "Hey, Max. You still haven't told me what you wanted."

That was because I didn't know what I wanted. I had no homework at all, my chores were done, and I certainly wasn't about to ask Fang out on a date. Besides, I could only have one thing from him, and I had to choose wisely. Fang seemed like the kind of guy who doesn't really hand out stuff for free.

"I don't know," I finally admitted, "I'm still thinking, honestly."

"Alright," he replied casually. And so we drove in silence until we reached a little restaurant near a gas station. According to the blinking red sign, it was called "Ellie's Diner".

We entered the diner and sat in one of the booths. Menus were laid out on a table, and I picked one up. I was so hungry, I felt like I should order one of everything.

Soon, a perky blonde waitress reached our table. "Hi! My name is Cerise and I'll be your hostess day! Let's start with the drinks! What would you like, sir!"

...Did she really just exclaim everything she said?

"I'll have a Coke," Fang answered. She scribbled it on her notepad and gestured to me.

"I'll have a Shirley Temple, please." Cerise nodded. "Nice! That would be something I'd order!"

I blinked. "On second thought, could you change that to a root beer?"

She frowned, but wrote it down anyway. "And what about food?" she asked.

Fang replied, "A triple cheeseburger with the works, please."

"The same for me, too," I piped up.

Cerise raised an eyebrow. "I don't think you'll be able to finish that!" she warned.

I gave her a look that said, "Bite Me."

She gave a little hmph, and then scurried away to get our orders ready.

As soon as Cerise-The-Perky-Waitress-Who Always-Exclaimed-Things left, Fang mentioned, "You guys seem like you could be best friends."

I wrinkled my nose. "With that doily? No way."

He chuckled, and scratched his neck. I noticed a mark on his collarbone. Squinting, I realized it was a tattoo. A black tattoo shaped like a sword.

"Nice tat'," I commented.

Fang looked confused for a second. "What tattoo?" he inquired.

I nodded to his collarbone. "You know, the one on your neck."

"On my-" he stopped and his eyes slightly widened. "Oh. Oh, that. Yeah, I got it um, a couple years ago."

"Sweet. I have one, too," I said.

"Really?"

"Yeah, I got it at the end of last year. Don't tell my mom, though. If she finds out, I'm dead and you'll have to use me as a doorstop. Or a paperweight."

He smirked. "Er, alright then. Where is it?"

I stood up and raised my shirt a little. A pair of wings adorned the skin of my left hip. Fang grinned when he saw it. "Wings? Nice. You seem like a person who;s into that."

I was about to say something when Cerise-The-Waitress arrived with our food. "Hi!" she exclaimed. "Here are your triple cheeseburgers with the works!"

She set down two plates in front of us, each with a huge cheeseburger and a serving of fries, and put our drinks next to them.

"If you need anything else, just signal me!" And with that, Cerise-The-Waitress left.

As we began to dig into our lunch, I saw a man in the corner of the room. He was wearing all black, and there wasn't any meal set in front of him. He was glaring straight ahead with his eyes narrowed, and I realized he was glaring at us.

I nudged Fang. "Uh, Fang? That guy keeps staring at us," I whispered.

He rolled his eyes "Don't be so paranoid, Max," Fang chastised and slowly turned to see where I was pointing. "He's probably looking at some-" Fang cut off his words and froze, his hands all of a sudden gripping his drink tightly.

I could see his jaw clench and knew something was definitely wrong with Fang. "Dude, what's wrong? You've been acting so weird all of a sudden. Are you OK?"

He snapped up. "Huh? Oh, yeah, I'm fine. He just reminds me of someone I once knew. I don't really want to talk about it right now."

Not wanting to push him, I raised a brow. "Alright, then." And so we continued to eat.

Five minutes later, Fang abruptly got up, and said, "Hey, Max? I have to go to the bathroom. I'll be back in a few minutes, alright?"

I replied, "Sure, Fang." Even though I was unsure...

FANG POV:

I was having an awesome time with Max. And then I had to get up and "go to the bathroom."

Yeah, right.

Instead of heading to the men's restroom, I went over to the table in the corner.

The table with him. The man in black.

He didn't seem surprised to see me at his table. He continued to look straight forward, with his hands folded under his chin. "So nice to see you again, Nick," he said nonchalantly.

I slammed my hands down in front of me. "Why are you here, and how did you find me?" I hissed.

He smirked, "We have our ways, Nick. You of all people should know that."

MAX POV:

Five minutes passed. Then ten. Then an hour. I was pissed beyond imagination.

So what did I do? Not having an appetite anymore, I left the restaurant after paying the check for both of us, and Fang still never came back.

I took a bus home and slammed the door open when I enter my house. Ella and Nudge were in the living room watching TV and look surprised when I entered.

"Back so soon?" Ella asked with her brow furrowed.

"You would think that they'd come back after midnight, wouldn't you?" Nudge smirked.

"Please don't talk about it," I muttered and headed up to my room and flopped on my bed.

Why was I taking this so badly? I barely knew the guy.

I was Maximum Martinez. I don't go sad over men. Especially idiots who leave me on a date–I mean a friendly outing.

Idiot. Loser. Messed-up-pycho-with-no-sense-of-ethics-or-morals.

Where did he go anyway? All of a sudden he was acting super strange, then he got up and left. And never came back.

Like he actually went to the bathroom. Maybe he's an alien. Or a pirate. Or a hobbit from Middle Earth. Or maybe he was just stupid.

Probably the last one.

So then, a few hours later I was sitting in front of the TV with a bowl of popcorn, watching crime dramas. My hair was in a messy bun, and I was wearing flannel pajamas. Yes, this is what Maximum Martinez does on Sunday nights.

The doorbell rang, and I reluctantly got up to answer it. I opened the door to find the last person I expected to find leaning against the door.

"Surprise?" Fang said.

Author's Note:

Here we go! And honestly, you guys review way too fast.. not that I'm complaining (; Also, review on JLAAST PLEASE PLEASE and check out the poll on my profile.

How about 7 reviews for the next chapter? So .. 35?

Thank you~

Thank you~