Hey guys! I'm back after, like, a bajillion years.

Yep. It's been a while.

So anyways, I actually had other chapters written for this story, but they made no sense when I compared them to the chapter I posted (I'm so weird). It was like two completely different stories…Ik weird!

Anyways, here's what you all wanted! A new chapter! (I felt bad so I wrote over 3,000 words. You like?) :)

MPOV

The next morning I woke up with a crick in my neck and a broken back.

Okay, yes. That might've been quite an over exaggeration. In reality, my back hurt and my neck hurt. The wood floor really doesn't do much for your spinal cord.

"Gooood morning, sunshine!" Kendall said as I smelled bacon. I followed my nose to the kitchen where Hil and Kendall were making a four-course breakfast for me, Fang, Nudge, Angel and themselves. I sniffed in the scent of pancakes, bacon, waffles and whatever else they were making. It overwhelmed my senses – but in the best way possible.

"Hey guys!" I greeted them. I had forgotten that every time they sleep over they insist on getting up early and making breakfast. "The food smells delicious!" I yawned and stretched.

"Why thank you, E," Hil said. "Or, wait. Is it Max now?" I shrugged. I really didn't care either way.

In some ways, I was more Max-like. For example, whenever I flew; whenever I led something; whenever I talked to the Voice; whenever I kissed Fang; whenever I played family with the flock. Really, I was Max whenever something that doesn't happen to normal people happened. In other ways, I was Erid. Like whenever I had a chocolate chip cookie; whenever I sang; whenever I kissed Aaron; whenever I had deep conversations with Hil; whenever Kendall protected me like a little sister; whenever I took care of Nai.

Nudge came out of my bedroom, sleepily as she always was when she woke up. She followed her nose with her eyes closed to the kitchen. She finally opened her eyes and stared in wonder. I could see her amazement and loved it. She was the sweetest kid.

"Breakfast! Ehmagawd! There's actual breakfast! On an actual table! With actual food instead of-"

"Instead of what, Nudge?" Fang asked, walking out of my bedroom as well. Nudge looked at him and kept her mouth shut for once. He just grinned in that Fang-like way that always made me smile. Hil elbowed me as she flipped a pancake. She gave me a knowing look and I blushed fiercely.

"Well, since other people are up too, I'm gonna go brush my teeth," I said, heading to my bathroom. I decided not to take a shower right then because all the food would be gone before I got out again. I just brushed my teeth quickly and then rushed back to my table. "Do you guys need help setting the table with food or whatever?" I asked as Kendall and Hil were attempting to pile five plates on one arm each. They looked at each other and then at me, nodded and smiled. I laughed lightly and took a few plates from Kendall.

"Wait, why do you guys make breakfast?" Nudge asked. "I mean, it certainly smells and looks good, but this is Max's house. Shouldn't she be cooking or something? I mean, 'cause if it were me, I'd cook. But I know that Max is a bad cook, so why not go out to eat or something. I mean, I'm just really confused, I guess. You know?"

There was an awkward silence for a moment and then Hil, Kendall and I burst into laughter together.

"I don't know," Hil said, recovering from our gigglefest. "E's never been able to cook, so we thought it'd be nice to cook for her whenever we were here. We've been doing it since, like, the first we slept over I think. Right, E?"

I shrugged. "Yeah, I think so. You guys are the greatest," I said, laughing still. If they hadn't been there to cook for me all those times, I'd probably be going hungry. Whenever the whole band comes over just to hang out, they always eat all my food. One day, I'd get them back for it, though. I'd show up at one of their houses at 2 AM and eat all their food. That would show them.

Right?

"Anyways, bon appetite!" Kendall said, gesturing to our plates. One was stacked with pancakes that was taller than me. The one next to it had, easily forty waffles on it. The syrup bowl was humongous. There was fruit salad made with fresh fruit and sprinkled with powdered sugar. There were cereals of every kind.

