Chapter 42

Sorry I haven't updated in a while I've had writers block and I've been busy with some stuff.

When Nudge got to my Dad's house on Saturday I wanted to run down to meet her and yell 'Fang has a crush on me!' but I didn't. Instead I snuck down my secret stairs that still hadn't told anyone about. They were my secret in this house and mine alone. I appeared behind her and Ella and they both jumped when I spoke.

"Hi," I said cheerfully.

"Oh my god, Max, you appeared out of nowhere and it's like you weren't there and then you were. There was no warning it was just like poof. It was like you were magic, but magic doesn't exist." Nudge, well I don't quite know how to describe how she said it.

"No magic?" I heard Ari cry. I shot a quick glare at Nudge.

"Oh no, Ari, I meant with Max at this moment, but there is magic," Nudge assured Ari. He nodded and ran away.

"Thanks," I thanked her.

"Eh, I forgot that with little kids they still believe in everything," Nudge shrugged.

We walked her upstairs to where we'd be staying. We were staying in the top lounge room that was set up with stuff. I suppose it was more of the slumber party room.

"Nudge, do you really not believe in magic?" Ella asked her. Nudge just shrugged.

"I just don't think that there's such thing as magic, I mean I believe in love and stuff just not magic," Nudge explained.

"Fair enough," Ella and I agreed.

"Do you realise that we've never had just the girls of the flock before?" I realised.

"Wow, we never have. We can talk about embarrassing things!" Nudge squealed with joy.

"Well Ari's here," I reminded her.

"Max, he's like three he won't know what we're talking about," Nudge pointed out.

"I know that, but he can repeat words and I don't want him running off to Dad," I warned her.

"Ok, ok," Nudge sighed. "Seriously, where did you come from before because you do that all the time?" Nudge asked me after a minute. There was no way I was telling anyone about my secret staircases, nu-uh.

"I don't know what you're talking about, Nudge," I shrugged.

"Yes you do!" Nudge insisted.

"Ah, I thought I heard you, Nudge," Dad called out and I mentally thanked him. I wasn't the worlds' best liar, which reminded me that I was supposed to be freaking out on how I could keep Fang's secret… a secret. I had no idea why I was so desperate to keep his secret a secret, maybe it was because I could hear the sheer desperation in his voice when he asked me to keep it.

"Max, Earth to Max!" Nudge called. I immediately stopped thinking about Fang and got back into reality.

"Hmm?" I asked.

"Your Dad just asked what you wanted to do today," Nudge explained.

"Oh um do you want to go bowling or something?" I asked vaguely.

"Yes! Jeb, how many games can we have?" Ella asked.

"Well it is Saturday so they have the as many games as you want for two hours," Dad shrugged.

"Cool, so can we go because you know what they say, there's no time like the present? Although I don't quite understand that, because sometimes you need more time to figure things out or things can become disastrous and then sometimes you can't undo them and you really wish you could and-" Nudge rambled.

"Nudge!" Ella and I screamed.

"Nudge, it's just bowling. I doubt that anything disastrous will happen," I assured her.

"You're right, I just need to breathe," Nudge said as she begun to relax.

"Yes, Nudge, breathe," Ella soothed her. A huge smile broke out across my face, maybe this was exactly what I needed, a day with my girls… and Dad and Ari.

When we got to bowling we convinced Dad that he should play as well so the five of us were playing. Ari was so cute, as he used the ramp to push the ball down REALLY slowly.

"So, Max, are you and Fang ok?" Nudge asked me.

"You had a problem with Fang?" Dad asked me.

"Dad," I groaned and I rubbed my forehead.

"Oh, I'm not even here." Dad corrected himself. "Come on, Ari, let's go and get some food," Dad said to Ari.

"But, it was just getting good," Ari whined.

Nudge watched while Dad and Ari got out of earshot.

"So?" Nudge asked.

"He and I are fine," I told her. I was secretly worrying how school would be like on Monday but I wasn't going to tell Nudge and Ella that.

"Just like that?" Nudge asked. I could tell that she didn't think that I was telling the whole story (Which I wasn't)

"He called me last night and we made up," I told her vaguely. I didn't want to give anything away.

"What did he say to make it up to you because you were pretty mad?" Nudge asked. I wouldn't tell, I wouldn't tell.

"That he was sorry," I shrugged.

"That's it! He was driving you nuts and you accept an 'I'm sorry' I think you deserve and explanation!" Nudge exploded.

"Whoa, whoa, Nudge, it was enough trust me," I insisted.

"Fine, but I think you let him off too easily." Nudge mumbled.

"Ok, how about we stop the soap opera and get on with the game of bowling because Jeb is coming back and you two are driving me insane," Ella requested.

In the end Dad won most of the games and I came close second. Ari didn't do too badly for a three year old so I told him that in a few years he'd be dynamite, which proved to be a big mistake because he ran around yelling 'boom, boom.'

We finally arrived back home but Dad stopped me from following Ella and Nudge up the stairs.

"Max, are you and Fang ok?" Dad asked me.

"Dad, he and I are fine," I promised.

"But you weren't" Dad guessed.

"Dad, we had a bit of a disagreement, friends do that from time to time," I pointed out.

"But it's all fixed," Dad checked.

"Yes, you don't need to run off and save the world," I rolled my eyes that matched my sarcastic tone.

"Good," Dad nodded.

"Now can I please go upstairs?" I asked him.

"Go on," Dad laughed as he hugged me. "But can you take your brother with you; I've got some paperwork I need to do?" Dad pleaded.

"Sure, come on, Ari," I agreed. I grabbed Ari's hand and led him up the stairs with me.

"No, Ella, ice-cream is not better than cheese!" I heard Nudge scream.

"Yes it is!" Ella insisted. I walked down the hallway and too the second left and opened the sliding doors that led into the sleepover room.

"Cheese is so much better!"

"No it isn't!"

"Yes it is!"

"No it isn't!"

"Yes it is!"

"Whoa, whoa, you guys are starting to sound like me and Fang," I told them as I tried to suppress my laughter.

"What!" The both squealed in horror.

"Ari's, going to hang with us for a while," I informed them.

"Ok he can be the deciding vote," Nudge smirked.

"No! He can not!" I glared at her. "You two are not getting my little brother involved in your little dairy argument!" I told them firmly.

"It's not a little dairy argument!" They both exclaimed in horror.

"It's a sheer matter of life and death!" Nudge cried.

"Yeah um ok," I said bluntly.

"You just don't understand!" Ella cried.

"Uh-huh, well Ari and I are going to watch a movie so feel free to join us when you're not arguing over things that come from cows," I told them and walked out with Ari.

"They're so weird," I told Ari in a whisper.

"Yeah, weird," He agreed with me.

"What movie do you want to watch?" I asked him.

"I don't know," He shrugged.

"Well can you figure it out otherwise I'm going to put on a girly movie and you really won't like that," I grinned as I squatted down so he could look directly at me. He looked at me as if I was brussel sprouts and I couldn't help but laugh.

He didn't end up choosing so I kept true to my word and put in an age appropriate chickish flick. I put in 'Anastasia' the movie about the last Russian Duchess. If you want to know look up the movie and watch it. Ari didn't mind it in fact he liked the evil parts with Rasputin and with his little bat Bartok. Nudge and Ella joined us soon after the movie started so I had to rewind it. Ari complained because then he had to watch it twice. I had a feeling Angel might enjoy that film so I made a silent deal to show it to her one day.

We spent the night talking and the room was lit up with soft colour changing lights and the giant blue lava lamp. It felt good to have my girls around me and I went to sleep with a smile on my face.