~.* Pixie Stixs *.~

"Happy Birthday to you! Happy Birthday to you! Happy Birthday dear IGGGY! Happy Birthday to you!" they all sang, as they crowded around Iggy, the seventeen year old birthday boy. Max, Fang, Nudge, Gazzy, Angel, and Ella were all there, at his birthday party.

He had a giant grin on his face, radiating happiness as he took the box closest to him. It was wrapped in Astro Boy wrapping paper, with a huge bow on the top, labeled To Iggy. The present had no person in which it was addressed from.

But that didn't stop Iggy. He carefully unwrapped the box, being sure not to tear Astro Boy's face off. When the paper was folded neatly, and set off to the side, he turned his gaze back to his present. Iggy felt his eyes grow to the size of plates.

No. Fricking. Way.

"HOLY FU –" he began, abruptly stopping due to Max's death glare.

"LANGUAGE! There are little kids around," she hissed. Iggy shrunk back terrified, causing Fang to snicker. Max turned her glare on him, but he carried on chuckling silently. She elbowed him in the gut, and both she and Fang took a closer look at Iggy's present.

"Holy fu –"

"–dge-nuggets!" Max finished Fang's sentence, punching him once more. "Iggy..." she growled. "Give it to me right now..."

But it was too late. He had already run off cackling "IT'S ALL MINE!" into his room, locking the door. With a sixty-count pack of Pixie Stixs in hand.

"Shit..." Max murmured under her breath, running a hand through her long dirty blonde hair. Fang was about to shout "Language!" at her, but he was worried as well.

Iggy + Artificially Flavored Sugar = ERROR

Max turned towards the rest of Iggy's guests, demanding who had given Iggy the candy, yet they all had disappeared. "Who the hell gave that to Iggy?" Max turned to Fang.

Despite her fierce gaze directed at him, Fang couldn't help but think how beautiful Max was. He shrugged. 'Does it really matter? Now that Iggy has the Pixie Stixs, there is nothing we could do.' was the message conveyed in that one shrug.

Max's brown eyes drooped in defeat, as she collapsed on the couch Iggy had sat on when he opened his presents. Well, one present. Fang sat down beside her, and she scooted closer, making him feel awkward without realizing it. Then, Max rested her head on his shoulder.

This motion was common between the two, and was usually the least bit uncomfortable. But a couple years ago, Fang had discovered a feeling he felt towards Max, that was more than friendship. Love. So yeah, you could say it was he wasn't at ease – he was fricking awkward.

He could hear her soft breathing as they sat in silence, and his pounding heart began to calm down. The antsy vibe had disappeared, and he wrapped an arm around her shoulder, as Max leaned more into Fang's embrace.

A door opened. "SHAZAM!" Iggy spontaneously appeared, dressed in a black cape, and yellow, glimmering butterfly wings, as he held a Pixie Stix in one hand. He had a wide grin stretched out on his face, his eyes glaring brilliantly. There was no doubt about it. Iggy was on a sugar high.

"Why the fu –" Max glared at him "– nk are you wearing butterfly wings?" Fang questioned, trying not to crack up.

"They are not butterfly wings! They are magical fairy wings! I have cast a spell on you, so HAH!" he shouted in response. Max raised an eyebrow.

"A spell?"

"Well duh," he instantly replied. "You and you are going to fall in love by sunset! Ta-ta!" Iggy wiggled his fingers goodbye and winked at Fang before charging back into his room.

"You..." Max repeated nonchalently.

"And you?" Fang responded. What the hell was he thinking! Iggy knew Fang liked Max, and he wouldn't be surprised if Max knew after that.

"Wait... Me? And you?" Max reiterated.

"Yes... That's what he just said..." Fang told her, face expressionless. Max had an opaque face on as well, but she was mentally freaking out on the inside. Not that Fang would know that. But Iggy knew she kind of thought of Fang as more than a friend... Max was going to kill that boy someday. Someday soon.

"Yeah... Um... Okay...?" Max said, shifting in her seat on the couch. It wasn't everyday your brother tells you that you're going to fall in love with your closest friend. Especially of the same gender, but that – thankfully – wasn't the case right now.

Fang got up. "I should er... Leave now..." Why was it so damn rigid? They were never like this.

