AMERICUS FAYDEN RIDE'S POV-

Now, I don't know how you react when you walk into your living room at the age of 8 to see a strange man in there without your mom, but I know how I react. I dropped my backpack, screamed, and bolted for the door.

My mom stopped me, laughing. "Good reaction sweetie, but this isn't a stranger you need to be scared of. This is Fang- he's one of my friends. He's like us."

I stared at him nervously. "Is he the one who ran off?"

Mom pressed her lips together and closed her eyes. She rubbed her temples like she had a headache. "Yes dear."

I glared at Fang. "I HATE YOU! YOU MADE MY MOMMY CRY!" I ran for my room with my backpack.

"She's a little dramatic," I heard Mom say.

"If I remember correctly, she takes after her mother. Should we be worried?"

"I believe you are mistaking me with Nudge, who happens to live down the street by the way, and no. I put screens on her windows after she escaped from her room to t.p. someone's house."

"Why did she do that?"

"Don't ever call my daughter a loser-prep-who-can't-surf-for-crap. She did a good job on the boy's house though."

Fang laughed. "If she's related to you, I'm sure she did."

"HEY!"

Something went thump! and the adults were suddenly laughing. I went to the family room door and said, "Yes, a pillow. Mom's greatest weapon since she can't use her powers on guests. Even Aunt Nudge, Uncle Iggy and Aunt Ella, Aunt Angel, Uncle Gazzy, or apparently even you."

Fang raised his eyebrows. "All of them?"

"We stuck together. Well, actually, I moved in with my mom and Jeb-who I still refuse to call Dad- with Iggy. Iggy and Ella got married for some unfathomable reason and moved to California to help with Americus after I found out I was pregnant. Nudge and the others moved out here to help with her when they were legal adults. Well, actually, Nudge came with her boyfriend as soon as my husband left. She broke up with him though and we were room-mates for a while. She's the house on the end with the wind-chimes. Ig and Ella own the two story house next to us. Ella is pregnant. The one story on our other side is Gazzy's. Angel lives in the brown house that looks like a villa to our left. So far only Ella and Iggy are married. I'm the only one who's been divorced. Nudge has had three boyfriends so far. Gazzy has a girlfriend. Angel is single." Mom stopped and took a breath dramatically. "That was a lot."

FANG'S POV-

I stayed at Max's house for dinner. Her daughter avoided me for the most part. At dinner she said, "So, is he going to be around a lot?"

"I don't know. Are you?" Max stared at me.

"If you want me to be."

"I do."

"Then I guess I have to be nice to you- even if I don't like you."

I couldn't help laughing. "You are so much like your mother Americus."

She nodded. "Got a problem with that?"

"Okay…no," this kid really reminded me of Max!

After dinner the whole flock came over. Max had told me they all come over every night, but I wasn't expecting them all at once. They saw me, froze, and then attacked. I got hit upside the head, hugged until my sides hurt, and my ears were blabbed off with a billion questions and an ongoing commentary- courtesy of Nudge.

After a while everyone settled down and we talked. I apologized a thousand times until I got shouted at by everyone at once. "WE GET IT! YOU'RE FORIGIVEN! SHUT UP!"

Steady conversation on the past sixteen years followed. Max didn't say anything. She just leaned against the wall with a glass of iced tea, smiling. I watched her from the corner of my eye. Sometimes she would ruffle Americus's hair, pull slightly on Angel's ponytail to tighten it, straighten Iggy's shirt, fix Nudge's shirt tag- which continually popped out of her tank top, smile at Ella, flick something out of Gazzy's hair, or push my hair out of my eyes. She did this for nearly twenty minutes before I caught on. It was like we were all kids again- she was being the mom, the flock leader. To put it shortly- she was being Max when Max had family around. It was just her job.

I guess Nudge didn't get it. "Why do you keep doing that? You just fix stuff, but you don't say anything! You usually lead the conversation! Even more than I do!"

"I'm just…happy to have my family together again. That's all. We've got everyone- the flock, Ella, and my daughter. And the flock is whole again- that's enough to make me smile for weeks- but add that to us acting like a family again- it makes the world perfect."

I stared open mouthed. "Who are you and what have you done with Max?"

She smiled ruefully. "Max grew up."

Then Nudge started an ongoing one person conversational debate on the theory of us all going to the beach on Saturday, or to the Irvine Spectrum but I stopped listening. Max continued with her family life grin until they left. Without ever needing to get anyone else's opinions, Nudge concluded that we would have to go to the Irvine Spectrum as a group because she thought that Angel needed a new outfit and she wanted to go to some place called Johnny something or other because it was Americus's favorite.

They all left at nine o' clock. They all had work in the morning. Max drove me home, even though she seemed terrified of the neighborhood.

"What happened to Max the brave?" I teased.

"Again- she grew up. She has a daughter to worry about now."

"She isn't in the car."

"I know, but how would she feel if I left her?"

I got her point. "How bad was it?" I asked, my voice strained.

"Hard." She knew what I meant. "I didn't want to get over you. Then with Kevin…I thought he would be happy about the baby. He wasn't. He doesn't even know her name."

"I'm sorry." I put an arm over her shoulder.

"If I pick you up, will you come over again?"

"Definitely."

"Then congrats- you are now part of our nightly flock meetings."

"Thanks."

There was silence for a time. "So…are we…back on?" she asked, staring straight ahead. I considered that a good thing-I'd seen her driving before.

"What about Americus?"

"We can take it slow. Why don't we take her somewhere on Saturday?"

"What about Nudge and her big plans?"

"Didn't you hear her? She said that it would have to be next weekend because she and her boyfriend are going somewhere."

"I tuned her out. But sure, we can do something kid friendly."

"I'll pick you up tomorrow." I realized that tomorrow was Friday as she said it.

"I'll be here."