For Rylie

Chapter 24

A/N: I have to get up for school in less than five hours and my vision is so blurred that I can barely make out the words I'm writing on the screen. My tapping of the keys is probably waking up my older brother who has to get up earlier than I do and I have a sleep headache (just btw, Rylie's sleep headaches are exactly the same as mine but I've only blacked out once and I didn't crash my car. But just incase you're wondering where I got the idea, well, from my own head. Sorry, rambling)! So yes, I am clear this is short but I want to start the new chapter when I get home from netball after school so deal with it XD I really do hope you enjoy this thought, I'm not really sure where this is going to end up but It'll be interesitng!

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"Ry," Max's voice caught my attention, having me look up from the Japanese homework we were doing together. "I need to talk to you about something."

I frowned, pushing the books aside and sitting up. 

We were on the floor of Max's attic after school doing Japanese homework that Mr Cole had assigned to us. Since he knew we were all friends, he told us to do it in pairs. 

I wasn't complaining. Especially when Max was sitting right in front of me, the muscles in his arm tensing underneath his black shirt while he rested his weight on it. 

He was frowned, his green eyes lit with worry. 

"What's up?" I asked, frowning myself. I didnt like to see Max worried, it was too much of a change from his happy, flirty persona. 

Silently, he stood up, holding out his hand to help me up. I took it without hesitation and he led me down the stairs and to the backyard, tracing circles on the back of my hand that drove me crazy. 

I couldn't stand not telling him how I felt. 

Not that I knew much myself. 

I knew what it was like to fall in love, I had with Zane. But with Max it was different. 

Love with Zane was all about the physical aspect more than anything else. Zane made me think love wasn't important, it was just something that happened and that was that. 

Max made me realise that loving someone was much more than that. It was about caring so much about someone else that you put their needs in front of your own. Knowing that they were unhappy made you unhappy, and you couldn't stand having them feel negative at all. 

I knew that I loved Max, and I hated seeinghis worried. 

We were outside and Max led me to the big oak tree that was centred in his backyard, climbing up the ladder to a treehouse that was at the end. 

He stood up on the platform beside the treehouse, pacing back and forth. "Max," I interrupted, making him stop to look at me. "What's wrong?"

His green eyes blazed wildly with emotion. 

If there was one thing I knew better than anyone else, was that your eyes were the key to all the emotion you were truly harbouring. And right now, Max's eyes flamed with passion, as wild and bright as a wildfire.

"I d-don't even know where to begin," he stuttered, slowly inching his way towards me. 

"Maybe the start?" I asked, trying to lighten the mood. 

"Okay then," Max said, his mouth twitching up into a small smile."Starting from the start, huh?" He asked, a strange smile consuming his face. 

I slowly nodded, frowning. 

"Okay, well. It all started when you ran into me on the first day of school," he said, confusing the bejesus out of me. "You ran into me and ignored my pick up lines, declining my hand to help you up," he reminded me, and I nodded in confirmation. "Well, that's when I started falling madly in love with you."