Disclaimer: I claim no right to the Maximum Ride universe. And here is my rewrite for the second chapter. The chapters will be a little shorter, but this way it's easier for me to turn out chapters faster. Much Love!

The scalding heat of the shower helped Nick clear his head, somewhat. Max had gone thirty minutes ago and he still couldn't stop thinking about her. His gut told him that she was important, that they were connected in some way, but his head denied everything. It wasn't logical. There was absolutely no reason that she should stick in his head like this. Except for her eyes. They seemed so unusual in how they sparkled. Lissa had green eyes, too, but hers seemed dull in comparison. If he was perfectly honest with himself, hers lacked intelligence as well.

He closed his eyes and let the water sluice over him, running down his body in a continuous sheet. God, it felt so good. If he thought hard enough, he could almost imagine what it would be like if she were still here, if she joined him. Her skin would be soft, smooth, but there would be scars. Somehow he knew that. Just like the one on her wrist. He wanted to kiss every one that marred her skin, as if doing so would erase the pain they must have caused her. He wanted her to do the same to him.

He touched the four parallel stripes that spanned his side, reminders of the night his parents had died, the night he had almost died with them. They were by far the worst of his scars.

The medical team had told him he was the luckiest kid they had ever seen. He had been fourteen when his dad had lost control of the car and crashed. His parents had been trapped in the vehicle. Nick himself had been thrown from the car and landed on a security fence that sat just a little way down the slope on which the car had crashed. The sharp spikes adorning the top of the bars caught him in the side as he flew over them. One inch higher and they wouldn't have sunk into his side and ripped him open. His skin hadn't been thick enough take his weight.

He remembered lying on the ground, feeling each pump of his heart that spilled his blood onto the dirt and watching as the car that held his parents exploded. He heard their screams as they burned alive. They screamed for him.

Nick shut the water off. He did not feel like a trip down memory lane. He was going to finish off the last of the Chinese food in the refrigerator and get some studying done. That would keep him occupied.

He pulled on some boxers and made his way into the living room. Turning on the TV for background noise, he strolled into the kitchen and threw his last carton of chow mien into the microwave. While anticipating the much needed food, he tossed his backpack on the table and pulled out his Renaissance Art textbook. He didn't need to study it much, but going over the concepts again couldn't hurt. Tomorrow would not be another repeat of today. That was for sure.

Just as the microwave went off, so did his phone. He glanced at the caller ID, making a face as he saw it was Lissa. He answered anyway. "Hey."

"Hey, baby. How did your midterm go?" she asked, her voice practically dripping sugar. Usually, he didn't care. Today, it made him sick.

"Shitty. I was hungover as fuck. I'm going to kill Jason the next time I see him." Nick fought nausea as he bit into the noodles. He had to remind himself that eating was a good thing. He would feel better afterwards. He had to.

She huffed. "You're just pissed that he finally got you past your limit. Don't be such a baby."

Nick clenched his jaw. What had he seen in her? They had gone through high school together and hooked up just as senior year ended. They ended up at the same college and had been dating since. She was rather attractive her self, but she had been the only girl he could stand to be around for more that ten minutes. Now, she seemed just like the rest of them. Shallow, vapid, unable to hold a serious conversation. Ugh.

"Can you believe that?" she asked.

Nick belatedly realized that she had been talking as he spaced out. "Um, no."

"I know, me neither. It's just so – "

Nick tuned her out again. Skating through conversations like this were okay to do with strangers, but a significant other? Not so much. He took another determined bite of the chow mien. It was going to taste good soon. He "uh-huh" and "yeah" –ed his way through the rest of her spiel before giving up. "Hey, I don't feel too good, Lissa. I'm gonna make it an early night. I'll see you tomorrow, okay? We'll go out. I have something I need to talk to you about anyway."

"Okay, baby. Sounds good to me," she said. "I'll see you then. Love you."

He snapped his phone shut. Breaking up with her was not going to be fun, but he couldn't deny the truth any longer. She just wasn't right for him. An image of Max smiling up at him clouded his vision. What was this hold she had on him? The same questions kept popping up, but that didn't mean he had any answers for them. His thoughts drifted back to the scar on her wrist. He frowned. He could smell the ocean, the salt of her tears, her blood. He felt fear, anger, confusion, a sense of helplessness. Just wanted the chip out.

"What?" he said aloud. He opened his eyes, wondering when he had closed them. He couldn't smell the ocean anymore.

He jumped as his phone rang again. "What?" he snapped.

"Well, somebody's a grumpy pants," Jason said on the other end of the line. "Does the grumpy pants need a hug?"

Nick grinned in spite of himself. "Well, who's fault is it that I'm not in the highest of spirits, hmm? That would be you." He could practically hear Jason grinning like a Cheshire cat.

"And a wonderful night it was," Jason said. He laughed. "Although, I can't say I want to see you so exposed again. You're just not my type."

"Just cause you're jealous…In any case, I'm going to fucking kill you, you fuck. There is a reason I don't get as stupid drunk as the rest of you. Not to mention, I had my genetics midterm today, which I am sure I told you about," Nick said darkly.

Jason cursed, then he giggled. "Whatever. You know you totally aced it, being a genius and all."

"There is nothing genius about me. I just do the work. You might have the same results if you showed up to class. You never know until you try." Nick swallowed the last of the Chinese food in relief. Soon his stomach would settle and then he could get a real meal. Maybe tomorrow.

"So, did you have fun last night?" Jason asked. "I hope you appreciate the effort and money and time it took to get you that inebriated. There is no reason you should hold your liquor as well as you do."

"I don't know. I don't remember," Nick growled. Fuck the party scene, or rather, the alcohol requirement of the party scene. It caused way too much trouble.

"Then you had a good time."

"I'm breaking up with Lissa." Nick grimaced at his abruptness and complete lack of segue, but he needed to tell someone before he backed out. He didn't think he was going to, but to have another's expectation of the separation made it certain.

Jason was quiet for a while. "For real? You're giving the boot to the prom queen?"

"Yeah. That' the problem. She's still the prom queen," Nick said.

"Hallelujah! Congratulations, man. It's about time. She was so wrong for you," Jason said. "Welcome to the singles club."

Nick tossed the food carton into the trash and the fork into the sink. "Actually, I think I may have met someone."

Jason choked. "You don't waste any time."

Nick glanced at his books, spread out on the table. He felt the urge to laugh. "No, I don't. I have to go. I do have two more exams tomorrow. I'll catch you at Rino's around nine, okay?"

"Sounds good. See you then."

Nick tossed his phone on the couch. He was going to pass out. There was no way studying would get done. No reason to fight it. He shut off all the lights and fell into bed, hoping a certain blonde would make an appearance. He could use some good dreams tonight.