I'm sooo sorry for the weird spacing again. Some people said it was hard to read, and believe me, I REPENT. But it's either weirdly-spaced chapter or no chapter at all. =(
Enjoy. =) UPDATE! As of 3/30/11 and 11/21/12, I have fixed the weird spacing. =D YAY ME!

DEDICATED TO MY LOVELY REVIEWERS!

I gathered up all of the school junk Mom, Ella and I had found digging through the boxes early this morning, and tossed it into my new purple backpack before struggling to pull the zipper up. "Max!" Ella yelled up the stairs at me.

"I'm coming!" I grunted, finally succeeding in closing the backpack. I slung it over my shoulder and ran down the stairs. Ella handed me my lunch in a paper bag at the bottom, and I groaned as I realized I would have to open my backpack again in order to stuff the stupid lunch in.
Ella grinned sweetly at me as I dragged open the backpack zipper again, before suddenly frowning. "Max, we're going to be late if you don't get dressed soon. We have to leave in like, fifteen minutes!"

I looked at her quizzically. "I am dressed," I pointed out. Ella blanched, then shook her head furiously before pulling me up off the
floor and forcing me back up the stairs. "What is it Ella?" I asked, wondering what the heck was wrong with her.

"I'm going to get you dressed!" she replied steadily as she shoved me into her room and closed the door.

"I'm fine how I am Ells!" I protested. Dark jeans with black sneakers, a green t-shirt, and a black hoody was fine for me to wear.
"No you aren't. This is the first day of our new highschool and you're going to look divine!" Ella insisted, diving into her closet. I sighed, knowing that there would be no escaping this form of torture she loved to impose on me. "Let's see..." Ella mused. "Go get me those nice skinny jeans Aunt Claire got you for your birthday. My pants are all too short for you."

"Those jeans are too tight though!" I complained. "They stick to my legs."

"That's what they're supposed to do! They're skinny jeans, for crying out loud!" Ella shot back. "Now go get them!" At least Ella wasn't trying to get me into a skirt. Fortunately, she was two inches shorter than me, since I was a year older than her, and none of her skirts were dresscode on me. I didn't own any skirts myself, so I never had to wear any to school, although sometimes Ella forced me into one of hers for things unacademic. Unfortunately though, Ella had a long upper body, and all of her shirts fit like a glove on me. Well, as they say, you win some, you lose some.

I grumbled as I crossed the hallway and reentered my new room. After wading through the ankle-deep scattering of paint sheets, clothing, and newly discovered junk, I got to the other side of the mess. Once there, I started looking for one of the unopened boxes I knew held the skinny jeans. After a moment of searching, i located the right box. Of course, it was the one of my non-important stuff, so I had it heavily wrapped in packing tape. With a sigh, I grabbed an Exacto knife off my still neat desk and ripped through the tape on the edges. Prying it open, I found the jeans Aunt Claire gave me for my fourteenth birthday sitting right on top. They were even still folded in sharp, just-out-of-the-store angles. I had never worn them after my initial discovery that they hugged my legs like Care Bears in pants form. Grudgingly, I pulled them out and walked back into Ella's room. She was waist deep in her closet, rifling through all the clothes she had managed to hang up in our short time here. She resurfaced as I came in though, looking excited. "Oh good, you found the pants. Now, put them on," Ella instructed.

"Yes ma'm," I muttered under my breath as I stripped my previous jeans and donned the new ones. As before, they were tight on my calves and thighs, and to my embarrassment, I saw in Ella's mirror that they also hugged my butt. "Ells," I started. "I can't wear thes-"

I was interrupted by a belt being thrown at my face. On instinct, I lifted my hand and caught it before it made contact with me. Whoa, now THAT was insanely ninja of me. "Put that on," Ella told me from inside her closet. "I'm trying to find a top for you..."

I studied the belt. It was woven of a dark brown material, and studded with circles of brass ranging from the size of a dime to a tiny brass drop. I decided I liked it, and therefore buckled it around my waist without complaint. Ella squealed from inside her closet and bounded out as I flinched. "OMG I JUST FOUND THE PERFECT TOP!" Ella shrieked excitedly.

I winced. Her excitement usually meant my discomfort, and I was dreading the shirt. Ella tossed the clothing at me, and I caught not one, but two different shirts. "Put the blue one on first, then the purple," Ella called, already back inside her closet.

