Hello there, my loves! Here is the next chapter, just slightly later than promised. I know yall don't want my excuses, but I was going to post it early this morning, however my mother had the sudden overwhelming desire for Christmas shopping at eight in the morning! I know! She is cray cray! Omg. Forget I said that. I HATE that word, phrase, slang, whatever you want to call it.

Anywho. I wanted to address a review. Umm someone posted that "I love Criminal Minds! And I hate flaming, and I really hope this isn't one, but how is Criminal Minds still being produced?"

My answer to this is….. Ummm what is flaming? I literally sat there for like five minutes trying to understand what you were referring to, and I just couldn't. Maybe I'm being dim-witted, but could someone help me out here? And on the Criminal Minds…. GREAT QUESTION! I feel really dumb for not clarifying that the Criminal Minds episodes Max, Ella, and Carter are obsessed with are not actually NEW. They are only new to Max because she has never had the luxury of being able to watch TV. The episodes being aired are all old episodes that have already come out, but as everyone should know there are like a bazillion episodes sooooo….. her supply of "new episodes" is like endless.

Enjoy this chapter and don't get too upset about the ending. It is what it is. REVIEW! REVIEW! REVIEW! Let me know all your thoughts… you guys have been amazing on that lately. I love yall!... but not in a weird way.

KarleeRay

"Well the kids are really missing you," I tell Dylan over the phone.

He laughs. "Just the kids, huh?"

"Well…. I might miss you too….. just a little," I say grudgingly, but anyone could hear the smile in my voice.

"I miss you too, Max. All of you. Send the flock my love, will ya?"

"For sure. Night, Dylan," I say, hanging up the phone. Dylan was doing great on his own, and I was genuinely happy for him. We did our best to keep in touch, but mostly we only caught glimpses of each other during school and had less than frequent long talks on the phone. Sad really. I"ll have to make a point to hang out with him.

"You better get to sleep. School tomorrow," Fang mumbles into my hair. I shrug him off, eyes glued to Criminal Minds.

"Maybe you should get to sleep if you're so worried about it," I tell him, matter of factly.

"Alright. Fine," He says simply and slips out of my bed. My body instantly misses his warmth.

"Nooooo," I whine, reaching for him. "Don't go."

Fang half smiles, and I realize he was only kidding. He never intended to leave. I glare at him. "Well if you insist." He comes back over to the bed and lies down beside me.

"You're mean," I say, childishly, and he chuckles.

"But you love me," He murmurs. "You loooove me this muuuuch? Rememberrr?"

I feel a grin take over my face at the memory. He hasn't said that in forever.

"Yeah," I whisper, looking into his eyes. "Yeah I do."

He stares in my eyes for a moment longer, and then crushes his lips to mine. I reciprocate quickly, tracing my tongue along his bottom lip. Fang trembles beside me, and I smirk into his mouth. His hands roam over my barely-there curves, and I let them, loving the feel of his hands on my bare skin.

"Max," He murmurs, into my skin, and I feel myself losing control. Passion, white and hot, churns inside me. My hands roam up Fang's shirt, fingers grazing his chiseled stomach, before snatching his shirt off completely.

My lips find their way to his stomach, nipping at his tight skin. Fang groans, softly.

"Your turn," He whispers, reaching for the hem of my shirt and pulling it over my head. He drinks in my form for a few moments before he swiftly undoes my bra as if he's been doing it his entire life. His hands roam down to my thighs, grabbing them and hitching them around his waist, and I knew there was no turning back at that point. I needed him.

Fang made love to me for the second time that night.

"God Carter! Stop making it sound so weird! I wasn't even going to tell you," I admit. Carter had been complaining lately that I was replacing her with Trent. So, I decided to reassure her that we were still close by telling her something that no one else knew.

"Sorry! I just want some details!" She squeals, clutching my arm. "I can't believe you had sex with him, you dirty girl you!"