Max shot up out of her seat, tripping on a present. "Wait!" She began falling, her arms flailing as Max toppled onto Fang, who fell on the ground with a thud. "I mean... Will you stay a little longer?"

And he couldn't say no. Especially of their close proximities, which Max just realized. Her cheeks flared red, and she bit her lip nervously. Neither teen made a move closer, nor farther from each other. It was as if time had frozen in place. Their eyes were locked, as they explored the depth of the others.

Midnight onyx. Care. Comfort. Love... Wait, what?

Was this what Max saw in the bottomless pits of Fang's eyes? Was it possible that he could too...? No. Never. He would never feel that way towards her, and she wouldn't risk their friendship because of hormones.

He was going to risk it. Fang was taking a chance that could possibly ruin his and Max's bond. His eyes remained locked with Max's as he slowly lifted his head upwards, his hands gradually securing their grip around her waist even tighter. Her eyes fluttered closer, and she too moved her head closer to Fang's. Whether it was instinct or want, he didn't know.

One inch.

Three centimeters.

Two.

One...

"NUH-UH! I turn my back on y'all for one second and you start smooching! How inconsiderate of you! I wanted to take pictures of my sister's first kiss!" Iggy exclaimed randomly. He was sitting on the couch, eating Rocky Road Ice-cream out of the tub, that had a thick layer of Pixie Stix sugar over it. Neither Max or Fang moved. They hadn't actually kissed, but Fang could feel her hot breath fanning his face in little puffs. "Let go of her Fang! Can't have you snogging Maxie-dear during my entire birthday party, can we?" He began throwing Pixie Stixs at the two on the floor.

"Off! Scram! Skidaddle!" Iggy shouted gleefully. His outfit was still apparent, but Iggy had added a new addition to it: the Groucho Marks glasses/mustache.

Max and Fang, now standing, stared at Iggy. "Igggggy..." Max growled. She was a mere centimeter from kissing Fang, before that... Argh!... came in and ruined it. Max began picking up the ten or so of the Pixie Stixs Iggy had thrown, and tore off the paper at the top of all of them. In one fluid motion, she downed all ten of the packets of artificially flavored sugar, and walked away into Iggy's room to steal the rest, leaving him in hysterics.

"WAIT! WAAIT!" he cried. Fang stood on the side, face amused by the show they were putting on. Max came walking back into the living room, smuggness clear on her face.

"Yes Iggy?"

"You can kiss Fang! Just don't steal my candy!" he wailed, running to save his sugar.

Fang sauntered over to Max. "Not to be cliché or anything... But where were we?" he wondered, smirking, but a bit of hesitation in his voice. Max sensed this, and gave a reassuring smile in his direction.

"Right here," she replied, pressing her sugary lips to his.

...

"They kissed! They kissed! I think they're together... But I know they kissed!" Iggy squealed very masculinely. Nudge, Ella, Angel, Gazzy were crowded around him.

"OH EM GEE! I always knew they'd get together! Just not when. That plan was BRILLIANT I TELL YA! BLOODY BRILLIANT! EEK!" Nudge fainted.

"It was a good idea, wasn't it..." Ella giggled, for it was her idea to make it awkward between Max and Fang, so they'd do something. "But it was all Iggy who actually figured out howto make it awkward between the uncomfortable-prone unofficial couple, aka Max and Fang."

"Plan Fax!" Angel cheered, her blonde curls bouncing around her small, chubby face.

"That's right Ange," Ella said.

"Ta-ta!" Gazzy mimicked Iggy. And then he let it rip. The most horrible, toxic smell. A Gazzy, Hazardous Fart. A Gazart.

There was a sputtering noise behind Iggy's closed bedroom door, and he cautiously went to open it. There stood Max and Fang, holding hands as they bent over at the waist trying to breathe, for they too had been affected by Gazzy's natural explosion.

"Thanks," Max said. It wasn't sarcastic, thanking Gazzy for farting, but genuine. Genuine for the fact that because of them, she and Fang had the guts to "man up" and take a risk. To take a risk, and be happy.

Who knew Iggy wasn't a retard? And that Pixie Stixs could have a good cause? Max sure didn't. But...

"WHO GAVE IGGY THE CANDY?"