~∞ ROSES ∞~
Chapter Twelve: Rose Gazebo
Max blinked twice in shock. "This is your house?" she asked. Max couldn't believe it. This was his house? Fang Walker's freaking house.
Fang shrugged mutely, as he noticed an edge to Max's stance when she exited his car. "The 'rents moved in about three years ago, with –" He stopped himself, and walked in, with Max deciding whether to look at him funny, or be nostalgic.
Three years. That's how long it's been since the – "Max? You coming?" – This can't be a coincidence! She nodded, trying to shake off the mystic feeling in the bottom of her stomach, and followed Fang.
He had already reached the front door, and unlocked it with a key he had extracted from the pocket of his jeans. "Ladies first," Fang smirked, holding the door open for Max. Rather than smart-mouthing him, like Fang had expected, Max simply strolled through the door as casually as she could.
But the robotic-ness of her steps weren't left unnoticed by Fang. Again, he didn't question it, and proceeded to follow Max in.
"FANG!" a familiar voice shouted. "Fang, you're back! Mommy is on the phone!" A ball of excitement flung themself into Fang's out-stretched arms. "I mwissed you!" she said into his chest, in an adorable accent kids had when they lost their two front teeth.
Fang felt himself smile. "I mwissed you too," he cooed, kissing the top of her head. Max smiled as she watched the affection Fang gave to his younger sister. Or at least she hoped she was his younger sister. If she wasn't...
Angel lifted her head up from where it was in Fang's chest, and looked at Max, before looking back at Fang. "Who's that?" she wondered curiously. He glanced up at Max, who was standing awkwardly to the side, shifting her weight from foot to foot. "Is she your girlfwiend?" Angel asked, smiling toothily at the two young adults. Max bit her lip, trying not to smile from the cuteness of the little girl.
"No!" Fang all but shouted at his little sister. He hadn't meant to yell, but he didn't want his little sister to ruin his chances of ever being with Max. "Sorry for yelling at you Angel, but Max," he gestured over to her, "and I are only friends."
The corners of Max's lips quirked up a bit at the word friends, without her noticing.
"She should be your girlfwiend," Angel insisted, pulling away from Fang, and crossing her arms. Now, Max was in a full-blown out smile. Fang briefly looked at Max again, watching her smile. She seemed happier, but there was some other look in her eye. Something like pain. "Oh!" Angel cried, her face lighting up. "Stay put, mwister," she said sternly at Fang. "I have to go get something!" And then she disappeared.
Max looked at Fang. The atmosphere of the room was now tense and awkward. "Uh, I'm going to the bathroom," she muttered, before she too turned and left, trying not to look at the layout of the house. It was all too familiar.
"It's ov –" Fang began, before he realized Max was heading in the right direction. How she knew where the bathroom was in his own house befuddled him. Fang pondered the possibilities as he waited.
Angel returned momentarily, a clipped rose in her hands. She tugged on Fang's shirt, and he knelt down beside her. Cupping her small hands around his ear, Angel whispered to him, as she placed the rose in his hands. "Give it to her," she said softly, giggling some.
When Max reentered, Angel told Fang, "Quick! Hide it!" as she hugged Max tightly. Max began to pat Angel's back, before she decided against it, and hugged the little girl, just as tight. She had grown on her, in a matter of minutes. To think, Max didn't even know her name.
As if Angel read Max's mind, she smiled sweetly up at her. "I'm Angel, and I'm four." She held up four of her small fingers as though to prove her point.
Max smiled back. "Well hi Angel. I'm Max," she replied. Fang didn't fail to see the sparkle in her warm brown eyes. They seemed to soften when she looked down at his younger sister. Yet there still was that one other emotion hidden behind the happiness, whether it was genuine or not.
She glanced towards Fang, to see him softly smiling at her, and his younger sister. When Max's eyes connected with his own, he realized what was swirling around in them, shrouded by all the others.
Pain. She was broken in the inside.
And again, Fang didn't know why. Max's eyes weren't like that at school. They weren't like that in the car. But why were they now? Was it something about him? His house? Angel?
When Angel finally let her grip around Max's slender legs loosen, she ran away to her room. Max sighed, running her hand through her loose hair. "She's cute."
Fang nodded silently, still musing over why Maximum Ride would be pained.
"ASK HER!" Angel's voice screamed through the halls, causing Fang to smile. Sure his sister was only four, but by living with Angel, you'd soon learn four-year old girls can be very persistent, and very persuasive.
Max looked at Fang, her eyes questioning him. What would Angel want Fang to ask her? If she wanted to stay for dinner? If she'd come baby-sit Angel? If she would visit soon? Max didn't know.
Gently, she felt another hand grasp her own. It was as surprising as it was earlier in the day, but was it possible that Max had grown to… like it? No, this is Fang Walker. You can't let him play you, Max told herself, although her heart felt wrong.
He led her outside, to the backyard, where there was a trail to the forest. Fang hadn't been out there since his parents had first moved in, but thankfully someone had kept the pathway neatly cut, so the trail was apparent. He felt Max's hand clench inside his, as if she was afraid. It was an unlikely thing — Maximum Ride scared of the forest — but why else would she be frightened?
They walked, Fang in the lead, occasionally looking back at Max. Her face had paled considerably, and Fang quickly became worried. Their eyes connected, and the look Max gave him caused Fang to quickly drop his question.