I hugged Hil before I dug in. I put eight pancakes, four waffles and ten bacon strips on my plates. Yes, plates. You didn't think I could fit all that of one plate, did you? Fang one-upped me by getting ten pancakes, seven waffles and twenty bacon strips. How we could eat all of this and not die of heart failure was beyond me.

"Where's Angel?" I asked halfway through our pigsty of a breakfast. Fang looked up at me, half a pancake sticking out of his mouth, and shrugged. I looked to Hil and Kendall, to check if she had snuck out early. They shrugged as well.

All eyes turned to Nudge, who was shoveling food into her mouth like it was going out of style. She spit it out of her mouth and looked at us all, guiltily.

"Well, um," she started. "Angel went to go get Iggy and Gazzy 'cause we called them last night and told them we had found you and all and they were all 'AHH! Oh my god! We have to go see her! We miss her!' and all that jazz. So Angel and I got plane tickets for them from wherever they were – which reminds me, where have they been living for the past five years? I'm still confused. Anyways, now Angel is picking them up from the airport because they couldn't fly here for some reason or another. Either it would take too long or they burnt their wings a little… Something like that. Or maybe… I don't know."

For once, we were glad that Nudge couldn't shut up. She fizzled herself out towards the end. Once she finished, she took a humongous breath in. "And yeah…Angel's at LaGuardia," Nudge finished off. Fang and I exchanged a look which we then shared with Kendall and Hil.

"Well, I suppose she's alright there," Fang said as the rest of us agreed, digging into our food again. Nudge sat there, dumbstruck.

"You aren't going to go after her and tell her never to do it again? What if an Eraser finds her?" Nudge asked. Fang and I exchanged another look.

"There aren't any Erasers," I said. "We destroyed Itex, remember?" Nudge stayed quiet for a moment, completely uncharacteristic of Nudge. "Oh God, there's something you're not telling us, isn't there?"

"I mean…I don't know," Nudge said, avoiding the subject altogether.

"She's not telling us something," Hil said as if she had been part of the flock her entire life.

"Definitely," Kendall added in the same tone.

"What's up, Nudgers?" I asked her. She shrugged, looking away from all of us.

"Nudge, I swear to God…" Fang threatened. "I'll throw you out that window if you don't tell us why Angel is in trouble." Although that sounded pretty horrible to a human, it wasn't much of a punishment to us birdkids who could – get this – fly! I know. Shocker.

"Well, it's just that this one time last night – you know when Angel and I were looking for a bathroom because our motel didn't have one? – we walked past the Institute and we saw these guys come out of the secret door. They were really sketch-tastic and it was, like, extreme scary. So, anyways, Angel and I just ran away. But Angel's with Iggy and Gazzy now. They can, like, protect her and stuff. Plus, she doesn't really need much protection anymore, I'd say," Nudge admitted. "But anyways, are we going to go looking for her or, like, what? Because I'm confused."

I got up immediately. "Hill, Kendall, stay here. Could you please store these delightful treats somewhere to keep them safe? Fang, Nudge and I are going on a rescue mission," I said, grabbing my jacket. I reached for the doorknob but a knock at the door stopped me in my tracks. I looked back at the other four – Fang just getting his jacket on, Nudge sitting guiltily at the table, Hil and Kendall cleaning up. I looked through the peephole.

"Oh my God," I said, opening the door. A tall, lanky pale boy with a blonde thirteen-year-old boy. They were followed by a bouncy blonde eleven-year-old. "Iggy! Gazzy!" I greeted, hugging the boys. Gazzy hugged me first and then Iggy hugged me. He picked me up, whirled me around once and laughed.

"Well, hey Erid Maximum," he said. "Nice name, by the way. Very original." We laughed and then Fang and I turned on Angel.

"Nudge told us, Ange," I said.

"How could you do this to us? Leave without telling anyone?" Fang interjected. Iggy made a comment about 'parents,' but I ignored him.

