Chp. 15 "What's Next?"
The next day came slowly and I was still lying in my bed by lunch, not really knowing how to go about this. I knew Max and Avery wanted to hang out today but I was still too shocked to think about anything besides last night.
And soon I received a text from both of them.
They wanted to hang out soon, which only meant I had to come back to reality. I had gotten dressed quickly, fixing my hair and throwing on some casual clothes before heading downstairs. My parents usually worked till lunch so they weren't home, which I was grateful for because I didn't want to face them.
I also still had the number to contact my real parents in my pocket, and I was bringing it for proof to Max and Avery.
And I was currently on my way to pick Avery up at her house.
The kiss had been completely amazing, the feelings I got when our lips had met were so new and amazing. I had never felt that good while being with someone and knowing she felt the same way only made me feel more amazing.
She was just amazing.
I started down the familiar gravel road, seeing her house coming into view slowly. My heart began racing just thinking about her. I pulled up into her drive way and honked, letting her know I was here.
Then the door opened, revealing a familiar face as I watched her walk towards my car. Her tight jeans and her boots that hit lightly against the concrete, like she was walking on air. Her hips moved and her face was bright, making my eyes linger on her body just a tad longer than normal.
She sat next to me in the passenger seat and smiled, "I saw you checking me out."
I looked over to her, realizing just the sight of her had lifted my mood extremely. I smiled, "Do you blame me?"
She shrugged, "No."
I laughed then, heading out of her driveway and towards Max's house. I didn't want to bring up last night with my parents yet because I wanted Max with us first. I glanced at Avery who was looking out the window, her eye lashes glowing in the bright sunlight. I wondered a lot what she was thinking about whenever she was with me, but in a way it was mysterious, and it made me like her even more.
If that was even possible.
I pulled up into Max's drive way only to see him waiting for me, seeing Avery in the front seat and rolling his eyes. He opened the back door, "Guess I've been kicked out of my shotgun position?"
Avery looked back at him and I expected her to return a snide remark but she didn't, "If you want it back all you have to do is ask... Maxwell."
I laughed out loud at her calling him by his full name and Max's face stayed straight, leaning back in his seat, "You can keep it."
I smiled, pulling out of the driveway, "I think you guys are gonna be good friends."
Max sighed heavily, "Yea, right."
Then my mind wandered to the piece of paper in my pocket, letting me know I had to come back into reality. I spoke again, "Ok so... I talked with my parents last night..."
I knew Max had a slight idea as of why but Avery didn't so this was going to be a little bit of a shock to her. Max answered, "What happened?"
"I was right, I'm adopted."
Avery gasped dramatically, "What?"
"It's a long story... but my parents knew I was going to have powers, they knew the entire time Max. They even know my real parents, they're friends with them."
"Wow, that's tough..."
I huffed heavily, feeling the pain of betrayal seep back into my heart, "Yea, you're telling me."
Avery grabbed my hand that was on the center console, "What do you mean you're adopted and your parents know your biological ones?!"
I felt my heart jump immediately from the sudden contact and I swerved spastically, causing Max to grab Avery's arm and throw it back into her lap. He nearly yelled, "No touchy touchy in the car, not while she's driving. I want to live ok? I can't heal from traumatic car accidents."
I laughed suddenly, either from my spastic actions while driving or Max's stupid comment. He really was like the overly protective brother, and he was chaperoning Avery and I.
We made it to the garage junkyard and Max got out, going to zap the keypad once more to open up the gate. Avery spoke as she watched him, "There's probably a way to reset the password, so no one can get in besides us."
I looked at her, "You know how to do that?"
She nodded, "I know how to do a lot of stuff, Andy."
I nodded towards Max and the keypad, "Ok, how do you do it?"
She smirked devilishly, "You'll see in a bit."
Soon we were all in the front of the garage and Avery had brought her booksack which I hadn't noticed before. She extracted a laptop and a cord, plugging her laptop into the keypad's system and opening up her computer. Files began popping up on her computer as Max and I watched in awe and she worked her magic. She was hacking into the system and reprogramming the entire thing all together.
Max whispered, "Not gonna lie, that's pretty fucking legit."
I smirked, "It's hot."
Avery mumbled, "I heard that," as she continued to face the keypad and type into her computer. Then soon she looked back at Max and I, smiling victoriously, "So what do you guys want the new password to be?"
