Hey, guesss what? I had a slight case of insomnia, and stayed up until 1:45 AM writing this last night! YAY! XD
DEDICATED TO MY OH SO BELOVED REVIEWERS:
Dark Queen of Insanity (XD I never thought of that. It's true though. JP got on my nerves in that last book...), Paper Aeroplanes (I have to say I like your new penname better. XD and idk, I just made Maxi dearest cry... Lol, I'll think of a plausible explanation.), Anna (REALLY? EPICNOSITY. And sure, I can do that. Thanks for the review!), FunTimeWithAggie (thank you so much. You have no idea how much that means to me. =D), Fly On Maximum Taylor Ride (Thank you! I love you! XD), Lilac Rose6 (Thanks for the review! No Iggy this time? Whoa. Gazzy says hi. XD), Emo Squirrel (Thanks for the review! And I hope you understand better now.), ninjastar954 (Thank you so much! I hope you feel happy now! =D), FictionFinatic (it DOES have something to do with Sam! But what? -dramatic pause- I honestly don't know yet. XD I'm glad you're enjoying the story!), The Seagull (I'm glad you at least liked it a bit. XD And for the record, the kitchen itself isn't pink. The blanket was. XD), PurpleTea88 (First of all, love the penname. =D And thank you so much for reviewing! Yours was the helpful, funny kind that I love the best! Thank you!), Night Wolf (I'm glad you're liking it!), Dark Skitty Power (YOU ALMOST MISSED RECOGNITION! XD Well, now that you finally know about it {although you should have gotten update alerts XD} I hope you'll like it. lol)
Spacing fixed as of 11/21/12
Anyway, enjoy the story!
"Come on, Ells! We're gonna be late," I snapped at my sister. She jogged down the stairs and out the door, and I followed, slamming the door behind us. I could picture Mom frowning behind me in my mind, but I was just not in a good mood today. My observant family had picked up on that, probably from my atrocious behavior at the breakfast table. Consequently, I was makeup-free, and wearing my own clothing. Ella didn't even dare to try and get me to do otherwise. I was much more comfortable in my jeans, plain white shirt, and black sweatshirt than I ever could be in CareBear skinny jeans or a skirt. I let out a small growl at the thought of those articles of clothing. Ella glanced at me, alarmed, but I made no attempt to explain my thoughts. Instead I kicked a rock across the sidewalk, watching it bump and roll along the pavement cracks.
I had woken up on the wrong side of the bed this morning, that was for sure.
Ella stayed silent the entire trek to school, choosing to keep her eyes on the sidewalk as I wallowed in my morning-grumpiness. We parted ways without a word at the school gates. I watched as Ella melted into the crowd of students, not looking back at me before she disappeared. I felt a slight pang of sadness at not being acknowledged by my own sister, but it was quickly swallowed up by my prior unfriendliness. I stalked angrily through the hallways, shoving aside anyone who tried to push past me in the highschool traffic jam. Once I reached my locker, I savagely spun the dial, tearing the door open as soon as it unlocked. I glanced around for either Lissa or Fang as I shoved my backpack in my locker. Neither person was anywhere to be seen. I was slightly disappointed not to see Fang, but I swiftly brushed the thought away. Ella's previous conviction that he liked me weighed heavy on my mood, lowering it even further into the depths of grumpiness.
It was good for Lissa she wasn't in sight. I was itching to let off some steam, and my fingers were tensed and at the ready to sock somebody.
I gathered the supplies I needed for my next few classes before slamming my locker door shut. It ricocheted against the wall before bouncing into place and locking again. I was momentarily satisfied by the action, and inspected the mark my locker door made on the wall. A small blue scratch was clearly visible against the white paint.
Whirling on my heel, I pushed through the crowds and stomped over to homeroom. I yanked the door open, startling Miss James. She looked up at me, surprised, then smiled. "Hello, Max. If you ever happen to be early, like today, you can just come in and sit down quietly until class begins."
I nodded curtly, not meeting her eyes. I could practically sense her surprise grow as I walked stiffly to my new seat in the back of the class and fell down into it. Setting my books down none too gently, I crossed my arms over my chest and waited for school to begin.
I had been the first to arrive to homeroom, but soon other people started filtering in. The shy Asian girl who sat two rows in front of me appeared quickly, walking to her seat with her head down. She immediately pulled out a book and began to read. After a few, long and slow minutes, the whole class had arrived, except for my desk mate. Fang was nowhere to be seen a minute before the bell.
