Yes I know what your thinking. How could I possibly agree to help Dr Gumpa Humpa in his quest to evolve mankind? Thing is I don't like it anymore than you do. The look on Iggy's face when he knew he would be able to see again was just priceless. Never had I seen him look so happy and full of hope before. Which is the only reason I'm doing this. For him.
After I agreed to help the lovely Dr, I announced to the flock me and Iggy might be gone for a while. They were not too keen on the idea either, except Angel of course. She was the only one who believed Dr G.H could actually make mankind evolve into a better species, to be able to live better, longer and stronger lives. It wasn't welcoming seeing him again after all this time. Especially since me and the flock had strapped the Dr down and put him in a giant freezer, we didn't expect to see him for at least a few months. I guess he bailed out early from good behaviour.
"Max..I think maybe I should come with you. Angel and the flock will be able to survive without us for just a few days, besides they have Jeb back at the safe house." Dylan began, he sounded sincere.
"No I want to go with Iggy, he needs me not you, the Dr I mean." I replied.
"Hey I need you too!" Iggy piped up from the sideline.
"Yes I know Ig, I'm sorry. Dylan stay with the flock, case something bad happens. I need a strong fighter I can rely on." I persisted.
His jaw loosened and his gaze fell to the floor.
"Max please let me come with you. I want to come with you." Dylan pried.
"No stay with the flock!" I yelled.
"Let him go with you Max." The voice said. Oh are your going to say it'll prove useful? I laughed.
"Well, yes it will."
You also said I'd be happy by the end of the day, that I would be glad to have Dylan, that I would realise that I needed him.
"The day hasn't finished yet, Maximum."I sighed. Very well.
"Okay Dyl bird, you win... You can come if you want." I saw the look on his face and his eyes glowed alight with happiness.
"Thanks, Max." He said giving me a big smile. I looked over at the Dr and he had a faint smile spread across his lips.
"What are you smiling at?" I growled at the Dr.
"I'm just thinking about you and Dylan." He smiled again. I looked over at Dylan and he seemed to be blushing.
"Are we going to do this or not."Iggy said walking closer towards us.
"Shall we head back to the safe house now then?" Nudge said looking at me for an answer.
"Yes you guys head back me Ig and Dylan will go and get Iggy's eyes repaired.
"Oh yeah!" Iggy shouted punching the air once more.
"Will we see him when he's fixed?" Nudge asked making Iggy sound like a machine.
"As soon as Iggy is 'fixed' we will come straight back home." I smiled. Dylan also smiled.
"Shall we?" Dr G.H motioned towards a black car in the nearby parking lot. The three of us waved goodbye to the flock and climbed in to the Dr's car.
Flying it would have only taken me minutes to get to Malibu, the Dr's home and work place. But in the car it took a lot, lot longer.
An hour has passed and I had had it up to my eyeballs with scientific talk from Dr G.H. He was talking about how the world was going to be a better place and how I was going to help him with his research. Great.
"So when will I get my new eyes?" Iggy asked from the front seat, getting impatient.
"Soon. First Max will assist me in a number of experiments. Then if that all goes well, you will get your eyes." Dr G.H said enthusiastically. Meanwhile I was sitting in the back next to Dylan and we exchanged a number of glances during the ride. He didn't know what to expect from all of this and neither did I. I was happy to have the backup encase I needed it.
"I knew you would." The voice said happily, as though he had won a bet or something. I shook my head.
"How long is this all going to take because I have other plans you know." I asked the Dr and he looked back at me in the windshield.
"Perhaps two days maybe three." He smiled. I sighed. I hadn't hoped to stay that long but Iggy seemed comfortable with it.
"Oh don't worry, there will be plenty to do. Max can help me with my research when I need her. Dylan you can help out also, I will need someone to calm her nerves." He chuckled. He already knew I wasn't going to like whatever it is he had planned for me. "Iggy can tinker with a few things if he so wishes. Learn you way around the lab a little bit." The Dr continued.