I studied the keypad, realizing it held not only numbers but letters, and I typed in the only word that seemed to suffice. I read aloud, "C. A. T. A. L. Y. S. T."
Max gave me a wry look and shoved me, "How original, no one can guess that."
I shrugged, "It's what came to mind."
We stepped into the layer, closing the gate behind us and getting to work. We began setting up what began to look like our new hangout, but it was so much more than that. We had a pin board already here from the previous owners, and the more we dug the more stuff we found we could use. Avery also ended up setting up and hacking the old internet connection and speeding it up for future use. Max and I also brought some electronics back to life that seemed to be broken. We pulled the couch farther into the den, setting the radio and the table up like a hangout. The pin board was in front for further use and I gripped the piece of paper in my pocket, knowing I would need to call but now wasn't the time.
It was too soon.
Soon I was explaining everything to Max and Avery, mostly trying to help Avery keep up considering she didn't know much about what Max and I were capable of. I told them about how my parents, my biological parents, most likely possessed powers just like me. I knew that much, but whether or not they could help us any further... well I didn't know.
But finding them would be a good place to start, and we all knew that.
~ ~ ~ ~
Days started passing slowly, and Avery, Max and I were becoming some sort of a team throughout the countless hours we spent at our layer. It was funny, we were an odd group but we worked well, but separately we weren't really anything...
Well besides Avery, but that wasn't the point.
Soon the days started turning into weeks and the classes started flying by as the hours we spent together became more like chilling than working. I hadn't called my parents yet either, I would chicken out every time I would take out my phone and begin to dial. Max would encourage me and almost force me but I couldn't, and Avery was there to console me after he left mad.
And weirdly enough, we had started taking a couple of self-defense classes together. An oddly enough Avery was the one who suggested it, but I knew she was right when she did. We needed to know how to fight and protect ourselves, and powers weren't going to save us against other people who had powers too.
We still needed to learn the basics, and build from there.
We were all in decent shape though, which helped us out in the classes a lot. We were able to learn and lot and do a lot because we were healthy and took care of ourselves.
And soon enough I was feeling confident enough to do more.
Graduation was nearly here; we didn't have long before we would begin studying for finals and applying for colleges. Summer was right around the corner, it was in sight, and I knew once it was here we would be on our way onto a whole new journey.
Also, Avery and I were becoming a lot closer and more intimate. I began to feel as if I was falling harder and harder every time I was with her. She was becoming a big part of me, and I knew it was dangerous because she was so fragile compared to me but... I couldn't help it. I was beginning to love this girl, she meant a lot to me, and I knew I meant a lot to her too.
The BD3 disease was also spreading, seeming to be even more rapid than a couple weeks ago when we checked on it. It was spreading on the other Border States like North and South Dakota, Montana, and Washington. It was terrifying because in a matter of three weeks it had spread through the northern part of the country and taken over 500,000 lives.
And it was only getting worse.
I knew soon traveling was going to become a lot harder because they were going to try confining people to their states to prevent spread. We had learned a lot more about this disease as well because it was only right to know what we were going against. It was airborne, and once you came into contact with something that had the disease on it you would catch it.
And I was worried every day about Avery and Max because they weren't immune to sickness, only I was.
And lastly, Max and Avery had finally grown to semi-like each other and get along for us to get stuff done. Max had originally felt threatened by Avery and I's relationship but he knew I wasn't going to leave him out in the cold and finally gave Avery a chance. She was proving herself by showing us she really was smart in hacking and reprogramming things. Although, I never would've thought Avery and Max would actually start acting like friends, which honestly freaked me out the most.
Avery was amazing and it was hard not to love the girl.
But currently I was sitting on the den couch, gazing at the calendar which let me know we only had about two weeks left of school. In a way it was exciting because I was ready for high school to come to an end because I was tired of the routine, I was ready for an adventure. I was ready to hit the road and start trying to find my parents, and hopefully the Protection Bureau and help find a cure to this BD3 disease. I was just ready to leave this town and leave a mark on the world.
Because I knew I was meant to do it, and I wasn't scared anymore.
***A/N***
Hope you guys are enjoying it! I try to recognize everyone that supports me but sometimes it gets difficult to contact and thank everyone :) Just know I do appreciate it and I do realize! What do you guys think about Andy's parents? And Max's and Avery's relationship? And what do you guys think about the adventure ahead for the trio? Stay tuned for more and don't forget votes and feedback are greatly appreciated!