Chapter 1

I turned my face towards the sky, letting the wind flow around me. I took a deep breath and picked up my guitar. I swung my legs back and forth, and look over what I had written so far.

I hummed the tune, and smiled as the calm feeling flowed through me. I slowly started to play my guitar. The melody sounded just about right.

I took a deep breath and began to sing.

Da, da, da, da

The smell of your skin lingers on me now
You're probably on your flight back to your home town
I need some shelter of my own protection, baby
To be with myself and center
Clarity, peace, serenity

I hope you know, I hope you know
That this has nothing to do with you
It's personal, myself and I
We've got some straightenin' out to do

And I'm gonna miss you like a child misses their blanket
But I've got to get a move on with my life
It's time to be a big girl now
And big girls don't cry
Don't cry, don't cry, don't cry

The path that I'm walkin', I must go alone
I must take the baby steps 'til I'm full grown, full grown
Fairy tales don't always have a happy ending, do they?
And I foresee the dark ahead if I stay

I hope you know, I hope you know
That this has nothing to with you
It's personal, myself and I
We've got some straightenin' out to do

And I'm gonna miss you like a child misses their blanket
But I've got to get a move on with my life
It's time to be a big girl now
And big girls don't cry

Like the little school mate in the school yard
We'll play jacks and Uno cards
I'll be your best friend and you'll be mine
Valentine

Yes, you can hold my hand if you want to
'Cause I want to hold yours too
We'll be playmates and lovers
And share our secret worlds

But it's time for me to go home
It's getting late, dark outside
I need to be with myself, and center
Clarity, peace, serenity

I hope you know, I hope you know
That this has nothing to do with you
It's personal, myself and I
We've got some straightenin' out to do

And I'm gonna miss you like a child misses their blanket
But I've got to get a move on with my life
It's time to be a big girl now
And big girls don't cry
Don't cry, don't cry, don't cry

Da, da, da, da, da, da

I smiled, proud of the song.

"Max!"

Crap.

"Coming!" I yelled, quickly getting up and putting the guitar away.

I straightened the filled pages in the binder and hid them under one of the many pillows.

"MAX!"

"I'm coming!"

I climbed down from the tree house, and started walking towards the house.

I looked back once more at the tree house were my new song sat in the clear page protectors. i felt like the music was calling for me. Telling me to come back and play.

"Maximum Ride!!!"

I sighed, before running towards the house, were my steaming father was waiting.

Like Missy Elliot once said,

"Music is everybody's escape."

But sometimes, you can't always escape reality.

No matter how good your music is.