"Stop stop stop!!" Kevin yelled as he covered his ears with his hands. Maybe there was no limit to his dramatic side. He kept moving here and there on the terrace while Max was following him.

All the way back from Julie's house, he kept asking Kevin about the party. And now since they were home, Max was not ready to leave him until he told what was going on.

"You were already dumb enough to bring this up in front of me, so this isn't even a surprise anymore!" Max said as he pulled Kevin's hands away from his ears.

Kevin sighed. He really shouldn't have said that in front of Max.

"I told you already. It's just a tiny little party for my brother who's turning 16 day after tomorrow," he said as he put his hand on Max's shoulder.

"What about Shane? There's no way he will ever allow this."

"He's out of Moonvale, won't be coming back within three days and convincing everyone else was a piece of cake for me," he said with a smirk.

Max slipped away from him and said, "But I don't want a party. Why can't we celebrate it the same way we did before? On the rooftop with lots of chips, coke and chocolates! I like it more that way," he said in a low voice.

"Oh just shut up! There's no way I am going to let you spoil your 16th birthday like that," Kevin said as he got down the stairs at a breakneck speed.

Max did not follow.

He actually appreciated how hard Kevin was trying to make his 16th birthday special. He just didn't want any surprise, especially when other people were involved in it! Max had tried blending with the world but ultimately realized that it might never really happen. He had learned to appreciate the silence in the world that never stops talking.

But what he hated the most was that even before he could sort out one mess, another popped out right in front of him. Max was so desperate to unravel the truth that he could even have had a quarrel with Shane if he was there. All the questions were making a ruckus in his head. Little did he know that a certain someone, who had answers to all his questions, was about to enter his life very soon.

He went back to his room and fell asleep.

~~~~~

As usual, Max was staring out of the classroom window, lost in his own thoughts.

"You mind if I sit with you?"

Max was snapped out of his daydreaming by a familiar sweet voice. He turned around to see that it was Julie.

Max just looked at her with a confused look on his face.

"Can I?" she asked again.

"Yeah sure," he said. There was no way he could let his awkwardness hurt Julie again, after such a hard time she had been through.

She told him that she needed his help with the work she had missed out. She could have gone to her cheerleader friends, but they were hardly interested in what was going on in the classes. Max was a bright student and the only one who genuinely cared for her even though he was not comfortable showing that. If that wasn't the case, why would he go to check on her when she didn't come to school? Moreover, he exactly knew what was going on with her. Making excuses in front of everyone about why she had been absent, was now getting quite tiring for her.

They both felt complete around each other as if they were meant to be together, not in a romantic kind of way.

"Hi," said a boy who walked up to them.

"Hey!" exclaimed Julie, chirpy as always. Max just sat quietly, thinking that he was there for Julie.

"I just wanted to bring it to your notice that I am allergic to peanuts," he said looking towards Max with a smile and then left.

"What? Why is he telling me that?" He let out a little giggle.

Julie looked at him with a wry smile on her face and then started laughing. Okay, so there was something she knew but Max didn't.

"What?" he asked again with an even more bizarre quizzical look.

"Aw, you don't even know, do you?" A sly smile came on her face.

"Oh yes, this is the face of someone in the know!"

Julie burst out laughing.

"I am not sure I should show you this or not, but if I don't, those veins in your head might just explode. Come with me," she snickered.

He stood in front of Julie's locker while she was looking for something in it. Max looked at the school hallway slowly getting deserted. Everyone was leaving for class.

"Found it!" she exclaimed with her head still inside the locker.

She turned to Max handing him an envelope. The top was already torn. He took out the card placed in it. His jaw dropped open and his eyes bulged out at what he saw.

It was an invitation card for Max's 16th birthday! If it wasn't his own card, Max would have taken time to appreciate the beauty of the card. It was black coloured, with the words "Max's Birthday Party" written below a giant yellow 16. The colours black and yellow went pretty well actually. It was basically supposed to be a backyard barbeque thing, as it was written below.

'When did he even do all this?' Max thought.

Suddenly something clicked to him.

"Who else has got this?"

Julie knew he would get crazy on hearing this, but she had to say. Oh boy, such a surprise spoiler!

"Everyone from the class, I guess," she mumbled.

'Great! All along I was thinking that she was the only one Kevin asked to come, and I was slowly getting fine with it, but now it's everyone!' Max thought.

"Oh crap!" Julie yelled, but careful that her voice didn't reach other classes, "we've been here for 15 minutes! I sense trouble now."

Max looked at the clock. They really were late.

They looked at each other and then made a rush towards the class.

"Uh-oh," Julie said as they both stumbled at the door. The principal was in standing in their class! He was a tall man, in his mid-forties perhaps. His dressing style made him look like some badass business tycoon rather than a principal. He was wearing a white shirt, a tight brown vest, and narrow trousers accompanied by a matching pair of leather shoes. His hair was made into an intimidating bold quiff.

But no one could recognize the woman who was with him.

She looked quite young and was wearing a purple shirt, along with a fitting black skirt. She had long brunette hair, which was loosely falling behind in curls and a semi-rimless spectacle on her face. She had a strangely beautiful smile on her face. Most of the boys stared at her with an awed gaze, drooling over the picture of beauty that was in front of them. Even Max was mesmerized for a moment.

Suddenly, the principal's gaze shifted to Max and Julie.

"Max Wilson and Julie Miller! Would you both mind coming to my office? I need to have a word," he said with an annoyed look on his face.

"Principal Hans, if you don't mind, may I take care of it? After all, they were missing from my class," the woman said in her posh, Irish accent looking at them.

He didn't look much satisfied but then said, "Alright Miss Owens, if that's what you want," with a smirk on his face. He kissed her hand and then left giving a glare to Max and Julie.

'What the heck! Is he hitting on her?' was exactly what was going on in everyone's mind.

"I guess that principal Hans has already said enough about me so I shall just proceed with the class. You both can enter now," she said turning to them.

So apparently the situation was that their new history teacher had just saved them from going to the principal's office. But they had no clue how she would react after class.

Soon the class ended and everyone left except Max, Julie, and Miss Morgan. She sat at the desk with her arms folded, while they stood in front of her.

"I don't think you both even know my name, do you?"

"Yes Miss Owens, we know," Julie said with her head still hung down.

"Morgan Owens," she said and started arranging her books as she stood up to leave. Max and Julie didn't know what to do.

"What are you both waiting for? Don't you have to go home?" she said as she signalled them to leave. "And one more thing. The next time you both plan to disappear like that, at least tell me beforehand."

She smiled and left the room.

"Is she really this good, or am I dreaming?" Julie said with her eyes wide open.

Max was also thinking the same. She was really sweet. But the smile, it seemed strangely different to him. He quickly shook that thought off his head for he had no genuine reason. He was probably just getting crazy day by day.