Despite my bad mood, I was curious as to where he could be. Lissa kept glancing back at our desk, and I could tell that she too was wondering about Fang. I glared at her, my bad mood instantly renewed. She narrowed her eyes back at me, turning back around with a flip of her red hair. I would get that girl one day. She bugged the heck out of me. I would corner her in a dark alleyway with s rusty pair of scissors, and cut off all of her hair. Then I'd make her braid it all and eat it. Then I would kick her off a dizzyingly high cliff, and watch her fall to the bottom. Then I'd scrape up her remains and throw her off an even higher cliff. Abruptly. the bell rang, startling me out of my plans to kill Lissa.
Fang was still nowhere to be found.
The announcements began, and yet Fang was still absent. I watched the door, anticipating the moment he would walk in. How would I survive the rest of homeroom without a friend to help me stay sane? Lissa was sitting right in front of me! One of us would be dead by the end of the period. Either I would kill her, or commit suicide in an attempt to get away from her prattle. I preferred the idea of killing her...
The announcements ended, and still there was no Fang. Chatter erupted in the classroom as everyone began to talk with their friends. I sat in stony silence, not wanting to say a word to anyone. Had Fang gotten deathly ill overnight from eating too many brownies with me? Or had he gotten beaten up on the way to school? Maybe he was lying, half-dead, in the streets! What if he was kidnapped? I've always been a paranoid, pessimistic sort of girl, and all I could think was that Fang was in trouble. I took a deep breath, trying to calm down. He was probably fine, and I was freaking out over nothing. Why did I care so much, anyway? I had just met him yesterday. He was practically a stranger, even if I felt like I somehow already knew him...
Lissa turned around, looking at me condescendingly. "Hey Max," she sneered. "Do you know where my boyfriend is?"
I gritted my teeth, trying to fight back the urge to kill her. "I thought you two broke up," I replied, somehow keeping my voice calm and even. Lissa flipped her hair, unperturbed.
"Oh, that? Well, he's obviously just playing hard to get. I'll have him back in bed by the end of the week." Lissa tittered in an unnaturally high octave, laughing at her lame joke. I stood up, shocked. This girl was plain disgusting! I was completely positive Fang would do absolutely nothing of what Lissa was implying. It just didn't seem like something he would do. If Lissa thought that was a funny joke, she was rising even higher on my I-Hate-You list. My bad mood had flared again, and I raised a clenched fist in her direction. Lissa's smile dropped, and her eyes locked on to my fist. "M-Max?" she stuttered, her voice even higher than before. I narrowed my eyes at her.
"Don't you dare say anything like that about Fang, ever again," I hissed at her. "Or I will personally hunt you down and beat you to a bloody pulp."
Lissa shrank back in her chair, her face pale. "Geez, Max! Take a chill pill," she squeaked, trying to smile. "I'm kidding, it's all cool."
I sat back down, but I was far from satisfied. If I turned my back for a second, she'd probably be spouting nonsense again.
Suddenly, the door swung open, and Fang walked in, completely fine. My morbid worries from earlier evaporated, only to be replaced by my horrible mood once more. Fang handed a pink late slip to Miss James, who nodded and smiled at him. Fang flashed her a quick smile back before lapsing into a blank facial expression once more. I leaned back in my chair and scowled as he came up the row and sat beside me. Setting his books down on the desk, Fang raised an eyebrow at me. I raised an eyebrow back, refusing to let my mood lift. I had been worried for nothing, and my instep was starting to throb again. "Hey," Fang murmured, sitting down. I nodded stiffly, looking away from him. An awkward silence fell between us. Again, all I could think about was how Ella had been convinced Fang liked me. I simply didn't feel comfortable with him right now, not while I was thinking those thoughts. Fang seemed wrapped up in his own thoughts, too, and didn't say anything for the rest of the period. Thankfully, Lissa didn't attempt to speak to either of us, so homeroom passed in an uneventful fashion.
