A/N: I should be happy, instead I'm not. I hardly even know what I'm feeling right now! All I know is that I have to type 2000 words for this chapter and then type at least five pages in my novel. Did I mention that I recently joined NaNoWriMo? My username is the same as my pen name. I kind of run out of ideas for my username. XD Heh. I'm also going to skip here. It's now Thanksgiving break. TIME-SKIPPING!

Iggy: Isn't that supposed to be "time-traveling"?

Me: Well, "traveling" isn't really an appropriate term. I mean, I'm not really "traveling"; it's more like skipping.

Max: Hence the term "time-skipping", Iggy.

Fang: Ig, think before you speak. Now you're the impulsive one.

Max: YES!

Chapter 16

Fang POV

You know what I like most about Thanksgiving? I mean, besides the turkey.

All those snooty rich kids get to leave the school premises. Especially those heiresses in Dev. Geez, they're so annoying I even thought about dropping out of high school. But that would be offensive for my family because I actually want to go to college.

Let me straighten some misunderstandings about myself.

One, I don't actually speak 22 languages. I speak only twelve (English, French, Spanish, Italian, Filipino, Chinese, Japanese, Korean, Russian, Swahili, Farsi, and German) and I can read and write in Latin and Greek. Sometimes Iggy exaggerate the facts.

Two, I do not have a fetish for redhaired girls. It just so happens that I dated only TWO redhaired girls in my entire teenage life. How can that be a fetish for redhaired girls? Unbelievable!

Three, I hate people assuming that I'm emo just because I always wear black. Really? I know that modern society has been conquered by the influence of stereotypes and Justin Bieber. It doesn't mean that I'm emo! If a girl is always wearing pink, does that mean she's a Barbie wannabe? No! But if you ask my opinion, she probably is.

FOUR, it is not true that I have never been in love. I'm in love with Max, remember? But Iggy doesn't know that and only Aya does. How does she know, you ask. The answer will come when the right time comes.

Everything cleared? Good.

I stretch out on my bed and cross my arms behind my head. A song suddenly pops in my head.

"Sa umaga't sa gabi/ Sa bawa't minutong lumilipas/ Hinahanap-hanap kita/ Hinahanap-hanap kita." Every day, every night/ For every minute that passes/ I'm looking for you/ I'm looking for you

The song lyrics sounds so much better in Aya's language, doesn't it? I think so too. Sounds exotic. I seriously think 75 percent of you didn't understand those four lines. I suspect you copied and pasted it on Google to find for its translation. You did, didn't you?

The door bursts open and Iggy waltzes in. I lift my head, drop it back on the pillow, and I see him walk towards me. I drop the accent. "What now, Iggy?"

"We're out of croutons."

You imagined something much more important, right? Yes, well, food is important for Iggy. And to all the students in Larenston. Don't judge us. We're guys. We're good at only doing three things: sleep, eat, and annoy people.

"So?"

Iggy grabs me and shakes me hard. My mouth gapes. I can smell his breath because his mouth is inches away from my face. "We can't make any stuffing without the croutons!" I can guess what he had for lunch. Chili dog, Coke, bacon, and. . . cotton candy? Whoa.

"Then go buy some!" I yell back at him. He promptly lets go and I fall back to the bed.

"I don't have a car!"

I don't answer that. Well, duh. Only the rich kids have cars. Why would we need a car, anyway? We hardly ever leave the school.

"Why don't you just go to Dev?" I prop myself with an elbow.

Iggy sighs and plops on the computer chair. My computer chair. He rubs a hand on his face. His blue eyes are fixed on mine. "Oh? How am I going to accomplish that?"

It's like he just asked me if I wear underwear. "Ask them?"

He punches the table. My table. "You know why I can't do that!"

"Right."

"Exactly! Remember the last time we asked for something? Aya specifically said that she'll have our heads on a silver platter if we go there again and demand food. She'll serve it to Satan!"

Brutal and creepy. . . "Who the heck is Satan?"

"How should I know?" Iggy begins to pull on his hair. "Ugh! How am I going to get croutons for the stuffing now?"

An idea pops on my head. "Ig, hand me the phone."

There's a frown beginning to form on his lips. "Wait. What?"

I stretch out my hand. "Give me the phone."

Ig walks to his night stand and weakly hands me the phone. He's so confused. I dial Aya's dorm phone number.

After three rings, someone picks up. "Aya."

I almost drop the phone because Aya is not the one who answered. It's Max.

