A/N: Wow, people sign-on to this site really late! Lol. Okay, guilty as charged.

Disclaimer: I'm not James Patterson!

Chapter Three: Distances

Iggy POV

I spun the track wheel on my iPod until I assumed I hit a random song and hit play. Pulling-off my shoes, I leaned back into the couch and stared at the ceiling.

At which point it occurred to me that I didn't know what the ceiling looked like.

Now I don't know exactly how many of you guys have this issue…

But if you do, I don't think many of you are fortunate enough for my solution.

Pulling my ear buds out, I laid my iPod on the couch, flexed my knees, shook out my wings, and soared into the air. With my arms semi-outstretched, I got to the top of the ceiling and grazed it with my fingers. Slightly textured, white-cream color, oh, there's a fan, so that's where it is…

Smiling with my new discovery, I descended onto the couch again and leaned back, re-adjusting my iPod and hitting Shuffle.

After a couple songs, my head became a dizzying whirl of memories. Different songs affixing to different memories. One in particular, Photograph by Nickelback, forced me to remember the birthday party when Fang bought Angel the camera, and we were to put the picture in Max's frame.

It has only been a few days since Fang's desertion. Max hasn't come out of her room, and we actually found a note on her bed this morning that explained that she was "just out for a flight". I'm just happy that she's actually out of her room. I also found the macaroni Tupperware tub in the sink this morning, which means one of two things:

1) Max ate;

2) Someone else ate it.

I can't help but feel mostly responsible for this all. Why couldn't I just accept the fact that they finally got together? We all have known it would happen for like, ever. Why couldn't I just swallow my freaking pride and accept it? Why did I have to blow up on them? If only I didn't act like such an ass and just get used to the fact that they were together and things would be changing.

I mean, I accepted the fact of change that we actually have a house. Why was accepting Max and Fang together so damn hard?

Because it meant change for the entire Flock. Not just a stable house, but change within the people of the Flock.

A tear ran down my face as I realized what an ass I was and how undeniably responsible I was for most of this mess. If I just put up with it and diverted my attention to focusing on music or something…maybe Fang would still be here…

Nudge POV

The window in my room allowed the sweet breeze into it and made me even more miserable. I flipped over on my bed and logged-in to the blog. I had been following Fang's blog since he left, and so far no new posts. Plenty of his readers have left some pretty nasty comments like, "Where are you!?" "Did you leave us?" "Please update so we know you're alive!" "I love you!" I hope Max doesn't see that one…

So I have this crazy idea that maybe if I can follow Fang's blog then I'll be able to find him and get Max to get him back to the Flock, mostly for her sake.

I closed the laptop lid and rolled onto my belly and picked-up my Cosmopolitan magazine and flipped to the article about sunglasses.

When my door suddenly opened I nearly fell off of my bed in surprise.

"Crap, sorry, I didn't mean to startle you."

"What do you mean 'startle'? You can't 'startle' me. I was like, totally prepared for that." Frankly, Dylan was the last person I wanted to talk to right now.

"Well, I was, uh, just wondering how you were."

"Uh. Well, considering my brother just left my family and my sister is in a severe depression because the love of her life just walked out on her and the whole family is a big mess right now and I don't know if we are ever going to be together and happy ever again and I'm really scared because I just want things to be like they were before all this leaving happened.

"I mean, it's not like I can't say that I had nothing to do with it. I mean, when Angel had that voting thing when we all voted Max out of the Flock, well, I raised my hand. And right after Max left, Fang chased after her because he loves her.

"Now I understand the whole 'let it go, and if it comes back then it's true love' or whatever, but really? Fang leaving Max is not qualifiable for this."

Dylan just stood there staring at me, speechless, which I don't understand because I never am.

Then, get this, he came and sat down next to me.

On my bed.

WTF?

"I'm really sorry, Nudge. I feel kinda the same way. I don't know where to go. I'm such a burden to you guys, and look at the rift I've caused between Max and Fang. I don't mean to, but that's all I've ever known is that I'm supposed to be for Max. Now I think I realize that you can't design true love."

Now I know what it feels like to be speechless. I reached my arm across Dylan's shoulders and gave him a little squeeze.

"We'll figure this all out sooner or later. Hopefully sooner, because I really want Fang back. It just doesn't feel like the Flock without him, ya know?"

"Um…"

We each laughed, but I still felt like a traitor for voting Max out, therefore taking part in Fang's decision to leave. How could I have done that? After all that both of them have done for me and I can't accept their happiness for once?

Gazzy POV

Red to green, just like a Christmas tree.

I love messing with wires.

Now traditionally, this is how you hotwire a bulldozer, which is a ton of fun.

But right now I'm playing with Matchbox cars, a couple alarm clocks, and fireworks.

I set the alarm to thirty seconds later, attached it to a car, and tossed it into the air.

POP!

Tiny wheels, hoods, windshields, and doors littered the deck below. It's really the only thing to do now. Everyone is acting so awkward around each other. For one reason or another everyone is blaming themselves for having some part in making Fang leave.

I lit a couple homemade fireworks and sent them into the air just for the heck of it.

These were the models I used to make the birthday fireworks.

Nothing is the same right now. How is Max supposed to save the world without Fang? They always have each other's backs in battle. How is Max going to do this without him?

Now, I normally don't get into mushy-gushy lovey-dovey stuff, but personally witnessing those two, always together, even only being nine I know that this isn't going to end well.

I attached another Matchbox car and tossed it, this one having a bigger explosion than the last.

Angel POV

I walked across my room and picked up Celeste off of my desk. Smoothing out her little dress, I went back over to my bed and sat down with her.

My shoulders began to quiver and I let out another sob, jumping slightly at the sound of one of Gazzy's other explosions.

What was I thinking? I'm only seven, I mean, I have a lot more power over people than Max and Fang put together, but I'm not the magnitude of a leader that Max is. I won't be for quite some time. I just wish I would've realized this sooner.

But it's too late now because Fang is gone.

Over the past few days I've picked-up trains of thought that seem to belong to Fang, but I am either quickly shut-out or the thoughts disappear. I've actually sat by my window at night and tried with all my might to find some residence of Fang.

So far nothing has came up.

This is all my fault. Not partially, not kinda, not just a little, all of it.

I should never have voted out Max and tried to be a leader. Fang would still be here and we'd all be flying right now, or having a picnic, or playing a game.

We would be together.

But now all we are is separated. Max never leaves her room, Iggy is moody, Nudge spends waaay too much time on the computer, and Gazzy worries about Max all the time.

Will we ever be the same?

Max POV

The morning sun warmed my feathers as I entered the middle of Nevada, about halfway to Lake Mead by now.

How many times am I going to fly this very path?

Am I just wasting my time?

The only thing that's going to be at Lake Mead when I get there are a bunch of hawks and a lake.

I guess I could stop by my mom's house while I'm in Arizona…

But I'm going to Lake Mead first.

A/N: Now we kinda see how the rest of the Flock feels about Fang's leaving, the results of Lake Mead will be coming soon! Stay tuned! Take care, keep reading.

~hawkstar2~