When the bell rang, I grabbed my stuff and stalked out the door ahead of Fang. My bad mood had not yet waned, not by a long shot. I didn't want to talk to anyone, not even him. Fang trailed behind me all the way to science, obviously confused by my behavior. I slipped into my seat in the front, and didn't look up as Fang passed me on his way to his own desk. Mr Lundom smiled at us cheerfully. "Hello Nick! Hello Max!" Fang nodded in reply, and I couldn't help but notice the tiniest of frowns form on his face at the mention of his real name. I didn't make an effort to answer Mr Lundom at all. He looked slightly confused by our silence. "Quiet today, are we?" he asked, bustling about at his desk. Fang and I stayed silent. Luckily for Mr Lundom, the rest of the class drifted in then, laughing and talking. He looked relieved to be among normal students, and greeted everyone by name. JJ fell into the seat beside me, smiling cheerfully. She paused when she saw my stormy expression, but continued to set up her stuff. "Bad morning?" JJ asked in a conversational tone. I grunted in reply, causing her to laugh. At least somebody was in a good mood. JJ was just too upbeat to let other people get on her mood. The tiniest bit of my bad mood evaporated, but not much.
JJ left me alone for the rest of the period, thankfully understanding that I was just grumpy, and not mad at her. I liked JJ.
My next class was PE, and I was looking forward to it. Yesterday the PE teacher, Mr Tulney, had announced that the last unit had ended, and there would be a grace period of fun activities in class before the next unit began. I had overheard some of the boys gushing about dodgeball. Dodgeball would be the perfect outlet for my bad mood...
I changed into my new PE uniform as quickly as I could, ignoring the chatter of the other girls in the locker room. As soon as I was dressed, I ran outside and waited impatiently for everyone else to come out. I hadn't noticed them yesterday, but Nudge, Terra. Max II, and Gazzy were in this class with me. I saw them come out of the locker rooms, but made no move to join them. I needed to burn off my bad mood before attempting to make social contact with people I wanted to be friends with. Otherwise, they'd probably never speak to me again. I was already fairly sure Fang wasn't as comfortable with me now as he had been yesterday.
With a pang of relief, I noticed that Mr Tulney had arrived. I jogged over to him expectantly, waiting for him to speak so I could run off my moodiness. He waited until the whole class was assembled before giving us our instructions. "I want four laps around the track, in under eight minutes. If you don't make it in time, you're running laps for the rest of the period while everyone else plays dodgeball in the gym." Mr Tulney had to wait as a cheer erupted from some students, mixed with several loud groans. "Head to the track now. I start my timer in one minute. Go!"
With some considerable grumbling, our class was soon assembled at the starting line of the big blue track encircling the synthetic turf athletic field. I bounced on the balls of my feet, impatient to begin running. It seemed like forever until I heard Mr Tulney yell, "GO!" Then I was off like a bullet shot from a rifle. I had left most of the class behind me in my swift start, but I noticed with approval that Gazzy and Nudge were running right along with me. I could feel my bad mood melting quickly as I pushed into high gear. I didn't care about conserving energy for my final lap. I just needed to run, to get this grouchy black cloud out of my system.
I wasn't sure when I began to leave Nudge and Gazzy behind me. They were steadily keeping pace with me for at least two and a half laps. However, at that point, I began to feel exhilarated, and ran even faster than I had before. The other two stayed at their same pace, still running way ahead of everyone else, but now far behind me. By this time I had lapped almost half the class. I zipped around the circuit four times with no problem, feeling fresh and happy. My bad mood was completely gone.
I didn't want to stop running yet, though, so I simply didn't. I lapped more and more people, increasing speed until I was racing the wind, loving the feel of my ponytail flying in a heavy line behind me. Ragged breaths tore at my abdomen, but I didn't want to stop. I kept on running around and around the track until I heard Mr Tulney yell, "TIME!"
Abruptly, I slowed from sprinting to running, running to jogging, and jogging to walking. Now that I wasn't focused on running, I realized I was panting heavily, and sweat was trailing down my face in cold rivers. But I was satisfied, and I couldn't stop a huge grin from breaking across my face. I met up with Gazzy, Nudge, Terra, and Max II at the water fountains, still smiling. Gazzy high-fived me silently, and Max II copied him. Nudge however, squealed as loudly as she could, hopping up and down excitedly. Terra smiled indulgently as she watched her friend spaz out.