Surprisingly, it was okay in my terms. Ella had picked out a midnight blue camisole with metallic lace at the neck, along with a deep purple ribbed tank top. When I took off my green shirt to put on the new ones, Ella looked approvingly at my flat stomach. "Good, now the shirt will look even better on you! It's great that you're so thin and lithe and muscled Max! I wish I looked like you..." she trailed off wistfully. I smiled at her before putting my head through the camisole.

"You are way prettier than I'll ever be, Ells," I reassured her. "I've always thought so."

She brightened. "You really think I'm that pretty? But you're gorgeous, Max!" I grimaced at her as I adjusted the camisole. "What?" she demanded. Raising my eyebrows, I stared at her before putting my arms through the tank top.

"I'm not pretty Ella. I know that, and there's no way you'll convince me otherwise." She tried to protest, but I quickly shushed her. I believed what I was saying, I had no reason not to. After all, in our last town, my boyfriend Sam had dumped me for Brigid the minute she transferred into our school in the middle of eighth grade. I hated that girl's guts, at first for stealing my two-year boyfriend, and later just because she was... Brigid. One of the perks of moving was getting away from her and her disgusting ways. "Is there any other kind of death and despair in 'fashion' form that you have in store for me?"

Ella pursed her lips, obviously not missing my subject change or dropping the topic. However, she decided to let me in on her dastardly plans instead of pointlessly arguing with me, Ms Maximum Stubborn Ride. "I'm going to take advantage of your okay mood right now and doll you up a bit." Ella took one look at my open mouth, ready to protest, and quickly added, "Only a bit, Max."

I struggled, I really did. But have YOU ever managed to deny Ella Martinez's Bambi Eyes? Hmm? If so, I need to know your secrets, because I am a total sucker for them, and my dearest sister Ella knows it. "Fine," I spat out, after a few minutes of battling her expert Bambi Eyes. She squealed in joy before pulling me out of her room and into the large upstairs bathroom.

"Sit," she ordered, pointing at the toilet. I grudgingly walked over and pulled the cover down, sitting daintily on it while Ella dug around in a large pink bag sitting on the counter. Out of this she pulled out a smaller black one that I immediately recognized as her makeup bag. I couldn't help but let my fingers clench the toilet seat harder at its appearance. Bad memories of Ella's forced makeovers on me were quickly resurfacing. "I'm going to straighten your hair quickly," she told me. "Luckily, I just finished with mine, so the iron is still really hot. Hold still..." she murmured as she held up a metal thingy in her left hand. It was plugged into the wall, and I could easily imagine me getting electrocuted by it. That's exactly something that could happen to me.

Surprisingly, my hair was efficiently straightened in seven minutes, and when I looked at myself in the mirror I had elbow length sheets of glowing, brownish-blond hair. "Wow," I remarked, reaching a hand to finger a strand of the completely smooth, straight hair.

"Straighteners are the most useful invention ever," Ella told me seriously as she rummaged around in her makeup bag. "Hmm, you'd look gorgeous in my style of makeup, but it would be too un-Max for the first impressions of your first day of highschool. Maybe just a dab of eyeshadow..." Ella took a small green case out of her bag and snapped it opened to show three indents filled with shimmery skin-colored makeup, and a small wand. She dabbed the wand in an indent of makeup, then went for my face with it. I involuntarily flinched, trying to shrink away from it. "Hold still, Max, and close your eyes," Ella murmured as the wand came closer to me. I gulped, but did as she said. Soon, there was a gentle pressure on my eyelid, then on the other. "Good," she remarked, standing back to survey her work. Ella put the wand back in the case and closed it before handing the thing of makeup to me. I stared at her blankly. "You'll need to reapply throughout the day," Ella explained. I nodded, and held onto the case of eyeshadow while Ella dug back into her bag. There was no way I would actually 'reapply', but it was best to humor Ells in situations like this. While I was thinking this, she had whipped out a tube of lip gloss labeled DR PEPPER. My phone lit up, and I looked at it to find that it was already 8:00. Oops.

"Ells, we gotta run," I told her, getting up quickly. "Give me the lip gloss, I'll put it on later." I was actually considering putting on that lip gloss, because Dr Pepper was my favorite soda, and this stuff boasted the exact taste. Yummy. Ella handed me the red tube, which I swiftly grabbed and ran with out of the bathroom. We both raced down the stairs, grabbing our backpacks and sprinting out the front door.