"Sounds great." Iggy cheered. "I'm gonna make a whole load of explosives with the stuff I find. Gazzy would be proud." He finished. I expected Dr G.H to go mad but he just laughed. Me and Dylan couldn't help but give a weak smile. Things didn't seem too bad until the oh mighty and wonderful Dr changed the subject. Can you guess what he changed it to? Me and Dylan of course.
"I'm sure over these next couple of days you two will get along better than ever." He smiled, occasionally glancing in the mirror at us, then returning his beady gaze tot he road.
"Oh I have to agree with him there."
Jezums, why is everyone so interested in me and him! I shouted inside my head.
"Because you two are the future. You need to save the world and you need him to help you." The voice told me. Oh great I should have known you would tell me the answer.
"Max, I'm surprised that you and Dylan haven't paired yet. After all, it's been months since..." Dr G.H began but I cut him off.
"Since you almost killed the only person in the entire world I loved to bits!" I stated. Dylan shot me a glance and I knew he was telling me inside to overlook it and dismiss it from my mind. But you can distinguish my point.
"Yes well, not intentionally of course. Besides that was weeks ago. I was sure you and Dylan would be hooked up by now." He finished.
I shot a glance towards Dylan and he blushed looking down at his hands and started fiddling, unsure of what to say.
"He would love to be paired with you more than anything Maximum. Give him the chance to show you what he can offer you."
Jesus all mighty, you sound just like Dr Hans. You sure your not secretly him or working for him? I scoffed.
"No Maximum, not at all. But the man does have a point. He only wants you two to pair with each other. It will help you with your save the world quest after all."
"Yes well, I'm sure I can save the world without a boyfriend, thank you." I spoke out loud so both my voice and the Dr could hear me.
But then Dylan did also and a somber, rejected look spread across his face. I was tempted to lean over and pat him on the shoulder and say 'hey chin up buddy, pleanty more mutants in the sea' but I knew that the only mutant he was made for was me.
"We shall see won't we." Dr Hans recited.
"You never give in do you? When are you going to learn, my boyfriend left! He isn't coming back! I'm not just going to fall deeply and madly in love with someone else only weeks after! Fang was my only true love and now he's gone. No amount of perfect you can place infront of me is going to change that." I roared.
"That isn't the way to go about it Maximum. Yelling isn't going to change a thing. The only thing you will achieve by doing this is getting on the Dr's nerves and pacience. Not to mention how you have made Dylan feel. Look at him Maximum. Are you proud of yourself?" The voice mutterd slowly so I could digest every single word carefully. I took a breather and browsed over in Dylan's direction. He had his hands in his lap with his head propped up against the window. He looked as though someone had died. He looked almost...destroyed. I saw him squeeze his eyes shut and then I noticed a tear roll down his clear, tanned cheek. He quickly brushed it away and my heart stopped beating. I had made Dylan this upset?
"That is how much he likes you. To hear you say those words completely crushed him inside. He believed you were starting to feel a connection with him. He believed you were getting to be good friends." My voice explained.
Oh, I see. I peered over at the newest bird kid again and saw him in the same position, wiping his cheek with his sleeve. I didn't mean to make him this upset. I just wanted Dr Hans to know I wasn't ready.
"Dyl bird?" I called using my own new nickname for him, hoping it might cheer him up.
"What?" He replied groggily. He didn't even seem the least bit impressed at his new nickname. I huffed.
"Are you alright. I'm sorry." I apologised putting my hand on his shoulder. He gave me a weak smile and nodded. I wanted to put my arms around him and tell him I hadn't meant to hurt his feelings. But he placed his head back on the window and sighed. Great, now he's going to hate me. Voice tell me what to do. How can I make him realise I didn't mean to hurt him. I paused, waiting for an answer.
"Firstly, he believes you didn't try to hurt his feelings on purpose. Secondly, scooting over to the middle and putting your arms around him might not be a bad idea. Give it a go." The voice eased. For the first time I believed the voice wasn't trying to hook me up with Dylan or get me to feel an attraction towards him. He sounded sincere and honest.