"ZOMG MAX you're such an amazing runner! Aren't you tired? How can you run that fast and still speed up and just keep going and going? At first Gazzy and I were right with you, but we were going almost top speed, and then you kept going faster! You lapped Veronica and Ashley six times! Max and Gazzy were counting! It was so cool 'cause you kept sprinting and sprinting and Terra's all, 'she can't go any faster than that,' and then right after she said that you sped up even more! And Terry's like, 'WTF THAT'S IMPOSSIBLE!' and Gazzy was laughing his butt off! It was so cool! How many laps did you do in that eight minutes?" Nudge babbled endlessly without once taking a breath. I stared at her, wondering how she was still alive without taking in any air. Gazzy finally had to shut her up with a hand across the mouth. Nudge pushed it away with a playful scowl in his direction, but stopped ranting.
"I don't know how many laps I ran. I just needed to burn off some energy," I replied honestly.
"You ran eight," a gruff voice behind me answered, sounding half-amused, half-shocked. I whirled around to see Mr Tulney standing behind me. "That was pretty amazing, Ride. Some of the kids didn't make four laps in eight minutes, and there you were breezing by with eight. It was rather entertaining, I have to say," Mr Tulney added impishly. I grinned, pleased at this unexpected praise.
"I like to run," I admitted. "And today I needed to burn off some steam."
"Do you intend to run track?" Mr Tulney asked, looking hopeful. "We could use a pair of legs as fast as yours."
"Sorry, Mr Tulney, I'm playing soccer," I replied apologetically. "Track doesn't really interest me. I'd like to do cross country, though."
"That's a shame," Mr Tulney murmured. "But it's your decision. Good luck in your soccer endeavor, then."
"Thank you." I watched him go off towards the gym, smiling wryly. "I kinda feel bad now," I remarked to no one in particular. "He seemed so hopeful."
"Don't feel bad, Max I," Max II told me, slinging an arm around my shoulders in a friendly way. "We need you on the soccer team!"
"Right!" Gazzy put his arm around me from the other side, nodding vigorously. "We're gonna win championships this year! And we need you to help ensure victory!"
"I feel loved," Terra interjected, crossing her arms as she followed us to the gym. Gazzy immediately turned to her, smiling.
"You are, Terry dear!" he insisted. "What would we do without you cheering for us all?" Terra giggled, ducking behind Nudge. I started to smile at her antics, when a sudden bolt of white-hot pain shot through my left foot. My knee buckled in response, and I dropped to the floor, grasping my foot and pulling it towards me. Max II crouched next to me, looking worried.
"Max? Are you okay?" Max II asked, not bothering to add the playful 'I' on to my name. I nodded tightly, slowly letting go of my now throbbing foot. I had completely forgotten to go easy on my bruised foot while I was running. Now I was paying the price. Max II offered me a hand, and I leaned heavily on him as I stood up.
"I bruised my foot yesterday, and it decided to remind me about its existence," I explained. My new friends nodded understandingly.
"Better you than me," Max II joked. I narrowed my eyes at him, and playfully messed up his hair. He squeezed my shoulders in reply, laughing.
"Well if you're better, hurry up!" Terra whined, tugging at my other arm. "I wanna go play dodgeball and kick everybody's butts!"
Ah. A girl after my own heart.
I let Terra and Nudge pull me into the gym, while Gaz and Max II trailed behind discussing top secret techniques. As I listened to Terra and Nudge chatter away, I decided that I felt a lot better from this morning's bad mood already. I felt completely normal once more.
I'd have to apologize to Fang for my moodiness later. I hoped he didn't think I was mad at him. I didn't want Fang to feel bad. Not Fang. Definitely not Fang.
Fang's POV
"Mom, you made me miss the whole game," I complained. It was past 7:30 yet I was sitting at the kitchen table, unable to stand up and go to school. Why? Because Mom had sicced Maria on me. She was sitting on the floor next to my chair, hugging my legs in a vice-like grip. Maria was a strong little bugger for being six years old.
Anyone with a sane family may have been wondering what the heck was going on in my kitchen. We had sat and eaten breakfast together today, an unusual event for my family. Usually Dad had to run to the office at 6:45, and I was out of the house by 7:30 to play a quick soccer game with the guys before school.
But for one reason or another, Dad had been able to stay until 7:30 today. Mom had celebrated with chocolate chip pancakes, so I had been compelled to stay and gorge on them past the usual time I left for school. I figured I'd miss part of our pick-up game, but I'd probably still make half of it at the very least. I ate my pancakes quickly, cleaning my plate by 7:45. I had started to get up and take my plate to the sink when Mom motioned to Maria. My traitor sister leaped out of her chair and attacked my legs in a hug, effectively anchoring me in place. I had sat back down, surprised, and Mom came over, smiling sweetly at me. "Here, Fang, I'll take this out for you," Mom offered, grabbing my plate and carrying it to the sink. I watched her wash it off, completely confused. Why had my mom set my little sister on me? Said sister was currently giggling her head off as she clutched my legs.
