A/N: I'm sorry I took so long to update. I was actually busy working on my friend's birthday present. I wanted to write a collection of short stories for her and I wanted them to be perfect. So I admit I kind of ignored this story for a while, even though I knew some of my fans would be annoyed. But hopefully she really liked her present!

DISCLAIMER: I do not own Maximum Ride.

Chapter Eighteen – Bitch Ditch

Max's POV

For once, the lunchroom wasn't awkward – probably because Iggy hadn't arrived yet. Nudge sat in her usual spot, munching on some weird looking celery sticks. She'd gradually stopped visiting the other groups like she used to, and now Max could say that Nudge was definitely a member of their group. She knew that Nudge loved to belong somewhere.

Fang was going through his notes for his next exam. His brow was puckered in the cutest way. She liked how even though he was obviously concentrating, he still placed his hand on her leg just to keep some contact with her. Her obvious case of love-sickness annoyed her, however. But there wasn't really anything she could do about that.

Max was people watching and trying to decide if she would miss this place when she graduated. She didn't think so….

Iggy arrived a few moments later, carrying a box filled with God knows what. He dropped it on the table and grinned at them.

"Okay, I'll bite. What's in the box?" Max asked, trying to peer over the top.

"The drama department needed some people to help make the props. Thus, I have enlisted you three to help me." He grinned again.

"Iggy, I have a test next," Fang said, obviously irritated.

"We can do it after school then."

"I have band practice," Nudge said apologetically.

"And I have to go to work," Fang added, giving Max a sly look.

"Okay, what about tomorrow morning? They wanted them done by the end of the week. We can work on them throughout the week and drop it in sometime on Friday."

It was obvious that Iggy really wanted to help out. Max felt bad for him, so she decided to speak up before Fang could come up with a new excuse.

"That sounds fine, Ig."

Iggy gave her a grateful look and slumped into the chair next to Nudge. He started talking to her and Max watched them for a moment. Nudge seemed surprised to have Iggy paying her any attention. Max smiled to herself as she watched the pair.

"I don't want to spend all my free time painting toy swords or whatever the hell it is we're doing," Fang whispered into her ear. The hand that was on her leg started tracing patterns on her skirt-covered leg. "I could think of much better ways to spend my time."

Max slapped his hand away and mock-scowled at him. "Fang," she warned in a low voice.

He smirked. It was so infuriating when he did that!

"Well guess what," she said in retaliation, just because she was feeling evil.

"What?"

"No sex until every single prop is perfect and delivered to the drama department."

His mouth twitched into a frown.

"What?" he snapped.

"You heard me," she replied.

He stared at her for a few moments, searching her face. Then he smirked again. He leant forward so that she could feel his breath against her ear. "We'll see if you can keep to your word," he whispered. His lips touched the edge of her ear for one second and she shivered. She could feel him smirking against the side of her face. Then he kissed her cheek, picked up his pen, and resumed studying. He didn't even give her a sideways glance.

How was it that he could manage to completely unravel her with only one sentence? It was so unfair!

Max was abruptly cut off from her musings when she heard a scream.

"What the hell is your problem?" Lissa screeched. The lunchroom went quiet as everyone stared at a dripping wet redhead. Angel was looking sheepish and slightly scared. She was holding a half-empty coke bottle in her hand. So that explained the screeching teenager.

"I'm sorry. It was an accident!" Angel said.

Lissa slapped her and stalked off towards the bathroom. There was a collective gasp as everyone stared at the red mark developing on Angel's cheek.

"It's on, bitch!" Angel called out after her.

Lissa flipped her the bird over her shoulder.

"Well, that was interesting," Max murmured to no one in particular as the other students recommenced their conversations.

"Angel?" Max asked as she approached the other girl. Angel slammed her locker and glared at Max.

"What do you want?"

"I just want to know what happened with Lissa."

"I spilt my drink on her because she said something not so nice about my boyfriend. Then I said it was an accident. She didn't believe me. Are you happy now?" Angel asked, placing her hands on her hips.

