Truth with Little White Lies

I leaned against the wall while sitting on my bed. Nudge, Angel, and Gazzy are sleeping on the floor all cuddled up together even though Nudge, as I remember, is a pretty violent sleeper. I hold a phone up against my ear listening to the rings. He won't pick up because it's four in the morning.

Still, my wings twitch with anticipation that maybe he's awake or listening for his phone to ring. Maybe a part of him knew I would be calling and was up waiting for it right now. I bite my lip until the thirteenth ring. There is a stop silence and then I get his voice- but not exactly the way I wanted to hear it.

"Fang. You know what to do." And then there was a beep. I just felt myself breathing trying to remember I was doing the right thing. I could be honest with him but I would just have to lie in between.

"Fang, it's Max. Just wondering if you want to do something, please? How about the pier again? I'll be there all morning. We need to talk." I made sure to point out the need in that part of the sentence. "Hopefully, I'll see you? Okay, bye." Then, I hung up the cell phone and tossed it on the pillow. I shut my eyes for a moment listening to the fast beating of my mutant heart.

Welcome back, Maximum.

Perfect timing Voice.

Contemplating over why they erased your memory like they did?

Let me get, bigger picture right? I scowl and shake my head. I stand up and open the window to my room. I step through and jump out. Hopefully, the kids would be all right without me. Angel and Gazzy had been for a year.

The Voice left me as I began retaking in the greatness and destruction of flying. I stare at the suburban area with all the silent houses. The sun won't be up for another hour or two- not that I would really now. My instincts tell me to head east to where the ocean is, to the beach where hopefully Fang will be.

When my bare feet graze the rough wood of the pier, I sigh in the realization I'm still in my tank top and pajama pants. There are bloodstains on the pants but the blood can't be seen on the black fabric of the shirt. I fold my wings in tightly but they can still be seen. Wind carries the fresh scent of the ocean crashing against the rocks. I lean against the railing of the pier to look down.

I can't forget that Fang and I had kissed on a pier like this.

I waited maybe an hour before I heard his voice, "Max?" Geez, I hated my name but when he said it like that did it sound so amazing. I'm sure he was confused, staring at my back as I leaned against the railing with my wings out in the open. I turn to face him. Fang has his hands in his pockets, his dark hair is wet as if he had just rushed through a shower. It was only five in the morning on a Saturday- most people were sleeping. We weren't. As I remembered, he was a light sleeper just like I was. It made for quick getaways.

"Hey," I reply back lifting a hand in the air. Fang is probably freaking out even though I see his face has no emotions as usual. He was probably wondering on the way here why I suddenly decided to talk to him over everyone else. "I need to talk to you."

He narrowed his eyes, "Why can't you talk to Sam?" I winced at the bit of razor that cut at me in the sound of his voice. He had me there- I couldn't just start explaining that in an old life we had been together, in love. I wasn't going to say that to him and then ruin him having the normal life he deserved.

Fang stepped closer to me. I sighed, "Sam doesn't need to know." I open up my wings a bit so he can get a better look. His eyes, for one quick second, are wide with shock before being emotionless again. A warm hand traces through the feathers, Fang makes sure to be gentle as if he knows how fragile they are. My shoulders were sore from the long fly after not using them in a year.

"I dreamed of this," he answered. "It's real." His eyes are wide with shock. Then he shook his head and stood back. "Explain, please." Fang's dark eyes are looking at me up and down. Maybe I shouldn't have told him about my wings at all.

"I can fly. I wanted to tell you because," but I didn't have time to explain. Fang was suddenly holding my cheeks and lifting my head up to face him. There were no restrictions to this now as his lips covered over mine. I felt that electric pulse that pulled me towards him. He dropped his hands around to my back right underneath where my wings and back became one. Our stomachs and chests pressed against each other as if for the moment, our bodies believed two objects could take up the same space if we tried hard enough. My fingers went up and tangled in his amazing hair.

"Max," he murmured my name as he longingly kissed my cheeks and my neck. Suddenly, I was leaning against the railing as Fang's arms were on either side of me holding me. We caught our breath by resting our foreheads against each other and our ragged breathing somehow in time. My lips throbbed and pulsed with excitement and we remained leaning against each other.

"Max-uh-mum Ride."

Adrenaline escaped through every vein in my body as my muscles tightened and I broke from Fang's grasp. I stood in front of him to stare at two M-Geeks. At least there were only two, I could handle that. I lifted my fists in the air as Fang tried to pull me away. I shrugged off his hand and flew towards the enemies. Before either could raise their weapons, I had managed to kick out both of their ankles. The M-Geeks collapsed on the ground.

Fang stood up next to me and didn't seem surprise at the green goop and human skin stretched over the robot. "This is what I had to tell you Fang," I kept a few inches between us, not trusting my body to pull away from him. "We can't be together, I'm a hunted person. I want a normal life but I can't have that."

"Max, no." Fang reached out for me but I backed away from his hand. There was a bit of confusion, anger, and hurt combined right there on his face. Then a gunshot rang out and I jerked as if it was my own body that had been hit. To my horror, the black shirt Fang was wearing grew wet and red liquid hit the ground. I rushed to him. Adrenaline still pumping made it easy for me to hold him.

I didn't look to find a killer, not with the constant bleeding wound a few inches high of his heart. My eyesight went blurry with tears as I jumped into the air and took off to fly away. There was only one way to save him now. Not even my mother, a vet, could save him.

I rushed into the hospital a few minutes later feeling the stares of people on my wings and Fang's dying in my arms. "Help me, he's dying." Nurses rushed over and helped me place Fang on a gurney. They started to check his pulse as they rushed him to the surgery room. When asked what type of blood, I responded, "Give him mine, it's the only kind of blood he'll take. He's just like me." A nurse raised her eyebrows because clearly she didn't see his wings. "Believe me," I screamed.

As they took my blood without any more questions and Fang was in surgery,

One of the nurses told me with a sad expression.

"Don't expect him to live."