I leaned over and ruffled the top of her head, breaking out a small smile for her. Maria looked up at me, still giggling. "Hey Ria, can you let go of me? I have to go to school now," I explained. Maria nodded, but didn't lessen her grip on my legs. I cocked my head to the side, making a sad face at her. "Ria, that's not nice."
Maria just giggled in response. I had to smile. Difficulty with verbal messages seemed to run in the family.
"Fang, Maria isn't going to let go," Mom informed me cheerily from the sink. I frowned.
"Why not?"
"Because I told her not to," Mom replied casually, setting my plate down and turning to face me.
"Why?" I was confused now.
"I want the scoop on Valencia's daughters, and you aren't leaving until I get it," Mom threatened. I raised an eyebrow at her.
"You met them last night," I pointed out.
"But Ella was with Maria most of the night, and I didn't even get to talk to Max. You kept her to yourself!" Mom accused, a wicked grin forming on her face. I blanched.
"Mom! I was NOT keeping Max to myself," I protested, forgetting to control my facial expression. Mom cackled evilly in reply, which was just plain creepy.
"Of course you weren't, darling. My mistake," Mom simpered, still grinning widely. Maria giggled again, tightening her grip around my legs. "And I still want the scoop. It's 7:50. We can wait all day if you want to." I sighed, again trying to stand up. Maria held fast to my legs, though, and I fell back in my chair. "Let's start with Ella," Mom continued, ignoring my escape attempt. "Tell me what you think about her."
"Ella's nice, although she's a bit creepy," I admitted, deciding to just get this over with. The faster I answered Mom's questions, the faster I would be free.
"How so?" Mom pried. I rolled my eyes.
"I saw her before we met the rest of the family, a couple days ago. She just stared at me, like she was analyzing my soul or something," I explained, thinking back to my first Ella sighting. Now that I thought about it, I remembered hearing Max and Dr Martinez talking inside the house. That's where I had first heard Max's name. It had stayed in the back of my mind until the next morning, when she appeared in homeroom.
"Is Ella just too girly for your taste?" Mom asked, leaning back against the counters. I shrugged in response. "So you think Ella is slightly scary and too girly. What about Max?"
A slight smile stole across my lips before I quickly dropped it, returning to my normal, unbreakable expression. "Max is nice too."
Mom smiled widely, looking way too happy. "How so?"
"Those are exactly the words you used to pry about Ella," I informed her. Mom waved her hands around impatiently.
"You're stalling. Just answer the question, young man," Mom ordered. I hid a smirk at her tone of voice, but nonetheless obeyed.
"Max is... Max. You get the feeling she doesn't particularly care if you hate her, and she's happy to hate you right back. But she was also really friendly to Nudge and Iggy and Terra and JJ, and Gazzy said she was pretty cool. She doesn't try to flaunt her looks at everybody, although she definitely could if she wanted to. And she's a really good artist, not to mention she kicks serious butt in soccer. I owe her one, too, because she saved me from Lissa. Miss James put Max in Lissa's seat next to me in homeroom, because of her last name. Now I don't have to sit next to Lissa anymore, which is a relief. Lissa seems set on hating Max, and Max is happy to reciprocate the feeling. I guess that Max is... just, Max. I can't think of another word to describe her." I lapsed into silence, more surprised at my rant about Max than my mom appeared to be. In fact, this seemed to be the answer she was anticipating, because she just smiled and nodded thoughtfully.
"So do you like her?" Mom asked, a mischievous grin lighting up her face. My eyes widened in alarm. That was definitely not the question I expected.
"What?" I sputtered. "Why?"
"Nevermind why, Fang. Do you?"
"Mom, I just broke up with my girlfriend-"
"Whom you hated for ages anyway-" Mom interjected. I waved her off.
"And I just met Max yesterday. Isn't that a bit soon to start liking someone?" I asked plaintively. Mom shook her head vigorously.
"Oh no, not at all," she assured me. I sighed, and Maria giggled yet again. I had almost forgotten she was still clinging to my legs. "Don't you think she's pretty?"