My palms start to sweat and I gulp down the sudden leap of my heart up to my throat.

"Who's this?" Her sweet, sarcastic voice is filling up my hearing.

"It's Fang."

Somewhere, I hear a crash and Max cursing. "AYA! F-NICK WANTS TO TALK TO YOU!" She almost called me "Fang" again. I can still remember the time she said my name. . . That was, like, a month ago. I don't think she remembers, though.

I hear Aya laugh at Max. "'Sup?" She asks. She's way too cheerful today.

"You do know that Ig is going ballistic."

She snorts. "Over croutons? Puh-lease. Why did you call again?"

"Because we're spending our Thanksgiving in Dev."

"That is so like you. You don't ask; you just state something."

"And your point?"

She sighs. "Fine. You can go here. And tell Iggy that I'll give him a straitjacket for his Christmas gift."

I feel like laughing. But I won't, because that would blemish my devil-may-care persona. "You're actually giving gifts this year? What's mine?"

She chuckles. "Paano kung sinabi ko na ung gift mo, eh, si Max?"

Silence. What I want to answer is: "I would kiss the ground you walk upon on, Aya." Instead I say: "It's not funny."

She just laughs harder. "Oh, come on! That was a joke! Take a joke, will ya?"

I close my eyes, as I lean against the gray wall. "Things that involve her are not hilarious."

"You know what your Christmas gift should be?"

"What?"

"A sense of humor. Oh, yeah. I gotta go. Max wants to talk to you. MAX! HERE YOU GO!"

I laugh when I hear Max's denial: "I DO NOT! AYA!" Then, Aya hangs up. There's a long beep and I end the call.

Apparently, Iggy was staring at me really hard the whole time I was talking to Aya. His staring is making me uncomfortable. "What?"

He doesn't blink. Blink, Iggy! "What did she say?" He asks, his voice sounds low and. . . ominous.

"Who said what?" I pretend not to know what he asked. Hey, I like watching Iggy go ballistic.

Now he blinks. YES! "AYA!" He screams. "What did she say?"

"We can go there."

"And?"

"And eat."

"Eat what?" His eyeballs are ready to pop out of their sockets. Ooh. . . This is not Ballistic Iggy; this is I'm-gonna-die-if-you-don't-tell-me Iggy.

"Food?"

"FANG!"

"IGGY!"

Iggy pulls on his hair. Don't do it, Iggy. He takes deep breaths and his face returns to its vanilla-white complexion. "Start at the beginning. And please elaborate."

"I told her we're going to spend our Thanksgiving there."

He nods and sits back down on my computer chair. "OK. . . Continue."

"She said we can."

His blue eyes light up and jumps up. "YES!" He points at me. What now? "You didn't elaborate."

"So? You got what you want. I'm getting what I want." I lay back on my bed and close my eyes. I drape my right arm over my eyes.

"Fang, you can't sleep."

I don't answer.

"Fang, get up. Get your lazy butt off that bed."

Ig kicks my mattress. My head bobs, but I don't get up.

"FANG, IF YOU DON'T WAKE UP, I WILL DESTROY YOUR LAP-" I don't let him finish his sentence because I tackle him to the ground, my right arm pressing to his throat and I grab his right wrist.

I put on my murderous glare and threatening voice. "Touch it and I will rip you apart into little bite size pieces."

"OK!" He answers in a squeaky voice. I get off him and walk to the bathroom. I splash some cold water on my face and I get more awake. I go back to the room and Iggy is now rubbing his bruised trachea.

"Agenda."

He clears his throat. Not satisfied, he chugs a glass of water down. "We're going to Dev."

"And?"

"Nothing. This school is empty. Besides, it's more interesting in Dev. You never know what those girls are going to do next. I like surprises."

I raise a brow. I change my shirt and put on a clean dark blue long-sleeved shirt."Really? Did you like my little 'surprise'?"

"No."

I smirk. I roll up my sleeves up to my elbows. I grab my black blazer and put it on. I take my glasses and put my feet on my Chucks. "Are we going now?"

He looks at me for five seconds; I can't read his face. Then he shakes his head in disbelief. "You are so weird, Fang."

"Look who's talking."

A/N: I'M TWO DAYS LATE! SLAP ME IN THE FACE NOW! Just kidding! Don't! I predict I won't be able to meet my 50,000-word goal in NaNoWriMo. I just know it; I've only typed 4,000+ words! Anyway, RnR?