"Bye Mom!" we chorused. She called out a good-bye to us before the door slammed shut and we ran all the way to school. I was just thankful Mom had showed us where it was the day before, or we would have been lost in no time. When we sprinted onto the campus, it was already 8:05. Crap! Homeroom started at 8:10! Of course I'd be late on my first day. That was just my luck.

"Bye Ells!" I called to my sister. She waved to me before disappearing around a corner, her blue backpack bouncing up and down as she ran. I wove through the crowd in the opposite direction, luckily moving with the current as I tried to find my new locker. After a precious minute of searching, I discovered locker 421, tucked into a corner with three others. I smiled. At least I would get a bit of privacy sometimes. I fumbled one-handed with the zipper as I held my schedule with my right. I had homeroom with a Miss James in room 6.

I had absolutely no idea where that was. I quickly stuffed the things I wouldn't need back into my backpack, which I shoved into my locker. Glancing frantically between the map in my hands and the classrooms I was facing, I tried to make sense of my surroundings. Where the heck was freaking homeroom? Then, I saw it. About thirty feet down the hall was a door labled with a large silver six. I rushed towards it as quickly as my feet would carry me through the dispersing crowds of kids.

I stumbled in a second before the bell rang, my arms full of the typical school junk students are forced to carry around on their first day. Everyone turned in their seats to stare at me, and my cheeks heated up as I heard their whispers.

"Who is that?"

"New girl, new girl!"

"She's kinda pretty."

"Kinda? Man, I'd rate her a-"

"Settle down, class," a firm voice broke in. That immediately stopped the embarrassing whispers, and the kids stared at me in silence. I schooled my expression into a calm, pleasant one, holding my binder tightly. "Hello miss," the voice told me warmly. It belonged to a tall lady with dark brown curls. She was smiling at me, her gray eyes twinkling. I found myself grinning back at her; her smile was infectious. "I presume you are Miss Ride?"

"Yeah, that's me," I confirmed. She nodded, writing something down on her clipboard. As she looked back up at me, the class broke off into whispers again.

"Ride?"

"Yeah. So where's she gonna sit?"

"Lemme think. A, B, C, D-"

"Wow Gabby. Wow."

"I'm Miss James," the lady told me, startling me out of my eavesdropping. "I will be your homeroom teacher for the rest of the year. Before we get you a seat, would you tell us something about yourself?" I nodded, and Miss James turned to the class, clapping her hands for attention. "Listen, everyone!"

There was immediate silence. I got the idea that people liked Miss James.

"Umm, hi there," I started, staring each person in the eyin turn. "My name is Maximum Ride, you can call me Max. I have a sister named Ella, we just moved here from Nevada, and I am a total soccer fanatic."

"What position?" someone called out.

"Center halfback and sweeper," I replied. "Just don't put me in goal or you'll be sorry."

That drew a small laugh from a few of my fellow sports jocks in the class. I grinned at everyone, suddenly feeling better. "Okay, Max, we sit by alphabetical order of last names, here," Miss James explained. I nodded, glancing at the neat rows of desks. "Let me see, you'll be sitting with the 'R's... Where will that be, exactly?" Miss James mused aloud as she glanced over her clipboard once more. "Oh, I see," she announced finally. "We're going to need to move some people around. Come, Max." Miss James strode up the aisle to the back of the class, stopping next to a tall boy who was looking clearly uncomfortable. A petite redhead sat next to him, practically in his lap, and was looking angry. Miss James did not look pleased with the situation. "Miss Rift, will you please move one desk in front?" she asked, looking at the redhead. 'Miss Rift's jaw dropped open.

"What? But Miss James..." she whined, her voice high-pitched and sappy. I involuntarily grimaced, but quickly smoothed my expression out. I didn't need everyone to know what I was thinking, cause my thoughts weren't pretty. This whiny girl reminded me of another stupid girl I knew, whose name started with a 'B' and ended with a 'rigid'.

That was not a good similarity to have.

"Lissa, please vacate your seat at once. Max will be sitting here now. You are going to sit next to David," Miss James explained coolly, not looking pleased with this Lissa character. Lissa pouted, trying to grab the boy's hand again. His eyes flashed in alarm, but he showed no other reaction but moving his hand away from Lissa. That made her pout even more.

"Fine," Lissa griped, slowly picking up her binder. She stalked over to the seat Miss James had indicated. A small Asian girl was sitting in it, and she looked timidly up at Lissa, who was scowling at her. "Move it, Suli," Lissa growled. The girl immediately grabbed her things and jumped out of the chair. Miss James narrowed her eyes at Lissa, but she didn't say anything.

