Maximum Ride: Picking Up the Pieces (A Maximum Ride Fanfic)

Chapter Nine: Baby Shower Breakdown

I can hear the groceries being put away in the kitchen. That's a sound I'm now used to hearing. But I also hear the commotion of Angel, Ella, Nudge, and my mother squealing as they mess with what sounds like streamers, wrapping paper, and a helium tank. I laugh when I hear their voices get higher than they are normally, which is something dangerously freaky for Angel, but I still worry even more when I think of what they're doing.

What they're doing is stepping on my fingers as I grip the edge of the cliff that I'm hanging off of.

I'm not ready. I begin to pace, and that's when Jeb starts talking.

"Max, what is it?" he asks, sounding a bit on edge. If only.

"They're crushing them," I say, then frown and keep my head down, realizing that he doesn't know what I'm talking about.

"Max... what's wrong?" he asks again. Now he's really worried. He thinks it's something physical.

"My situation has caused me to feel like I am hanging onto the edge of the cliff, and now almost all of the people I really need support from right now are trying to step on my hands and say, 'I guess you're ready now! Go for it!' They're crushing my fingers. It's all slipping away." I stop pacing and sit on the black bench at the end of Fang's bed. Jeb stands and moves over to join me.

"Hey... don't be like that. You can be ready for this. They're only trying to help. They're trying to support you. They're trying to get you ready, in fact." It's this line that starts me crying, and the crying that wakes up the six feet. Damn emotions.

"Really?"

"And like we've told you since you got here, they're ready to help. They'll help as long as they're needed," he says. He's rubbing my shoulder now. I feel undermined, like one of those one-hit wonders you hear about on the radio. I saved the world from an Armageddon's worth of chaos. And yet I'm not ready to handle three babies. What is wrong with me?!

"Okay..." I sigh out the word, making it last longer than it probably should. "I can do this." I sniff loudly and wipe my face. My brick wall façade has shattered. It's left behind a tear-streaked face and a face that is regaining its composure. The brick wall, however, will not be rebuilt.

"Max, can you come in here for a second, please? You don't have to if you don't want to," my mom hollers. I put on my best happy face and hope that I can act surprised enough to please them. I stand from the bench, and Jeb follows.

"Are you ready?" he asks, grinning. I nod.

"After you," he smiles. I walk out into the living room, which is empty.

"Mom?" I call out, beginning my charade.

"Val?" Jeb calls out, adding to my charade.

"Hey, Fang, do you know where Mom is?" I wink at him, and he grins, and adds to the game of pretend even more.

"I don't, actually. Maybe Iggy does," he says. "HEY IG!" he shouts.

"WHAT!" Iggy shouts from the bathroom.

"YOU HAPPEN TO KNOW WHERE DR. MARTINEZ IS?" Fang hollers in answer to Iggy. Iggy knows too. They're all in on it.

"WHY, NO, I DON'T BELIEVE I'VE SEEN THEM ANYWHERE," Iggy shouts, his words slightly muffled by the bathroom door.

"YOU HAVEN'T SEEN ANYTHING, IGGY?" We laugh hysterically when Fang says this, and I hear a snicker come from behind the couch.

"WELL, YEAH, I MEAN, I'VE LOOKED EVERYWHERE AND I CAN'T FIND HER. OR ANYONE. OR ANYTHING FOR THAT MATTER. FOR YOU SEE-"

"WE ALL KNOW YOU'RE BLIND, IG, YOU CAN STOP YOUR PHILOSOPHICAL SPEECH SHORT," I shout at him. Another giggle from behind the couch.

"DON'T. EVER. ASK ME. TO LOOK. FOR ANYONE. EVER. AGAIN." Iggy shouts, making us all laugh. Suddenly, the giggler from behind the couch reveals herself as Angel, who screams ecstatically.

"Oh my God, Max, I seriously can't take it anymore. Surprise!" My mother, Nudge, and Ella pop up and balloons float out from where they were hiding. I laugh and half jog, half waddle over to meet all of the girls over by the chair and hug them, trying to keep up the charade. All of the boys begin to filter out, but I grab Fang by his collar and swing him back around next to me.

"Uh-huh, buddy. This is the girliness you HAVE to endure," Ella says, raising her eyebrows at him. Fang looks about to wet himself.

"You too, boys, you all had to pitch in, now you get to endure, too," my mother says, gesturing them back with two fingers. Jeb, Iggy, and Gazzy all begin to trudge back into the room. Angel quickly tells me in my mind that there will be no games, just cake and presents, and I hold back a sigh of relief. I look at her and hope that my eyes are thanking her dearly. She nods and smiles.

By the end of four long hours filled with presents and three very big slices of cream cheese frosted cake, I have three car seats, loads of stuffed animals, some high-tech baby monitor, a three-seat stroller, and buttloads of baby clothes, blankets, diapers, bottles, and books with names in them.

"There's.. one more thing. I didn't tell anyone else because Angel would have told you," Jeb says. Angel blushes and looks down at the ground, embarrassed. He takes everyone to the room that would normally contain his home office, where he works as a work-from-home over-the-phone technological consultant. But the office is no longer his office. It's a nursery that he has built entirely himself. The walls are painted a soft sky blue with clouds all over, except for one wall that is painted with a sunrise, filled with pinks, purples, yellows, oranges, and reds. There are three cribs to my right, each one with its own unique mobile. The girl's mobile has all kinds of flowers in all different colors. One of the boy's mobiles has penguins and polar bears and seals, and the other has dogs and cats. In the corner of the room, there is a cushioned rocking chair and a bookshelf filled with books, and over it, a canopy filled with even more stuffed animals. There is also a changing table, and a blanketed area in the corner meant for play.

I have nothing to say. I'm speechless. Fang's mouth hangs open, as if it's barely sticking to his face.

"I didn't know how long I could keep it secret, but I couldn't help myself," Jeb says softly. Before I know it, I find myself hugging him as tightly as possible, ignoring all obstacles. Fang joins us, and soon, the entire flock has gathered around Jeb, surrounding him and most likely strangling him in a tight embrace.

Strangely, I feel a bit lightheaded, and a bit wet as well. I don't know if I take anyone down with me, but I fall to the ground unconscious, my stomach feeling as thought it is being strangled with a belt.

Everything goes black. He said I would be ready.

I think I'm ready now.