"I was actually wondering if there…if there was anything you could tell me about her."

Angel smirked. "I'll tell you that she slept with Daniel Cooper so that she could cheat off of his History exam."

Max's mouth gaped open. Daniel Cooper was the ugliest kid in school. However, he was also one of the smartest. Max couldn't believe that Lissa would go so far as to sleep with him just to copy his answers in a test.

"I plan to tell the whole school. In fact, I advise that you pass this information on to the first person you see," Angel said.

"What did she say about your boyfriend?" Max asked.

"My ex-boyfriend. She told me she slept with him and that she thought it was her duty to tell me that he wasn't faithful. What a bitch."

Max felt a stab of sympathy for Angel. "She can be ruthless sometimes," Max agreed.

In her next class, Max found herself telling one of the girls all about Lissa's conquest. She felt a little but guilty for participating in Lissa's demise, but couldn't bring herself to stop talking. After all, there was no way that Lissa could bounce back from sleeping with Daniel Cooper. No one could bounce back after sleeping with him.

Plus, it wasn't like Lissa didn't deserve a little bit of payback.

By lunchtime the next day the rumours had made it to just about everyone in the school. When Angel entered the lunchroom she didn't make her way to her usual table. Instead, she appeared in front of Max's table.

"Can I join you?" she asked, looking a bit timid.

Max didn't say anything, just made room for her.

"Another person to help with the drama props," Iggy said with glee. Max could picture him rubbing his hands together with excitement.

Soon after Angel joined them, Lissa entered the lunchroom. A burst of whispers erupted as everyone turned to watch her. There were some giggles throughout the crowd of teenagers. Max could practically hear Daniel Cooper giving a detailed version of what happened between them.

Lissa held her head up high and took her usual spot at the center table. As soon as she sat down all of her friends stood up and moved away. It was a not-so-subtle way of letting her know that she was on her own.

Lissa stood up and stared at everyone in the room. "Don't you have more to do with your lives than talk about me?" she shouted. Her voice reverberated off of the walls in the total silence that enveloped the room.

Lissa's eyes latched onto Max's table with so much hatred that Max half-expected the table to burst into flames.

Lissa threw her chair away with a shriek and pounded up to her table. Her fists were clenched and her knuckles were white. Max was just a bit scared of her.

"Are you happy now?" she yelled. It was obvious that she wasn't just talking to Angel, but Max as well.

"You're a real bitch," she told Angel. Then her eyes switched to Max and she had never seen so much hatred before. "You're an even bigger bitch. You act like you're all high and mighty, but guess what! You're the same as me. I know you were spreading the rumours about me. Did you even stop to think if they were true? Did you even think about how this would affect me?"

"You've been horrible to me. It's not my fault if you finally got a bit of backlash," Max said, except she wasn't so sure anymore.

"What gives you the right to socially ruin me?" Lissa barked.

"The same thing that gave you the right to socially ruin me!" Max yelled. She took in a deep breath and clenched her fists. She was about two seconds away from punching the redhead.

Lissa clenched her teeth and curled her lip back. "I hope you think about your actions when I slit my wrists with a razor because I can't live with the rumours anymore," Lissa whispered.

Max's mouth dropped open and he heart stopped. Slit her wrists?

Then Lissa grabbed Fang's shirt and yanked him out of his chair. Then she attacked his mouth with hers. Max was too stunned to do anything, and apparently so was Fang. It took him a second before he pushed her away and spat on the ground. Lissa just smiled like a lunatic and walked towards the door. Her hips were swinging the whole way.

"She wouldn't really kill herself, would she?" Max asked Fang.

"She's doesn't have the courage," Fang replied, wiping his mouth with the back of his hand.

Max really hoped he was right. She wouldn't be able to live with the guilt if Lissa really killed herself.

Fang took her hand and rubbed soothing circles on her skin.

A/N: I apologize if there are any spelling or grammar mistakes in this chapter. I didn't edit it with as much precision as I usually do.