So, for the first time I did what the voice told me to and scooted over to the middle and gently wrapped myself around him, whispering 'sorry' to him. He then curled his arms around me and kissed me on top of the head. I looked up to meet his gaze and his glossy turquoise eyes met mine. He smiled the usual Dylan smile and I knew that he was feeling better.
"Thanks for the nickname by the way. I really like it." Dylan grinned cheesily. I smiled back and released myself from Dylan now that he was finished weeping. He gave me what appeared to be bambi eyes as he opened his arms out to me, wanting me, pleading me to fall neatly back into his arms. So that's exactly what I did, despite the attention of Dr Hans, casually looking at us and giving me a 'I told you so face.' I agree, getting close to Dylan did make me feel safe and somewhat at ease even though I was about to become a lab rat and exposed to dangerous needles and all sorts of sciency stuff.
"Finally we're here." Iggy said jumping up and down in his seat. "I got really bad cramp." He chuckled.
We got out and I gazed upon the familiar territory. The place where I nearly lost Fang. Dylan must have known I ws thinking about Fang as he linked arms with me and gently pulled me along. I smiled to thank him and he nodded.
"Welcome home everyone, I hope you enjoy your stay at the Hans mansion." He scoffed. Mansion my...foot.
"Sure feels great to be back here again." Dylan whispered in my ear. I nodded in agreement and followed behind Iggy into the lab.
"Firstly everyone take a seat and I'll begin with refreshments." The Dr said leaving us three sitting around a lab table.
"Something just occurred to me." Iggy began rubbing his neck."Why was Dr Hans at the theme park?" Iggy finished.
"That's a good question. We'll have to ask him about that later. Now for the time being stay alert and look out for anything funny." I said.
"Look out for anything funny. Got it." Iggy said mocking the fact he is blind.
"Here we are fresh lemonade and cookies." Dr G.H said placing them down on the counter. We dug into the cookies like a spade through dirt and quickly finished our lemonade. Iggy let off a belch that sounded something similar to a fog horn.
"What? Gazzy's not here, gotta make up for these things." He laughed. I smiled and shook my head. I wondered what the flock were doing. I wonder what Jeb thought of me leaving with Dylan and Iggy to Dr Hans lair of dangerous experiments.
"Righto kiddos. Lets get started." Dr Hans said rubbing his hands together. I hated it when grown ups did that. Especially scientists.
He led me over to a chair and strapped me down by wrists and ankles. De ja vu I'm thinking.
Dylan was sitting by my side, apparently to calm my nerves. Iggy sat over in the corner waiting and listening to everything that was happening.
Dr Hans came over to me and nodded and Dylan. Now I was starting to loose my nerve. Even more so when Dr G.H pulled out the biggest needle I had ever seen in my life. And I've seen a lot of needles!
"This isn't going to hurt...much. But as soon as it's over I promise you, there will be no pain." The Dr said squirting the needles contents on the floor, as they do when they test needles.
He came closer towards me and I felt Dylan right beside me waiting to see what would happen, ready to bail me out if something went wrong. Lets hope it wouldn't.
"Don't worry Max. The Dr isn't going to hurt you." The voice said calmly.
I looked as the needle made contact with my skin and I cried out in pain feeling Dylan put his arm over me to aid me. The pain seemed to last for hours and when the Dr finally retracted it from my skin, I started to feel faint. My eyelids were getting heavy and I felt lightheaded and dizzy.
"I think I need to sit down." I said.
"Max, you are sitting down." Dylan laughed rubbing my back. I became nauseous and slowly I felt myself black out completely. The last thing I remember was hearing Dylan's voice beside me calling out my name. Telling me I was going to be okay, I believed him.
Then the Dr's face came into view as he held up my chin and said the most startling thing ever. "Lets take some of her clothes off now shall we." But when I tried to argue, that was when everything turned to shades of black.