Two Schools Out - Forever

32

That night I was lying awake in "my" bed, watching the moonlight create shadows on "my" walls, so I heard the door open almost silently.

"Max?" Angel's whisper barely disturbed the air.

I sat up. "Yeah, sweetie?"

"I can't sleep. Can I go fly around?" she asked.

I glanced at the clock. Almost midnight. The house was quiet and still. Except for the soft footsteps padding down the hall.

The Gasman put his head around my door.

"Max? I can't sleep."

"Okay, put your clothes on. Let's go take advantage of the wide-open spaces."

In the end we all went, including Total.

"I love flying!" he said, leaping into Iggy's arms. "Just don't drop me."

It was glorious. Out here in the country, there were few lights, no planes, and, so far, no Erasers.

The air was crisp and cool, near forty degrees, and felt like liquid oxygen in our lungs. I swooped in huge arcs, catching wind currents, coasting, feeling almost weightless. It was times like this that I felt the most calm, the most normal. As if I were just a normal part of the world and I actually fit into it.

You do fit into it, Max, said the Voice. You're part of everything, and everything is part of you. Everything should flow together. The more you resist, the more pain you'll feel. The more you go with the flow, the more whole you'll be.

I frowned. Was that a bumper sticker?

Don't resist the flow, Max, said the Voice. Become one with the flow.

Well, since I didn't have a single freaking clue about what that meant, I decided to go with the airflow right now and enjoy myself.

"Look, bats!" said Nudge.