"Judy, you'll be sitting with Rhonda now. Mark, you're moved next to Laurie, and Jon will be next to Matt," Miss James directed. The people whose names she called stood up and quietly moved to their new seats. While they shifted position, Miss James turned back to me. "Max, this is Fang Rianild. You're going to be sitting next to him for the rest of the year. Fang, be social," She warned, looking stern. The boy, Fang, I guess, just flashed a quick smile at her before lapsing back into a nondescript expression. As Miss James walked back to the front of the room, I set my binder down on the desk and sat down in my new seat. The redhead, Lissa, turned around and glared at me. Or, rather, attempted to glare at me. Her look wasn't very intimidating, and I smiled back at her.

"Hi! Is your name Lissa? That's great! Bye!" I tittered, speaking quickly and in an unnaturally high voice. Lissa blinked, and I fought back a smirk.

"Well, Miss Maximum," she sneered, narrowing her bright green eyes at me. "You stole my seat. Don't even think about stealing my boyfriend, too."

Before I could ask who in the world would want to date her, the boy beside me straightened in his chair. The glare he sent Lissa was actually rather scary, unlike her own weak one. "Lissa, we are not dating anymore. I dumped you. Get over it," he growled. Lissa's angry expression faded into a fake, upset one.

"But Fangy, I thought it was just a lovers' spat," Lissa whined. I almost choked on my own spit. Was this girl for real?

'Fangy' didn't seem happy. "Uh, no. You kissed my best friend, remember? You cheated on me. We're over." The boy sat back in his chair. "And leave Max out of this. I'm not yours for her to 'steal away'," Fang snorted, closing his eyes. "As if," he muttered. Lissa looked positively gobsmacked. It was, all in all, pretty hilarious.

Announcements began at that choice moment, and Lissa turned around with a huff. I took the opportunity to study my new deskmate.
This Fang had olive-toned skin, and black hair that swept over his head in a dark wave. It just brushed the tops of his eyebrows, and hung down his neck. Fang was dressed in all black; a black sweatshirt, black cargo pants, and black sneakers. Even his binder and the pencil in his hand were black. Either he was a goth, or he was fanatically obsessed with all things black. Actually, the goth idea might explain the whole 'Fang' thing. After all, who names their kid Fang? Suddenly, Fang's eyes flew open, and he stared inquisitively back at me. I was confronted with a dark gaze, and was completely blown by his literally black eyes. They weren't 'such a dark brown they were nearly black', but truly black. It was fascinating. I had never met someone with black eyes before.

Suddenly, his mouth curved up in a smile. "Why are you staring at me?" he whispered, looking mischievous.

I fought back another blush, feeling surprised. "I'm gathering data," I shot back quickly, my voice the same volume as his. "So I can stalk you and murder you in your sleep."

Fang looked surprised for a moment, and actually smiled again. "Oh gee, thanks. We've just met and already the threats have begun," he teased, his face already calm and collected again. Fang didn't keep a real expression on his face for longer than three seconds.

"I like to get a head start," I replied, lolling back in my chair. "So, what's with the name?"

"Whats with the name?" Fang countered, staring me down. I refused to look away, and stared right back at him.

"Touché," I admitted "Maximum Ride isn't exactly a common name. My mom named me that because she wanted me to be strong, able to carry my own weight, the maximum," I explained. Briefly, I wondered why I was telling this to a complete stranger, but shrugged away the thought. It wasn't like my name was a deep, dark secret or anything.

Unlike Fang's eyes...

Now where did that come from? I wondered, surprised at the rogue thought. That was completely random and unexpected. Weird.

"Oh, that's cool," Fang replied, unaware of my mental challenges. "My real name is Nick Rianild, but the only one who calls me that is my grandmother."

"Wait, Rianild?" I interrupted, temporarily sidetracked. "That sounds oddly familiar."

"I'm immensely popular and famous, that's why," Fang remarked airily, waving his hands around vaguely. "Everyone who's anyone knows the name Rianild."

"Stop being a stuck-up pig," I reprimanded him. "Let me think for a sec..." Fang sighed, but fell silent, staring at the pencil in his hand. I shook my head, but tried to think of where I'd heard the name Rianild before. Hmm... "Nope," I finally decided. "I can't think of where I heard it."

"I told you, I'm famous and popul-" Fang started, but was cut off by dear old Lissa turning around again.

