Max | After  I've never been so glad to see Zeph in my life. He's right here, arm in a sling, plaster on his forehead and smile on his face. Everyone is fawning over him in the Rec, treating him like a hero. Carlos, Violet and I stand back, watching the scene while Kaci stands next to him protectively.  "Alright, that's enough!" Kaci yells. "He needs his rest and autograph signing will be tomorrow at five." "Will you sign my leg?" a Year Six boy shouts out, brandishing a dark green Sharpie.  "Sure," Zeph says with a smile. "Hey, Max! Help me with my bag?" "Of course." I grab his overnight bag from Kaci and lead him out of the room, the crowd parting like the Red Sea.  Carlos, Violet and Kaci trail after us, arguing that they're Zeph's best friends so they have this right. Zeph seems oblivious to all of us, talking about the cartoons he wat

Max | After  I've known Mr Gilbert and Tristan Fell for years. I first met Tristan when we were seven, when his father came to visit mine. I showed him the pet cemetery Grace and I had started with odd pride, probably traumatising the guy. Then Grace arrived. And I still remember what Tristan whispered in my ear. She's so pretty. And I remember when Grace casually asked me years later what I thought of Tristan now. I remember her reply to my claim of him being fine. She said that she thought he was cute. My meeting with Mr Gilbert was very different. The Year Sixes are always met at the station by their teacher for the year. Mr Gilbert had been leaning against the wall, a bottle of water in one hand and a folder in another. Grace, Carlos and I had been the first kids off the train, dragging our rucksacks behind us. "Is that our teacher?" Carlos had whispered, eyes wide. "I s

Max | After  "Excuse me?" My voice is shaky as Tristan gestures for me to sit down next to him. "What do you mean, Rosewood legacy?"  "Your grandmother's mother was actually one of the first girls to attend this school," Benedict Trudale replies coolly. "One of the first students, in fact. Your grandmother attended this school and then your father and now you. You're a legacy."  "And what are you two doing? Did you put those notes all around school?" "You're an absolute idiot," I tell him. "You terrified the shit out of most of the school and if Elliot finds out, she will murder you. And then your parents will murder you for it. So you'll be dead twice."  "Three times because Vivienne will kill me too."  "But you have done very well," Benedict adds. "The Rosewood Alliance has surpassed the Raven's Guild on this occasion." 

Max | After  "Come on, Max!" Carlos sighs. "We need to leave now!" He throws a packet of sweets to me as I look up from my laptop. I have a horror film ready to watch on. Netflix, all I have to do is press play and lose myself in a story that doesn't seem nearly as scary as my own life.  "Do I have to?" I whine. "Vivienne's going to be there and I haven't really talked to her and—" "Max, let me stop you right there," he interjects. "Vivienne is not the only girl in the world and you probably won't have to talk to her all night. You are going to find someone who accepts how insane you are and loves you for it and you can't avoid her for the rest of your life."  "Max, let me stop you right there," he interjects. "Vivienne is not the only girl in the world and you probably won't have to talk to her all night. You are going to find someone who accepts how insane

Max | After   As soon as I'm far enough away from Violet, I pull out my video camera from my backpack. There has to be a church with a graveyard here somewhere. Thank God it isn't a Sunday and people probably won't be going to church. It's the perfect place to shoot the next instalment of my video diary of hell, also known as Max being a lunatic.    "Found it," I mutter, seeing the sign informing me that this is the church.    And right there is a graveyard. I consider going into the church just to see if a priest is there. Maybe I can go into confession. I sure have committed a lot of sins and admitting them to some guy I don't even know might help. But I shake the idea out of my mind and start walking through the graveyard.    The graves near the front are new, not get covered with moss or overgrown grass with still fresh flowers laid on top. The gravestones are new, like Grace's, fr