Disclaimer: I claim no right to the Maximum Ride universe. Thanks for all your support. I hope you like the new direction. Much Love!
The next afternoon, Nick sat in the best of the three campus cafes sipping a macchiato and enjoying how much better today was going than yesterday. The rest of his midterms had been a breeze and he was feeling good. And tonight he would be free. That sounded good.
Jason had called earlier all excited that his parents were allowing him to have a party at his family's cabin. Nick was sure that no good would come of it, but he agreed to come anyway. People tended to keep the peace when he was around.
He checked the clock. Almost time to meet Lissa. He just wanted to do it and get out. She was certain to make a scene. She always did. He drained the rest of his cup and tossed it in the trash on the way outside. As he walked to meet her, he pondered the dream he had the night before.
Max had been in it. He remembered that much. She looked young, scruffy, tough. Her hair was cut above her shoulders and streaked with pink. She had wings. So, had he. He could remember the feeling of them stretching out from his back, catching the wind to lift him high above the ground. Nothing he had felt in his life had ever felt like that. He closed his eyes, trying to recapture the sensation.
"Hey, baby! Miss me?"
His eyes snapped open and he just caught himself before he punched her in the face. He hated it when she did that. He had to do it now. No sense in delaying the inevitable.
"Um, not really. How was the exam?" He said.
"Fine. I'm glad it'd over," she said.
Nick steeled himself. "Lissa, I need to talk to you."
She opened her eyes wide, looking at him expectantly. "Yeah? What about?"
"I want to break up."
She laughed. "Excuse me? What is this, April Fool's? It's still the middle of March."
His expression didn't change. He just gazed at her levelly until she seemed to grasp the idea that he was serious.
"This isn't funny, Nick. Four years is too long to break up. You should be proposing," she snapped. Her face flushed and her shoulders shook.
Nick remained impassive. "Did you really think we were going to get married and spend the rest of our lives together?"
She raked her nails through her hair. "After four years? Yeah, maybe I did. That's a long time and you never gave any indication that you were even the slightest bit unhappy. I would have done something about it if I had known. You're not even going to give me a chance to fix it?"
The angry tears in her eyes made him feel a little uncomfortable, but breaking up was the best thing for both of them. "There's nothing you can do to fix us. I haven't been unhappy. I've just been neutral. That's not good enough for me anymore. That's not good enough for you, either. Find someone who can appreciate you better than I can." Nick stuffed his hands in his pockets. He would find someone, too.
Lissa sniffed. "There's someone else, isn't there? You've met someone else and you've been cheating on me! You bastard!" She moved to slap him, but he grabbed her wrist.
"Don't ever attempt to hit me, Lissa," he said in a low, dangerous voice. "I will hit back." He released her with a little push. "I think you've known me long enough to know that I wouldn't cheat on you, but if that helps you get over this, then fine. Take care, okay?" He left her standing in the quad, reluctant to drag it out any longer. He didn't want his whole day to suck.
"Fuck you!" she shrieked at his back.
Nick kept walking. There was nothing more he could do. So, he pulled out his phone and called Jason.
"What up, bro?" Jason answered.
"The queen is dead," Nick said. He slid on his sunglasses and got in his car. "And she is cursing my name."
Jason was quiet for a second. "Props, dude. That's rough. Well, good thing I'm having a party tonight to lift your spirits. Hella peoples is coming. Maybe your mystery girl."
Nick felt better at the thought of Max. Maybe he would see her tonight. Maybe he would take her up on that dinner invite. "Want me to come out now? I don't have anything to do."
"Only if you bring me food."
"What are we, dating?" Nick said.
Jason pondered a moment. "Now that you're single, there's something I've been meaning…"
"What do you want?" Nick stifled his laughter. Jason was sick.
"Double double meal from Rino's?"
"Fine. I'll be up soon. Pull out a bottle of that one vintage for me," Nick said.
"Will do," Jason replied. "See you."
Nick turned into the Rino's parking lot and called their to go number. He placed an order and sat outside until Mandy, his friend that also happened to be a waitress at the best moderately priced restaurant in town, brought it out.
"Hey, Mandy," he said, handing her a five as tip.
"What's up, Nick? How'd midterms go?" She was a cute little brunette that had been assigned to be his study partner in their freshman ethics class. Somehow they had at least one class a semester together since. Her boyfriend had proposed last month.
He shrugged. "The usual."
"So, perfect?" she said with a touch of bitterness. "You suck. Going to Jason's tonight?"
He nodded. "Yeah, heading up right now to unwind. I just broke up with Lissa."
Mandy gasped, her light brown eyes opening wide. "For real? What happened?" She glanced back inside, but stuck around to hear the scoop.
"Just didn't feel right anymore. Too much drama, you know?" Nick said. "Anyway, I have to go. I'll catch you later tonight? Zeke, too?"
Mandy nodded. "Yep. Good luck if she shows up. I'm turning my phone off. I do not feel like dealing with her tonight." She waved and headed back inside.
Nick pulled out one burger and bit into it. He was starving. Jason's party would be a good opportunity for him to relax.
Lightly crowded town streets gave way to sparsely populated forest road. Nick enjoyed the drive to Jason's cabin, which was actually more of a mansion. Jason's parents were loaded and they didn't mind sharing the wealth. Nick had spent many a school holiday with Jason and his family, considering his own was unavailable.
He was so lost in thinking that he didn't notice the person standing in the middle of the road until it was almost too late. All he saw was red hair and a white something. Nick slammed on the brakes and jerked the wheel, sending the car into a mini spin. When the car stopped, he jumped out, ready to beat down the idiot that had caused him to freak out. The kid was gone.
Nick cursed. What the fuck had that been? He shook his head, trying to recall how the kid had looked, just in case he saw him later. Something about that brief glance hadn't been right, but he couldn't identify what. Instead of thinking about it too hard, he got back in his car. This was not his best day.