I groan out loud, throwing my head back. I have a pounding headache from… uhh….. staying up so late last night, and the last thing I want to do is gossip. "Oh my God! I can't even deal with you right now," I snap, speeding up my pace and bee lining away from her. I instantly regret being so sharp with her, but, well, she needs to learn when to back off.

"Hey! Max! What's up?" I look over my shoulder to see Trent jogging to catch up with me. "What's the rush?"

"Really not in the mood," I hedge, not looking at him.

He pauses. "Really? Because I… uhh… I kinda want to talk to you about something."

That stops me dead in my tracks, ignoring the rest of the student body, most of them cursing at me under their breaths for stopping the steady flow of students from hallway to hallway. "Really?" I ask, wanting to make sure he was being straight up with me.

He grins. "Really. I'm ready… what do you have next period? Can you skip?"

"Yeah, I have English. I'll just get Fang to cover for me. Wait here," I tell him, turning around and jogging through the mass of students, looking for Fang. I catch him just before he walks into English and tell him what's going on. He agrees to cover for me, gives me a quick kiss on the lips, and sends me on my way.

"Alright. Now spill. I've been patient long enough," I say, plopping down on the swing next to Trent's. We had decided that our safest bet would be to leave campus all together, and the park was within walking distance.

Trent sighs deeply, and I turn to look at him. There's a sad, defeated smile on his face. He looks at me with broken eyes.

"Come on. Whatever it is, it can't be that bad," I offer, giving him a smile despite my foul mood.

"That is where you're wrong, Max. It not only can be that bad…. It is that bad." My head snaps up to look at him.

I feel my brow furrow in confusion. "Well are you gonna tell me or did I come out here for nothing?" I snap at him, patience running thin.

The sad smile returns, and he meets my eye. "Remember when I was feeling sick and weird a few weeks back, and I went to the doc? You asked me what he said, and I told you it was nothing…."

I nod, a sinking feeling starting in my stomach.

"I lied to you, Max. I just wasn't ready to tell you yet... but I am now…. and I came here to tell you…. That the truth is… that I was diagnosed with acute promyelocytic leukemia when I was four years old. It's something that I've struggled with my whole life…. But I've been in remission for years now. We thought it was over…. When I went to the doctor, they ran a lot of tests, and in the end, they told me that I'm in kidney failure. They put me on the donor list, but… uhh… being in the new world that we live in, there aren't a lot of offers…. I'm dying, Max. I guess that's what I'm trying to say. I don't have too long. I'll be a patient in the hospital pretty soon, and odds are, I won't be coming back out." Trent stops talking, searching my face for a reaction that he isn't going to get.

I literally feel my walls coming back up. I feel the mask that I wore for most of my life take over my face. My eyes stare blankly ahead, jaw clenching while I work to keep my breathing even. How could this be happening? Just when my life was beginning to look up…. Now I'm crashing back down.

"Max? Will you at least say something?" Trent begs, quietly.

I swallow hard. What can I say? One of my best friends is going to die. Anger washes up in me. Of course! Of freaking course this would happen to me! I mean God forbid my life go smoothly! A harsh laugh escapes my lips, and Trent looks at me in surprise. I fling my head back so that I am looking up and scoff. "You are one sneaky guy," I whisper, shaking my finger up at a God I only recently started believing in. "You almost had me fooled."

Trent looks at me, cautiously, afraid I am about to explode. I won't though… won't explode. I look down to feel… nothing. I am completely numb. From past experiences, I know this is shock taking over. My jaw trembles, and I have the sudden urge to get away from Trent. Get away! My brain screams. Don't let him see you break down. You save your tears for your pillow, you wimp. I stand, slowly. "I'm sorry. I just…. I'll call you later," I tell him, without turning my head.

"Okay, Max," He mumbles, and I turn to see the smile plastered back on his face.

I swallow hard and jump off the ground, spreading my wings and flying away as fast as I can.