A/N: (giggles) Nobody knows what the SPECIAL CHAPTER is! Mon Dieu! How can you guys not know? Here's the deal. Anyone who guesses it right will get to preview it before anyone else does! How does that sound? Enticing? Hope it is. PM ME IF YOU HAVE A GUESS! Limited to two guesses per person. I will not reply to you if you got it right or wrong. :D

Chapter 13

Fang POV

Sacre bleu!

"Does the sky ever leave the sun when it doesn't shine?" WHAT THE HECK DOES IT EVEN MEAN? It seems that my brain was in regurgitate mode. And so, my hands - the pitiful slaves - wrote what my brain vomited. I'll leave the analyzing to you.

Two shocks happened this week.

First shock: Homecoming's in two weeks. And so, desperate single Larenston guys ask shy Deveraux girls. In the weirdest, most (bleh) romantic, stupidest ways possible. Idiotic, n'est pas?

Here are my top three favorites.

Top 3: It happened Tuesday. A sophomore whose name is James (not entirely true) asked a freshman Deveraux girl whose (real) name is Aki. In the form of food. Specifically, udon noodles.

See, Aki is fond of Japanese food. Though she's not really Asian, she really likes it. And James knows this, of course. So Tuesday came and you already know Larenston students are not allowed in Deveraux territory in the weekdays. But since Homecoming's near, the Deveraux teachers let him in because they think it's so "romantic and heart-pounding." (Their words, not mine.)

As usual, Aki ordered udon noodles in the cafeteria. She sat with her friends and as she was going to break her chopsticks (She knows how to use them!), her friends started giggling. Aki ignored them and started eating. She scooped a bite and put it inside her mouth. From what I heard, her best friend gasped and pointed at Aki's bowl. Aki squinted at it and started laughing.

On the noodles were the words: Aki, Homecoming with me? -James. James has an amazing culinary skill. He made those noodles, wrote the words, and cooked her lunch. And, on Aki's chopsticks were the directions if she's going to say yes. Eventually, she said yes and also said "it's the most unique way to ask a girl to the Homecoming and probably the tastiest."

I heard all this from J.J. when I went to Deveraux for the Homecoming Planning Committee the day after it happened.

Top 2: Thursday. Junior Anthony asked Sophomore Katie through encrypted messages posted all around Deveraux with Aya's permission, of course. Anthony is a big fan of making codes and solving them. Katie feels the same way; they're both computer geeks. (No offense.)

It started in Katie's dorm room. On the wall on top of her bed was a bulletin board. Mostly full of Post-it notes, reminding herself to do this and that. But the only new thing is a piece of notebook paper with a bunch of letters written in the center. Wanna know what it said?

- T
Hat Sifter
Feria Cat
20 G D
F N
2 6
J Z S H D

Poor Katie wasn't as smart as Tony. But she didn't give up and eventually decoded the message after four hours. Noon came and she ordered a Waldorf salad without dressing in the cafeteria. The lunch lady slipped a note on her tray and Katie immediately read it. Another encrypted message.

- T
6 12 5 1 19 5
Cooler Shaft
Astern Heaven
J Z S H D

If Katie was Max, she'll be ripping the hair out of her scalp. But Katie isn't Max, so she did all her might to decode it. After school came, a red rose was delivered to her. She went to the back of the school where she saw Anthony holding up a sign saying: Will Mademoiselle Katherine go to the Homecoming with me? She said yes.

All this came from Lissa and Brigid just an hour ago.

Top 1: My favorite and the simplest of all. Lissa asked me to the Homecoming. I rejected her. In the gentleman way.

Second shock: Max can't seem to say my name.

What's so hard in saying "Fang"? It's such a simple, one-syllable name. And she even nicknamed me! Why can't she say it? Why? She remembers some of the past and yet she can't say a four-letter name? Dios Mio.

I really need to hear my name come out of her perfect lips. Just once, maybe.

Max POV

Wow, Homecoming is in two weeks. That explains the perky tittering in the hallways for the past week and the increase of students going to Tess's room for lovelorn singled-out ladies who's only desire is to go to the Homecoming with a cute guy.

Me? Well, I'm not going. I'm not really a big fan of crowded places and dancing and dresses and the sorts that go with it.

So I just lay here on the carpet in my room, my ears ringing because of the silence and completely and utterly bored. Aya is out doing her leadership stuff. And she just left me here. Meanie.

I let a breath and sit up. I scan the room for the umpteenth time and for the first time, I notice Aya's iHome on her table beside her bed. I crawl my way to the table and gaze at it for a long time. I clicked the center of her iPod and it flashes on. A white screen flashes and I read the titles of the songs. I scroll down and a song captures my eye.

Harana by Parokya ni Edgar. I press Play and the acoustic guitar strumming starts. A guy starts singing in a language I absolutely don't understand and I'm guessing it's the same language Aya speaks.

I turn up the volume because it's so soft. The chorus cues on, or at least that's what I assume it is.

Puno ang langit ng bituin
At kay lamig pa ng hangin.
Sa'yong tingin ako'y nababaliw, giliw.
At sa awitin kong ito,
Sana'y maibigan mo.
Ibubuhos ko ang buong puso ko
Sa isang munting harana para sayo.

"Having fun there, Max?" I whip my head to the door because Aya enters and grins at me. She closes the door behind her and dumps her bag beside mine. "Watcha listening to?" She plops on her bed on her stomach and looks at me with her pretty dark eyes.

"Some song I completely don't understand."

She laughs and listens too. "Ah. That's my favorite song," Aya points out.

"Do you understand it?" I ask her.

She nods. "Duh. Why?"

"Can you translate it to me?"

"Sure. The whole song?" She rests her chin on her crossed arms in front of her.

"No. Just the chorus." We wait for the chorus to come on again.

"'The sky is full of stars/ And the air is cold/ You see that I'm crazy, my dear/ And in this song/ I hope you'll like it/ I'll pour my heart out/ In this simple serenade just for you," Aya translates.

The song ends and I stare at Aya.

"Can you help me?"

"With what, Max?"

A/N: Try to crack the codes I made. I made them so I have rights. I did not copy them from the Internet. They're mine. Please try! PM me if you try to crack them! RnR?