"I told Nudge though," Angel replied quickly.

"Nudge doesn't count. You have to tell someone older, sweetie," I said.

"Angel, someone could've taken you," Fang said.

Angel gave us a defying look. "No they couldn't have. I would've just told them to put me down and they would have," she said with attitude.

I sneered in disgust. "Not if they're robots," I told her. She looked at me, speechless. She opened her mouth to complain but had nothing to say. Fang gently tapped my hand, letting me know I had her cornered.

"Fine," Angel said. "I give up. I'm sorry. Next time I'll tell someone."

"No, there will be no next time. You're grounded," I ordered. She looked up at me, shocked. "Three weeks. You got it?" Angel narrowed her eyes and turned her head to the side – her signature mind control position. "And if you even try brain washing me, it'll be longer." Angel sighed in defeat and stomped off. "Take a plate to eat!" I called after her. She grabbed some pancakes and a fruit salad.

I turned back to everyone else. "Sorry guys, but it had to be done," I said. "And Nudge. You're an accomplice to murder. One week." Nudge groaned dramatically. She grabbed her plate of food and headed into my room with Angel.

My phone rang and I picked it up. "Hullo?" I asked.

"Max, you have to be at the studio in ten minutes, okay?" Ella's tinny voice said on the other line. She sounded a little worried, which was not uncommon for my half-sister. The only thing weird about her was that she didn't seem to be rushing me.

"El, what's wrong?" I asked.

There was a pause on her line. "Nothing. Nothing's wrong. Uh…you have to be here in nine minutes and forty-nine seconds. Time is ticking, Max. We have to shoot your music video!" With that she hung up. I hung up my iPhone and got my jacket on.

"Guys, Kendall, Hil and I have to be at the studio in ten minutes. Could you put away all the stuff? The fridge is empty," I said with a pointed look at my two bandmates who fist-bumped wordlessly. "C'mon guys." I quickly hugged Nudge goodbye and tapped fists with Fang. I headed out the door with Hil and Kendall.

"So Max. You and Fang, eh?" Hil asked, a laugh caught in her voice. Kendall snickered.

I looked at the duo, horrified. "I'm dating Aaron!" I replied. "I wouldn't ever cheat on him with Fang." As soon as the words came out of my mouth, I knew I was being a hypocrite. I had kissed Fang. I had thought about him that way. And 'd be lying if I didn't say I had fantasized about kissing him while I kissed Aaron.

Hillary shot me a knowing look as we stepped onto the streets of New York City. It was only 10 AM and yet the streets were bustling. A business woman with her Starbucks coffee bumped into me and gave me a nasty look.

"Watch where you're going, kid," she said. As she walked away, she buried her face into her Blackberry. She ran into two other people, telling them each the same thing as she had told me. I snickered when one of the other people flipped her off.

"Onwards, E!" Kendall said, throwing me over his shoulder. I squealed in delight as Kendall galloped down the street to our studio. Hil walked behind us, texting with Naomi. People gave us weird looks as we passed, but I was too happy for them to faze me. My flock was back, I was having fun with my bandmates and I was an international singer. How could life get better?

We stepped into the studio to find Ella waiting for us with her foot tapping. "Great job, guys," she said. "You made it here with fifty-three seconds to spare."

"Where's Aaron?" I asked, hoping to start off the day by kissing him. Ella pointed to his dressing room.

"He said he wanted a moment alone," Ella explained. "But I'm sure he'll make an exception for his girlfriend." I grinned and walked over to his dressing room. His door was painted with flames and his name was written in coal.

I pushed the door open to find him sitting on his couch.

With another girl.

Straddling him.

"AARON!" I shrieked loudly. Their lips broke apart and Kendall, Ella and Hil rushed inside to see. "What the flip, Aaron?"

