A/N: OK so first of all, I would just like to mention that we are not the most experienced with scenes that involve FAX. *WINK* *WINK* If ya know what I mean. We are still in the young early stages of life so please excuse our terrible mushy writing. :P -Ashley
Max gazes into the deep endlessness of his dark eyes. They are so deep and endlessy and dark. "I LOVE YOU SO MUCH FANGY-POO!" She screams.- Um yeah, that's totally our forte. Well, wish us luck and let's see how this goes... -Michelle
Also, we have made a goal (well mostly me but let's just say we :P LOL) that we are going to try our best to get 100 reviews somewhere between our 15-20th chapter. We would really appreciate it if you guys helped us out. so R&R and be kind souls to us. :) -Ashley
Disclaimer: URGH, we have to disclaim during every chapter? IT'S THE HARD KNOCK LIFE... FOR US. BLAH BLAH BLAH DISLAIM DISCLAIM DISCLAIM. We don't own Maximum Ride.-Ashley
Max's POV
*BEEP BEEP* I glance down at my iPhone to see a message. I click on my messages and see a message from a blocked number: Needed. -76582
I immediately recognize it as a message from the CIA.
Fang, Nudge, and I have been spending the past hour trying to beat each other and setting our treadmills to faster and faster speed.s. Right now, we're all running at insane speeds. None of us wanting to admit that we want to collapse and die in a hole, weeping and chopping off our aching legs and lungs. Yeah, we're not competitive at all.
I reluctantly turn down the levels on my treadmill until I'm walking then eventually come to a stop. I step off the machine and start heading towards the evening air with my phone.
"Hey, Max!" Fang calls after me with victory in his voice. "Where are you going? This too hard for you?"
"No," I grind out and turn back to face him, "I just got a really important text."
He nods slowly and smirks, "Yeah, right..." There was suspicion in his voice though. Fang wipes away the sweat rolling down the side of his face and flicks the hair out of his eyes before facing straight ahead again.
My temper flares and I'm about to rip his head off but think to myself, "It's not worth it Max, you'd just have to pay for the idiot's medical bills."
So instead, I just give him a glare strong enough to burn a hole through his back and exit the building. I pause outside the doorway and look around, to make sure no one is looking.
I text back the special coding to the anonymous number.
112344566123
Immediately I get 6 numbers texted back.
385244
Okay, got it. The numbers disappear off the screen almost as quickly as they appeared.
I step back inside George's gym and walk up to Nudge and Fang, who are still running.
'Um, guys, I have to go now, but you guys don't have to leave because of me so umm, bye!" I say awkwardly
"Bye! " Nudge yells. A few nearby runners look at us strangely because Nudge is trying to look at me behind her while still running, which makes her do some sort of chicken dance.. I'm sort of used to this kind of attention by now.
"Bye Max," Fang says over his shoulder, not even bothering to look at me.
I stride out of the air conditioned heaven and onto the streets. The day is come to a close and the sun has just finished setting. I glance at my phone and see 8:34pm blaring at me. My stomach growls loudly but I just ignore the outburst and hope that my stomach doesn't rumble in front of the high-ups. With a bounce in my step, I jog towards the address texted to me. 3852 44th Ave. I turn a corner and arrive at a small , brightly lit candy shop next to a closed flower shop.
*Ding ding*
The little bell hanging in the doorway signals my arrival. The walls are painted lively colours and the candy displayed all over the store made me weak in the knees and my mouth water.
"I'm sorry," a female voice chimes from behind the counter, "we're closed for the day." A motherly middle-aged woman pops up from behind the cash register and gives me a warm smile that makes her watery-blue eyes twinkle.
"Do you have limited edition M&Ms with the marshmallow and chocolate filling?" I ask, completely ignoring her comment.
"Pardon me?" the lady questions. "What candy was that again, dear?"
"The Smarties and Kit-Kat hybrid bars."
"Yes, we have those in stock."
"Canada."
"Bunny."
"Tree."
The woman gives me another smile, "Welcome Max." She bustles over to the window flipped the sign from "open" to "closed." and locks the door. "Well then, come in" she says.
She leads me through the door that reads "Employees only" and through another hidden door after she pushes aside a shelf of candy to reveal another passage way. We walk down a sterile white corridor.
"I never understood that silly code. I mean, we're located in a candy store but what do bunnies have to do with anything?" she chatters and rolls her eyes. "I swear the high-ups just want to make me look like an idiot."
I genuinely smile at the lady, who seems to be thinking the same thing as me.
We walk down a long hallway that seems to have no end, until we come across a door. In front of the door is a shiny plaque labeled JD. I take a breath and tighten my ponytail. Show time.
The moment I walk in, I hear a shrill voice shrieking in between fits of giggling. Two blondes are rolling around on the couch. A boy is in the middle of tickling the fluff out of a little girl, who looks no more than 10 years old. My jaw drops open before I can stop. I thought this would be a top secret meeting not a day care.
By now, the young blonde notices me. She turns her head slightly to the side before greeting me with a cheerful "Hi!"
"Um, hi," I chuckle.
The boy scrambles up to sit at the edge of the sofa and gives me a cheeky grin. "Wassup?"
I smile back. These kids were just too cute. Suddenly, I hear someone clear their throat. I whip around to face the lady who lead me here.
