Hello my lovely readers :) Guess what time it is? Reviews Time!

oxlifexo—I actually got the board part from that music video. Yes, I'm such a clever author ;)

GrimmSistah—You'll get your Fang dosage soon enough xD

Anonymous-... Go away Elizabeth. xD jk, Ily 3

Serenaisbestezrq387—I'm planning on three books to be in the little fanfictorial series of mine :D So yeah, lots of twists and stuff. It'll definitely keep you interested :)

This chapter is dedicated to my friend Selena. Keep your head held high; he doesn't deserve you.

Enjoy :)

Bridgewater High was a menacing building that looked every bit like a jail as it did like an educational facility. Ella and I exchanged glances as we gazed up at our new school, nerves settling into a cold stone in my stomach.

"We shouldn't judge a book by its cover, Max," Ella pointed out to me.

I gave her a look. "You're right, Ella. I'm sure that when we get inside, they'll serves us chocolate-chip cookies, instantly love us, and serve us to our every whim."

She returned the look with a similar one of her own. "Your sarcasm just brightens up my day."

"Glad to help."

Without another word, I began to walk towards the school. Ella's light footsteps sounded on the hard asphalt of the parking lot, and she soon fell back into step beside me. I resumed my usual silence and tried not to concentrate on the looks I was getting. That was one thing I never got used to: The feeling of so many eyes turning towards you as they immediately begin to pin-point your social status and judge you before they even began to think of actually getting to know you.

Ella fidgeted beside me and I gave her hand a squeeze before yanking open the door to the main office. We reluctantly sauntered inside to greet a none-to-cheery middle-aged secretary glaring at us behind her thin glasses.

"Ms. Ride? Ms. Martinez?" the secretary asked monotonically.

"Yes," Ella answered. I only nodded.

The secretary pushed some papers forward on her desk and eyed them lazily. "These are your schedules and maps. We have paired each of you to match the schedule of a student. This student will be your go-to for any questions and will help you find your way to your classes. If you have any issues with your guide, please notify a teacher or other head of authority here. We hope you enjoy Bridgeview."

Tentatively, Ella and I stepped forward and picked up the sheets the woman had pushed at us and looked back at her for further direction.

She sighed deeply before picking up the phone, punching in a number, and asking for two students to come down. After she hung up, she faced us again.

"You can just take a seat behind you while you wait for your guides to come." Then she turned back to her computer and never bothered with us again.

Ella and I did the only thing we could do and heeded the woman's advice by sitting in the uncomfortable black chairs behind us. The plastic dug into my back unpleasantly; the cold of the arm rests seeped through my thin shirt and into my skin. Goosebumps prickled all over me.

To distract myself, I crooked a finger at Ella, silently asking for her schedule. Comparing it with mine, I saw that we had a few classes together, but for the majority, we were on our own. I sighed heavily and handed it back to her before slumping low in my seat. There was nothing left to do but sit here and wait and wonder how in hell I was going to survive the rest of the year at this place.

Just then, two boys entered the office. Both of which I immediately recognized. A wave of relief washed over me.

Iggy and the dark-haired boy from last night dragged themselves into the office, their eyes settling on us. Iggy broke into a grin, while the other boy remained impassive, staring at me with only the slightest hint of surprise in his eyes. I sensed Ella straighten up beside me, all energy focused towards Iggy.

"Fancy meeting you here," Iggy said, casually leaning against a wall.

Ella beamed. "Yeah, what are the odds, right?" She dimmed slightly and cast her eyes downward. "Oh, and, uhm, sorry about last week. You know how moms get," she added nonchalantly.

Iggy shrugged. "Hey, let's not let what happened between our parents decide the future between us. It's all good." Ella lit up again and nodded. "Now," he continued, clapping his hands together. "Who has who? Schedules?"

Ella plucked the schedule out of my hand and waved them at Iggy, who took his time peeling himself off the wall to come examine them.

"Alright, let's see," he murmured. "Uhm, Max, it looks like you're going with Fang over there; and Ella, you're coming with me."

"Perfect," Ella commented, not even trying to hide her pleasure.

I unfolded my hand out to Iggy, who returned my schedule. He then held his arm out for Ella, who gladly linked arms with him before taking off, a slow blush creeping up both of their cheeks. The office door shut quietly, its back draft fluttering my hair and caressing my face. I turned to face Fang.

His eyes captured my stare and he cocked his head to the side. I picked up my hand in a sort of half-wave. A corner of his mouth crooked up for a split second and I knew that for whatever reason, the two of us were going to be great friends. We just sort of understood each other in an inexplicable way that was purely unique.

He turned on his heel and opened the door wide for me. Pushing myself out of the most uncomfortable seat in the world, I ducked through the door, and though I couldn't hear his footsteps behind me, I knew the boy was following.

The hallway was crowded with kids. Most of them paused in their conversations to sneak a glance of me as I passed, but no one out-right talked to me. I gulped, feeling their eyes like a weight on my shoulders, and nervously twirled a strand of my hair.

Suddenly, the boy was right next to me. He pulled the strand of hair from my shaky hands and tucked it behind my ear before shooting murderous glares at everyone. Immediately, the students averted their eyes and went back to gossiping about hopefully non-Max-related things. His hand brushed mine ever-so-slightly, and I felt my entire body just melt into relaxation even as a small blush crept its way up my cheeks.

I entered homeroom with him on my heels. The second I stumbled through the door, the teacher focused her beady eyes on me and smiled a cold, unemotional smile. I saw him giving me an apologetic look out of the corner of my eye. Mentally sighing, I stepped farther in the room and faced the teacher full on.

"Thank you for guiding our new student, Mr. Xavier," she said, voice no doubt as icy as her heart.

I mentally cursed when she didn't call the boy by his first name. What was with this school and just calling people by their last name? My gosh….

He gave her the slightest bob of his head before heading to the back of the room and folding himself into a seat. The teacher narrowed her eyes at me as if she had some pure hatred of me, though her creepy smile never wilted.

"Ms. Ride, is it?" she asked, circling me like a lioness studying her catch.

I tilted my head back in an affirmative gesture and the teacher cocked her head. "Do you talk?" She sounded absolutely incredulous.

Naturally, I said nothing, and just stared straight forward at the lazily-ticking clock on the wall. The teacher laughed so heartily, you'd have thought she just found a million dollars. I gave her a strange look.

"How absolutely delightful!" She stopped her pacing and clapped her hands. "We now have two students who don't talk in this class. What an interesting thing."

My eyes focused on the boy and had to resist the peculiar urge to grin when he rolled his eyes and placed mock devil horns above his head with his fingers. Apparently I wasn't the only victim to this teacher's antics.

"Well," she said breathlessly. "Why don't you just go back there and take a seat next to your new 'best bud'."

I blinked once before shaking out my head a little and walking to the back of the room to take a seat next to the boy. He nudged me, forcing me to give him most of my attention. Turning to look at him, I saw his eye come down in a wink. Smiling, I shook my head and returned my mind to the front where teacher what's-her-name was giving a lecture on God only knows what.

And that's when I realized that no matter how bad the teacher or secretary or students may be, this boy suddenly made them all ten times better without even trying. I had a good feeling we were going to be great friends.

Happy Fourth Everyone :) ღ

*Shiver*