"Uh, E, this isn't what it looks like," he said. I stomped towards him, pulled the redhead (yes, redhead) off of him, pushing her to the floor. I ignored her completely and punched Aaron in the face. He squealed like a little girl and held his bloody nose.

"Get out," I told him. "Get the hell out of my sight."

He sneered. "I don't have to go anywhere. This is my dressing room," he said, helping his sexpod up off the floor. "You get out."

I turned on my heel. "Have fun with your bimbo, Aaron," I said. "We're through."

"Good," he said.

"Good," I said, delivering a sidekick to his wall. A hole formed around my foot and Aaron squealed again.

"You're paying for that," he exclaimed.

"Why?" I asked. "It's your room. It's my building. You owe me for that little hole."

He sat there, flabbergasted and my logic (which was completely wrong). "Well, fine. Goodbye bitch," he said. I narrowed my eyes at him, screamed and then stomped out of the room.

And right into my own dressing room across the hall. I collapsed on my couch with sobs. Hil, Kendall and Ella came in to cheer me up, but Hil shooed the other two away. She sat quietly next to me, petting my back and hair. She softly whispered to me. Whatever she was whispering about was unknown, but it was comforting to hear another voice, especially Hillary's.

I looked up Hillary with her white-blonde hair falling around her shoulders elegantly. Her brown eyes looked to a far off place and her cherry lips moved with soundless words. Her pink cheeks held a solemnity about them – even though she had her freckles, which seemed to make everything better. She smiled just a tad and looked at me, finishing an unheard sentence.

"Hil, am I terribly ugly?" I asked, my voice cracking towards the end of the sentence.

"E," Hillary said, sadness evident in her voice. "You're beautiful. Aaron doesn't know what he's missing." She smiled. I grimaced at her and she took a photo off the wall.

The photo showed me and Aaron kissing each other. It made me want to break into another round of sobs, but Hil did something totally unexpected with it instead. She took it out of its frame and tore it into two.

"Hil, no! That's mine!" I said as she tore it again.

"E, this is for your own good," she said. "No reminders." She took another picture off the wall and tore it up the same way.

"B-but I have to go work with him now," I told her delicately. Hil stopped mid-tear.

"Oh yeah," she said. "Yeah, that's going to be a problem." She kept tearing along. "But, anyways; I'm going to keep ripping these pictures up until you rip at least one up." I gasped. Oh, God. I had broken up with him less than fifteen minutes ago and now she wanted me to get rid of him altogether?

"Hil, that's not going to happen," I told her seriously.

Hil looked thoughtful for a second. "Fine," she said, malice in her voice. "But if you don't, Mr. Teddums is next on the list of ripping."

I gasped. Not Mr. Teddums! Aaron had won Mr. Teddums for me at a fair once when we were touring. "Please, no," I said. "What has Mr. Teddums ever done to you?"

"Nothing," Hil agreed. "But think about what he'll do to you. He'll make you feel guilty about breaking up with the devil himself and then you'll get back together with him and then I'll die of embarrassment because my best friend is dating a little girl." She smiled at her wit and I cracked a smile thinking about Aaron's screams.

"Fine," I said. "But only on picture." I picked one gingerly off the wall. The camera had caught Aaron and me kissing on our first date. I took it gently out of its frame and then lightly tore the top. I looked to Hil and she encouraged me onwards. I tore it more and it came apart in my hands. I suddenly felt a weight lift off of my shoulders and I took another picture off the wall. I took it out of its frame and tore it up maniacally. I laughed and took another out of its frame.

"E! That's enough. We have to get ready for the shoot," Hil said, her voice of reason reaching my ears. I stopped, breathing heavily. Hil was right. I had to stop. I was about to go insane.

"Okay, let's go," I said as Hil opened my door.

How'd you guys like it? It's been awhile so my writing style has changed quite a bit.

Let's see how many reviews we can get! I'm aiming for seventy, please!

Also, PM me if you have any questions. :)

~Hayley