We're getting closer to where he told me. Where I found him clutching his chest, and coughing his head off. Dad… Max thought sadly, as she timidly advanced towards the smaller path off to the side.
She took the lead, and mutely headed down the path unknown to Fang. He followed her, just as silent, although Max's expression was a blank face, in comparison to Fang's confused one.
Max walked systematically down the path that she had become so familiar with, after her father died. She daintily stepped over a large root, and turned around. They had reached the clearing.
"Fa-ANG!" she screamed, as Fang clumsily tripped over the tree root, sending him and Max to the ground. "Again?" Max groaned, as she felt the twigs and leaves press into her back, and Fang's body on her front. "Once is enough!" she said teasingly, although she arched her back, trying to stretch, and rid her shirt of the excess tree branches. Fang quickly got off her, and held his hand to help her up. This time, Max took it gratefully, dusting her pants off.
She looked off into the forest, her face distant, and Fang quickly used this time to his advantage, checking that the rose wasn't crushed inside his jacket. When he turned around to face Max, she had disappeared.
"Max?" he called out, looking around for her. Max's head peeked out of a curtain of ivy, her brown eyes wide and innocent, and glossy with what looked to be tears.
"I'm over here Fang," she said half-amused. "I didn't die or anything." Her words didn't have the usually snark in it.
Fang walked over to where Max's head was, and slowly began walking through the ivy. "You aren't trying to kill me with this ivy, right?" he joked. "Or plotting my death on the other side…"
Max opened her mouth to respond, but closed it.
And Fang did the same exact thing when he saw what was on the other side. It was a gazebo overlooking a pond he hadn't even known existed. He was pretty sure his parent's didn't know about this either.
But the most important thing, was it was covered with roses.
It was Max's turn to grab Fang's hand, as she led him to the gazebo, and sat on the bench. Fang tentatively sat beside her. There was a silence as the two looked out at the pond that seemed to be sparkling.
"How did you know about it?" Fang asked quietly. Max's head whipped towards him, and she simply stared.
After a moment, she replied, "You're different than I thought you were," swiftly changing topics.
Fang didn't push, not wanting to press Max into saying more, as he noticed the change in topics. He shrugged. "A lot of people don't know much about me." Max nodded, averting her attention back to the scenery. He took a breath, "What about you?"
"Hmm?"
"You're different than I thought you would be."
She smiled softly. "A lot of people know nothing about me."
"Am I one of them?" Fang asked, his words blurting out of his mouth before he even realized it. Max's eyes widened a bit, and he quickly tried to apologize. "I'm —"
Max nodded. "Yes, you are." Again, silence took over the young adults, and they just sat in each other's presence. If the atmosphere between them was ever awkward, it wasn't anymore. Seconds, minutes, maybe even hours passed, and they still sat there.
The environment of this secluded place almost seemed magical; the whistle of the birds, the glimmer of the water, the flow of the trees.
Fang drew a big breath in. "Max?" he asked, reaching into his jacket for the rose. He changed positions, so he was kneeling on the ground. With Max's attention on him, he took her hands, and gave her the rose Angel had given him. She looked at him with wide eyes, now completely out of whatever memories she had been in. "Maximum Ride, you yourself said I was one of those who knew nothing about you. That I hadn't even tried to talk to you, or learn about what you like, and what you don't. But I do; I do want to talk to you, I do want to learn more about you, I want to be the shoulder you can lean on. And I will, if you answer me correctly." He paused, and looked Max in the eyes. "Max, will you go out with me?" he asked in a breath. "Please?" Fang added after an after-thought.
She looked back over to a tree, where a bird was nesting. Fang was still staring at her, wondering how cute she looked in simple skinny-jeans, tennis shoes, and a sweatshirt. Max's hair fell over her face, and Fang had a sudden urge to push it away, to reveal her beautiful eyes.
Eternity came and went, with no reply from Max. She was thinking things over, extremely carefully in her head.
This is the perfect moment to activate Nudge's plan. It really is. B-but, I don't know if I can anymore. I just don't know. He's so, so different than I thought. Sure, he's still the cocky dude everyone thinks he is, but it's much more than a big head. And then she nodded, grasping the rose tenderly in her hands, tears threatening to fall. "Yes."
He looked up at her in amazement — Fang was still on the ground — and his heart felt as if it was flying. "You will?" he confirmed.
Max nodded again. "I will." Fang quickly got up, and pulled Max into a hug, so his face was in buried in her hair. He pressed his lips to her neck.
"Thank you," he murmured for no reason. It just felt right.
She was stiff in his arms for a moment, before she relaxed. When Fang pulled away, Max rolled her shoulders. "Since we're… together now, you said you wanted to learn more about me?" Fang nodded, trying to not look overly eager. "First things first," Max said, her normal confident voice returning. "You hurt me, and you die. Not just by my hand, but Nudge's as well. It won't be pretty. And don't you dare go and expect me to spill, understand?" He nodded again.
"I understand."
"I guess there's one thing I should say right now, since it's concerning you…" Max began, biting her lip as if she was unsure of her words. "Well um… How do I say this?" she asked. "Uh… I suppose I'll just be straight forward, okay?
"Your house — the one your parents and Angel live in… Well, that used to be my house. Before my dad died, before I was sent to live with my aunt, before she shipped me off to West High." Fang looked at her, shocked. "And there's something else," Max said timidly. "That rose? The one that you gave me? It's my dad's. These all are my dad's," she finished, gesturing to all around her.