"Hello, agent Max. It's time for me to formally introduce myself. My name is Clara Waters and I am the head of the Juvenile Department of the CIA."
"Hello, agent Waters," I reply.
"Yes, hi Max," she says. "Gazzy, Angel, say hi,"
"But I already did!" the girl retorts.
"How about you Gazzy," Clara asks.
"Um, I said wassup. That counts," he mutters rather sarcastically.
"Hmmm..." I think to myself. "I like him. I will eat him last."
Clara coughs. "No Gazzy, that does not count, you're going to be spending lots of time with Max so you better get use to being nice to her."
Huh? I'm going to be spending a lot of time with these... children? What?
"Um, excuse me Clara? What did you mean by that?" I question.
"Well Max, let me explain," she begins. Agent Waters sits herself down on the couch across from Gazzy and Angel before continuing.
"You may not be aware of this however you are a very," she pauses as if debating what to say, "in demand agent."
I slowly nod my head, pretending to understand.
She continues, "You're not only one of our best agents but also the youngest. This makes you very popular when it comes to selecting agents for missions."
Huh? I'm popular?! Well that's a first...Wait, you never heard that.
"And that's why we are putting you onto two missions at the same time... a very rare occurrence," she finishes.
What? Even James Bond only had one mission, the avengers had one mission... but I have two? Ha in your face iron man! Stop it Max! Stay on topic!
"You are going to be legal guardian of these young children, Angel and Gazzy," she finishes.
I take that back. I am speechless. I'm sure I look like a dead fish as my mouth gapes open.
"Um... excuse me?"
"Ah, I know it's a difficult concept to understand. Most agents don't see reason in these assignments but we were sure you were the perfect candidate." she smiles at me.
I give her a fake smile before thinking this through... I'm adopting children.
I choke out, "Why?"
"Well, because these kids are just like you. Angel and Gazzy are the cream of the crop and we're very lucky having them join our juvenile division at the CIA," Agent Clara grins proudly.
In the background, I spot Angel and Gazzy smirking with their heads held high. They are obviously happy to be bathed in praise.
Great. I have to adopt two spoiled brats.
"Um, why is the CIA giving them to me?" I ask.
"Oh, well they will follow you around whilst you're performing your mission. They need to learn how to be a proper spy. Also, you will be responsible for giving them physical training so that they are fit spies," she smiles happily, "and then when they reach 16 they can become agents just like yourself, this is a great honor."
Sighing I ask the question which I probably already know the answer to, "Do I have any say in this?"
"Not really," Clara says cheerfully, "but I bet they won't be any trouble at all."
I glance over at the two little cherubs perched on the sofa. Their mouths stretch into mischievous grins. They might as well have devil horns. I cringe.
"Would it be possible if I were to just take them in? I don't think I'm ready to be the legal guardian of anything."
Clara ponders for a second and shrugs, "I suppose that wouldn't be a problem. I'll need you to fill out some paperwork you, but after that they'll be all yours!"
"Wonderful," I drawl.
I know it may seem like I'm overreacting and treating this innocent little kids as if they were the plague, but trust me on this: I am the world's worst person to leave a child with. Once, I made a baby cry, poop, then faint just by looking at him. It was a disaster. And those two kids, Angel and Gazzy, look like perfect little angels but I swear, they both have this twinkle in their eyes that just screams trouble. Kind of like what people say about my eyes... but that's not the point!
"Great! Angel, Gazzy, please go to the common area while Max and I sort out some paperwork."
Angel smiles and gives me a little wave good bye, "Bye Max!" She skips out through the door.
Gazzy follows suit and says, "Bye mom." Cackling, he exits as well.
Mom. Mom. Mom. He called me mom. I shudder at just the thought of it.
"So Max," Clara says while rummaging through the files on her desk, "I just need you to fill out these forms and everything will be settled." She hands me a few sheets of paper and a pen.
I quickly scan the pages and actually read the content. It basically states that I'm responsible for those two kids and I am their caretaker. If they get killed then I am the one responsible. Fan-freaky-tastic!
"Why exactly am I taking them in again?" I question. The CIA provides a home for all agents under 18.
"Well," agent Waters begins, "we want you to mentor them. We want you to teach them a bit more on how the agency works. They already know the basics but we want you, Max, to train them into high-performance agents just like you."
"Flattery doesn't cut it." I mutter under my breath.
"It'll be fine, Max. We're absolutely positive you'll be able to handle this mission. You're one of our best."
"Whatever," I roll my eyes but I can feel a hint of a blush heating my cheeks. I sign the papers with my head down.
"Good." Clara smiles sincerely. "Thank you Max."
I look up into her friendly eyes and smile back. Maybe this won't be so bad...
A/N: YEAH. ANGEL AND GAZZY WOOT WOOT. It was about time we incorporated them into our fan fic. :) Also, right now I will be explaining our summer updating schedule so if you would tune your ears in here then we can explain it to you. We are actually pretty bad with consistent updating and we either update after a month or after a week. It's pretty inconsistent, unfortunately, we're actually sorta busy (and sorta lazy) so updating is going to be hard. But we will try our bests and update every week but it'll probably turn out to be every 2-3 weeks. Please don't give up on this story, it means the world to us. *wink wink* If you review we will TRY and update a bit faster. *Nudge Nudge* - LOL, Nudge from Max ride. Hehe. -Ashley and Michelle