"Hey Fangy, are you sure you don't want me?" she simpered, making her eyes huge and her lips pouty. I had to say, this girl had 'seductive' down to a T.

I can't say I was surprised.

"Yes, Lissa, I'm sure," Fang returned, sighing heavily. "We're over. You kissed Iggy."

"Iggy was sexually harassing me!" Lissa claimed, closing her eyes dramatically. "He wouldn't take no for an answer, Fangy!"

I looked between them, completely confused. Who was Iggy? And why had Lissa kissed him? Fang seemed to notice my bewilderment, and ended the argument with a few final sentencse.

"Lissa, don't you dare try to make me think Iggy would act like that. I've been his best friend since birth, and I know how he acts. Iggy does not force himself on girls. Please don't talk to me about the matter again." With that, Fang slouched back in his chair again. Lissa pouted once more, looking angry.

"Fine," she shot back. "Fine then, Fang. I'm through with you!"

"Finally," he muttered. I laughed, and Lissa glared at me.

We lapsed back into silence for a few minutes, and I listened in on the conversations going on around us. I was featured prominently in most of them, but there were others talking about sports, fashion, and the like. I smiled. Homeroom seemed like it would be fun. I had Fang to talk to and Lissa to annoy. How much more could a girl ask for?

The homeroom bell rang annoyingly loudly, and everyone stormed the exit at once. "Good bye, everyone. Have a good day!" Miss James called as we rushed away to our next classes.

I was glaring at my map again, trying to find Mr Lundom's room on its indecipherable grid, when I heard a low laugh behind me. Whirling around, I saw none other than Fang Rianild leaning against a row of lockers and watching me, amusement apparent in his black eyes. "Need some help?" he asked, taking a step towards me. Reluctantly, I nodded, and Fang took my schedule and map from me. I watched as he consulted the papers, and was surprised when he looked up, smiling slightly. "I have a lot of classes with you. First period, Mr Lundom in the science block. That is this way," Fang directed, walking off with my papers. I jogged to catch up, frowning slightly.

"How is Mr Lundom? Nice?" I asked, curious about the teachers. Fang shrugged.

"He's tolerable."

"Do we get to do any labs?" I pressed, wanting details.

"Yep." Fang kept walking, looking unconcerned about my growing frustration.

"Is Lissa in this class?" I asked, at least needing to know that. Fang stopped, frowning, and shook his head. I sighed in relief, following as he sped through the halls. "Thank the Lord. I wouldn't be able to deal with her twice in a row," I confessed. Fang's mouth quirked up in a slight grin, but maybe I was imagining it, it was gone so quickly. That boy had problems with smiling.

"Here it is," Fang announced, stopping in front of a wooden door stamped with the inscription, "8B." Fang pushed it open and led me inside. I frowned slightly, smelling the sterile air. This place felt like a hospital. I didn't like hospitals. A man in a white labcoat and sparse gray hair came up to me, adjusting his wire-rimmed glasses absentmindedly.

"Hello, are you Maximum?" he asked, peering at me. I nodded stiffly, and hw smiled back. "Welcome. I am Mr Lundom, and I will be your science teacher this year. Please take a seat next to Jennifer Joy." He nodded at a girl sitting near the front. She frowned upon hearing her name, and I hoped she wasn't a stuck up pig like Lissa.

"Hi," I mumbled, dropping into the seat next to her. Immediately, she shed her frown, a real smile blooming on her pretty face instead.

"Hello! I'm Jennifer Joy, but please don't call me that. I mean, seriously! That name is soooo two decades ago. I go by JJ, but Mr Lundom doesn't seem to get that." JJ nodded over at the teacher, who was fiddling with a few glass phials. "He always calls me Jennifer Joy. Always!" she complained. I nodded understandingly, now realizing why she had been frowning before.

"That sucks. My name is Maximum, but call me Max," I replied, smiling back at JJ. I had been wrong about her, thankfully. She was actually really nice.

"Settle down, class!" Mr Lundom called, rapping the whiteboard with a yardstick. "It's time to begin."

Hey peoples! This is TMI here, and I am sooooo sorry for th y updates. It's just that I have no computer, little time, and far too much procrastination power. XD
Gazzy: so here's an uber long chapter!
Nudge; yay! I loooove uber long chappies!
Angel: but we aren't in it yet. -sad face-
You will be, later, Ange. Don't worry!

Peace out! Review please! =D

~TMI~