Only through extreme expression control was I able to keep my cheeks from reddening. "Mom, that's not fair. There are plenty of pretty girls I don't like."
"So? Answer my questions, don't argue. Do you think Max is pretty?" Mom demanded, putting her hands on her hips.
"Yeah, I guess," I muttered, praying that I wouldn't blush. So far, I was holding strong.
"What does 'I guess' mean?"
"Mom!"
"I want to know!" Mom insisted, not looking embarrassed in the least.
"Yes, I think Max is very pretty. Okay?" I muttered, puttng my head down on the table. This was mortifying. At least Dad had left, so he couldn't tease me about it later.
"How pretty?" Mom persisted. I closed my eyes, mentally dead. "Nicholas Rianild, answer your mother!"
"Her eyes are really pretty, her hair was all glossy and sunstreaked and altogether really pretty, and her left foot is also really pretty, too. I think she's really pretty. Is that good enough?" I asked.
"Left foot?" Mom asked, momentarily distracted.
"That was the one she hurt. I had to look at it, and it was a very pretty foot," I explained, now completely past my embarrassment. This was ridiculous, and I simply didn't care anymore. Mom nodded, but I could tell she was confused by the 'pretty foot' comment. "So do you have your 'scoop'?" I asked, putting air quotes around 'scoop'. Mom smiled, nodding.
"You are released," she proclaimed, waving Maria away from me. My sister sprang off my legs, and ran, still giggling, from the room. I stood up, and looked at the clock. I felt my stomach drop.
"Mom! It's 8:13! School started three minutes ago!" I yelled, racing for my backpack. Mom glanced at the clock, and the smile dropped from her face.
"I'm so sorry, Fang. I'll write you a note really quickly," Mom said hurriedly, scribbling something on a piece of paper and signing it. I grabbed the note, running for the door with my bag slung over one shoulder. "Have a good day!" Mom called from the doorway as I sprinted to school. I shook my head, increasing speed along the flat stretch between me and Cromwell High. I was there in less than two minutes, and I raced into the office, panting and shoving my hair out of my eyes. Ms Jean, the secretary, smiled at me, taking the note and reading it quickly.
"Oh, your mom made you late again, Fang?" Ms Jean asked, smiling at me. I nodded, fighting to regulate my breathing after my run. Ms Jean shook her head. "That lady is a right chatterbox. I'll talk to her about making her son late for school," Ms Jean promised. I flashed her a quick smile as I took the late pass she handed me. Ms Jean was a good friend of my mom, and knew how talkative she could be. Mom was almost as bad as Nudge when it came to ranting. "Hurry to your class, now. There's still six minutes left of homeroom," Ms Jean called as I jogged out of the office. I managed to get to my locker, unload my stuff, and run to Miss James' room in less than two minutes, which was a personal new record. I smiled swiftly before tugging the door open and entering my homeroom.
"Hello, Fang," Miss James greeted me. "I thought you were sick or something."
I shook my head, flashing her a smile as I handed her the note. She took it without a word and waved me towards my desk. As I moved down the aisle, I looked towards the desk I now shared with Max. Lissa was sitting in front of her, looking pale and slightly shaken. Max didn't look happy in the least. She slouched in her chair with her arms crossed over her chest, and glared at her binder. I set my stuff down softly on the desk, slipping into the seat beside her. Max glanced at me, but didn't say anything. Unfortunately, I had to be the one to initiate conversation, a task I never liked. I looked at Max until she returned my gaze, then greeted her with a quiet, "Hey."
She didn't reply, instead choosing to nod curtly in my direction as her gaze shifted back to her binder. Now I was confused. Was she mad at me? What could I have done? I racked my brain, trying to think of a reason, but couldn't think of anything. We sat in an uncomfortable silence until the bell rang. Max swiftly stood up and stalked towards the door without a backward glance. I followed her halfheartedly, still wondering why she was angry. After this morning's conversation with my mom, I was very aware of my own thoughts concerning Max. Even as she was moving stiffly and angrily through the hallways, I couldn't help but notice the light flashing on her sunstreaked hair. It was really pretty, even though it was wavy today, instead of the glossy sheet it had been yesterday.
I spent most of science class wondering why Max was so mad. She didn't seem to be acting very friendly to JJ either, though. Maybe she wasn't just mad at me? When I looked over, though, JJ seemed completely unaffected by Max's curt silence. Was I taking this too seriously? This was probably trivial, but I still didn't like the feeling that Max was mad at me.
