I don't own MR

Fang

She was home. We both had so many questions, so many explanations, so many arguments stowed away, but she was home. And we were together. And all the shit that came with dealing with a genuine relationship could wait for another day. For now I just wanted to hold her as she slept, rubbing circles into her bare back to soothe the nightmares away. We weren't okay right now, but we'd be eventually. Just like everything always does it would drift back to normal and we'd forget Max ever left, that I ever hurt myself, that right now we were two broken people trying not to step on the other's shards.

"Fang," Max whispered, her voice heavy with exhaustion. I wondered how long she'd been up, pretending to sleep so we could avoid conversation.

"Yeah?"

"Please don't ever hurt yourself again." I blinked, unsure of how to make such a promise. If I ever got angry, if I ever felt the itch, how would I stop myself? I didn't know how to control whatever new abilities lay intertwined with my new DNA, I didn't even know if I'd seen them all or not. But Max was asking me something of me that I felt obligated to comply with. I'd figure it all out for her. If it took years I'd control it, for both of us.

"Only if you promise to never leave again." I finally negotiated, and Max turned to face me, her deep brown eyes staring into my even deeper ones with an intensity I'd never seen before.

"I never really left, Fang. I'm in your heart, aren't I?" She finally replied and although it could have just been an ordinary question, there was something desperate in her voice that made me believe otherwise. This was important to her for some reason, and I doubted it was just because we were a couple.

"Of course," I nodded once. "But it's pretty nice to have you here in front of me too. This way I can talk to you, among other things." I winked playfully, hoping to lighten the mood, but even as Max forced out a chuckle I knew something was up.

"So are you going to tell me what's going on?" I rose an eyebrow, to which the Great Maximum Ride- no, Maximum Walker- stuttered. The red flags went off then, as she spun away from me and got off the bed, quick to pull some clothes on. As her swayed however, I couldn't help but to catch a glimpse of something so miniscule I could have just been seeing things.

"Max, do you have dirt on the back of your neck or something?" I pondered. She wiped at her neck, brushing something I couldn't see off of her hands.

"Yeah, that's weird. I spent a lot of time around dust and dirt while I was gone. I'm surprised I'm not coated with it actually." She laughed, her obnoxious, beautiful laugh. But something was off.

"Are you gonna tell me where you went? Why you went?" I demanded, getting to my feet and pulling my jeans on so that way if she ran off I could chase.

Max let out a heavy sigh, leaning against the wall as she debated what to tell me and what to leave swept under the rug. "I went to a remote house in Texas for the month with a friend of mine for… personal reasons."

"Max, should I bring up what we did a few hours ago? How could it be more personal than that?" I questioned and for a fleeting moment she looked at me with the most honesty I had seen since she came back. Her mouth opened to tell me the truth, and for a long time I thought she was going to, but then all it once it closed, and a something else took over.

"Seven years from now you'll find out." She grabbed for the door handle but I pounced in front of it, leaning on it to keep the door from allowing her escape.

"And what's that supposed to mean?"

"Look, Fang. I've already told you too much and I can't tell you why I left. You'll just have to wait to find out." Max held my gaze, daring me to question her, but I couldn't. Once she was set nothing could change her mind, so with a glare that wouldn't have even scared a mouse, I moved aside.

"Alright, well where are you going?" I was asking a lot of questions today. Maybe too many, but I couldn't stop. I wanted answers, and I didn't want her to leave my sight.

"To see Ari. I only got to talk to him for a couple seconds because I wanted to see you, but now we should really have some brother-sister time."

"I've never heard you suggest that before." I acknowledged.

"Yeah, well things have changed." Max's voice was barely above a whisper and it occurred to me then what Ari had told me just hours ago.

"Oh God, Max. I'm sorry. I know how hard it can be to lose someone."

Max blinked, a look of confusion falling across her face. "What are you talking about?"

"He didn't tell you?"
"Didn't tell me what?" Max exclaimed, her voice rising in a flurry of panic.

"Max… he… Ari got his expiration date." I watched at my wife's eyes widened in pure shock, her body freezing on the spot.

"What? What do you mean he got his expiration date? I just saw him not that long ago. He doesn't have an expiration date." She snarled. "Fang, that's not funny."

It was my turn to be confused. "Are- are you sure? He told me he got it." I persisted.

"I'm positive. He doesn't have a date on the back of his neck. Why would he- oh. Oh crap." Max mumbled, her voice faltering as a liar's does when they accidentally speak the truth.

"Max, what's going on?" I asked warily, unsure I wanted to hear the answer. Part of me was already fearing the worse, the other part already knew it was true.

"I- I don't know. I really need to talk to him but we should go out tonight. I'll be back soon. Get ready while I'm gone." She gave me a quick peck and disappeared before I could ask anymore questions, before I could steal anymore answers.

A few days had gone by since Max came back. She still did everything she could to avoid the conversation we needed to have, and although I pushed she always managed to slither out of the interrogation. I didn't want to give up, but nothing was working. I'd tried everything except sheer force, and I wasn't planning on ever doing that. Not with Max.

So with a heavy heart and no other sane options I finally let it be. Which brought us to where we were now- laying next to each other watching a movie called Broken Heart's Club. It was all about five guys who'd lost their girlfriends or wives one way or another, and a road trip they went on to attempt to get over it.

One of the characters' had just been killed by a bear somewhere in Wyoming. Not the best way to go but considering the conversation it sparked it was a good way for this moment.

"I wanna go out with a fight." Max mumbled, her fists clenching in the fabric of my shirt.

"And why is that?" I asked, although I already felt like I knew.

"I'm Maximum Walker, the baddest criminal around. I want to go out living up to my reputation." A pause. "Wouldn't you?"

I shook my head, hardly having to think. "When I die, I want to be laying right next to you, and I want to see your beautiful face because then I can die a happy man."

"God, you're sappy," Max rolled her eyes playfully and pecked a kiss on my lips which I returned halfheartedly.

"Only for you, Babe." I snickered, pulling her close so half of her body draped itself over my own, She sent me one of those rare smiles. The kind that shone brighter than all the stars, the kind that told me everything would work itself out.

"Fang, do you remember back in Paris, when I gave you that nickname?" Max questioned suddenly, and I thought for a moment before nodding. Of course I remembered. The restaurant was fancy, the food was good, and Max had invaded my space like a wild woman. It was all dumb little things now, minor thoughts that developed into fond memories.

"How could I forget? The way you went all 'Worried Dentist' on me is kinda hard to not remember." I smirked and she adjusted herself so she laid completely on top of me, as light as a feather.

"Don't ever forget that, okay? That was the day I met Fang Walker, the most important person in my life."

"Funny, just a few days before that I met a rather important person too," There was a sparkle in Max's eyes that I loved to watch as it danced around with the lighting. "But then this Maximum Ride chick kidnapped me and ruined everything."

Max smacked my chest lightly and I only snickered, pulling her into a sweet kiss.

Review because Fang's sappy, but so is Max.

And some of the usual banter is starting to slip in so it's nice that things are going back to normal.

And next chapter is the final chapter not including the epilogue. Eep. I'm actually really nervous to write it because I feel like one of two things could happen. Either everyone can understand it or everyone can accuse me of pulling a JP and try to kill me. But I've had this planned for a long time and there's no going back now so,

Soar on

VR