Max rushed out of science class at the end of the period, brushing by Mr Lundom in her hurry to leave. I stood up to follow her, but my lab partner, Terence, stopped me. "Hey Fang, do you have a problem with the worm dissection? 'Cause if you do, I need to find a new partner before-"
"I'm fine with dissection, Terence," I interrupted him, my eyes on the door.
"Okay then. That's great! I'll see you tomor-"
"Bye." I picked up my things and hurried after Max. I had hoped I could catch her in the hallway, but she was nowhere to be seen. With a sigh, I continued on to English. I'd have to talk to her at lunch.
I flashed a quick smile at Ms Niota as I walked into her class, immediately beelining for my usual window seat. Ms Niota allowed free seating every day, and I usually managed to snag a desk by the windows. It wasn't that Ms Niota was a boring teacher; I just liked having a window nearby, since I was slightly claustrophobic. When I was seven, I had accidentally locked myself in the dog cage of my uncle's terrier. I had huddled in the too-small space for what seemed like years before my dad heard my whimpers and came to free me. I shuddered at the memory. Even a decade later, I still couldn't bear to look at dog crates, and my claustrophobia lingered on.
Iggy plopped into the seat next to me, startling me out of my memories. "Hi Fang," he greeted me, leaning back in his chair. I looked at him strangely, but he, of course, didn't notice.
"How did you know I was sitting here?" I asked him. Iggy shrugged, grinning.
"I could sense your emo presence from across the room," Iggy said in a creepy voice. I elbowed him in the ribs, and he yelped. "Jeez, Fang. You're so violent!"
I grunted. "How'd you know I was here?" I persisted, curious. Iggy snickered.
"There's something called 'asking a pretty girl', Fangy." Iggy rocked back in his chair, smirking in my direction. "Even though I can usually deal with stuff normally, the girls love the blind guy thing. They think it's cute."
"I'm rolling my eyes, Iggy," I replied, shuffling my papers back and forth. "You have no shame."
"But you have plenty! So I'll just borrow some of yours if I ever need it," Iggy retorted cheekily. I elbowed him again. "You really are very violent, Fang. Maybe you should see a psychiatrist about your problem."
"My only problem is you."
"Ooh! That hurts, Fang. You cut me deep." Iggy held his hand over his heart, wincing dramatically.
"I'm rolling my eyes again." I turned to look out the window. Ms Niota's classroom had a good view over the athletic field. I watched the goal nets swing in the breeze, instantly wanting to be out shooting a soccer ball into them. I saw the kids in PE amble slowly out to the start of the track ringing the field. Apparently we were running laps today. I picked Gazzy, Nudge and Terra out of the crowd, chattering away and smiling at one another. All at once, everyone started running. Three people led the class; Gazzy, Nudge, and another girl with long blondish-brown hair and a slim, athletic body. She looked vaguely familiar. I turned back to the classroom in time to hear Ms Niota start talking about the persuasive essay we were going to start writing. Iggy groaned beside me.
"I hate writing essays," he muttered. "My mom makes me say everything I want to write out loud for her to record on paper. It's so annoying."
"Right," I replied absentmindedly. I glanced back out the window. The girl I had been wondering about had pulled ahead of Nudge and Gazzy, and was beginning to pass up the stragglers in the class. I frowned, wondering who that girl could possibly be. I watched as she sprinted around the track again. When she came close to the window, I flashed a look towards Ms Niota. She was answering someone's question, not paying attention towards my side of the room. I quickly leaned over and stared intently out the window towards the girl's face.
It was Max. Of course it was Max. Who else could manage to outrun Nudge AND Gazzy? Those two were among the very fastest in our entire grade, yet she outstripped them without a problem. Who else but Maximum Ride? I smiled wryly. This girl was going to be very interesting.
Is this chapter better? I made it loooooooong to make up for the filler chapter.
Gazzy: We're back to double-digit page numbers.
XD And I added in Fang's POV, since several people requested it. I think the bulk of this will be MPOV, but I can add in FPOV, EPOV, IPOV, or maybe even DMPOV.
Gazzy: DMPOV?
Dr M's POV.
Gazzy: Oh.
Nudge: What about MY POV?
I dunno, Nudgekins. Ask the readers.
REVIEW PLEASE! =D
~TMI~