Chapter 18

Exams go well, aside from the fact that we had to do an unexpected English essay, which I wasn't fully prepared for. I finish it, but I probably won't get anything higher than a low B, high C. My friends made plans to go out for a celebratory meal once the tests were over; they officially ended today. I didn't want to ask my aunt if I could go out because I felt like I was disrespecting her by bribing her with good meals for a break from my punishment. Besides, I barely finished paying my dues for her letting me study with Maddox. 

So instead of going out with my friends, I lay on the couch and text them about it instead. They discuss where they're thinking of going int he group chat and I don't bother giving my two cents. Instead, I read along as they decide on a bakery, seeing as it's the only affordable place that sells food suited for a winter meal, or at least winter sweets. Jackson demands that it can't be his father's business.

At one point, I stop responding because I'm upset about the fact that I can't go. I work now and make money but I can't go anywhere. I regret giving up my freedom for a boy who barely appreciates me. I try to focus on the crime show my aunt's watching, knowing that this is my life for the next few weeks. Just as I'm starting to get into it, the doorbell rings and my aunt looks at me. "Are you expecting anyone?" she asks and I shake my head.

"No, are you?" I reply as I get up to open the door. Vivica isn't home so it can't be for her. "I'll see who it is."

I'm shocked to find Maddox standing there, twirling his keys around his finger. I look homely, that's for sure. My hair is still wrapped in a towel from my shower and I'm wearing pajamas that I got probably a couple years ago. My eyes widen as I wait for him to tell me what he's doing at my house. He simply assesses my clothing choices with a scrutinizing gaze. 

"What are you doing here?" I ask when I realize he's not going to talk anytime soon.

"Winona told me to come here and get you, seeing as you weren't responding to our messages," Maddox explains as he leaned against the door frame.

My aunt looks over at me and quirks a brow. "Who is that, Liv?" she asks and I look from her to the boy at the door a few times.

"Oh, it's, uh, Maddox," I respond.

"Does he need something?" my aunt replies with a raised brow.

"He wants to hang out but I'm sending him away now," I assure her before turning my attention back to him. back.

"I don't want to hang out. Winona does," he corrects me and I lightly wave my hands in a shooing motion. 

"I'm grounded," I remind him yet again. "Now go away."

"Fine," he retorts as he turns and approaches his car. I shut the door and return to the living room.

My aunt looks at me before nodding at the window, where we have a clear view of Maddox walking and texting. "What was that about?" she wonders

"We were supposed to go to the bakery today," I answer with a shrug.

"As a date?" she questions and I shake my head.

"No!" I deny, ignoring the redness of my face. I don't bother telling her that it's a high school friend group thing. There's no point now.

My aunt looks at me and heaves a sigh. "Do you want to go?" she asks.

I smile at the floor as I rubbed my hands together. "Yeah," I mumble.

"Go," she waves her hand towards the door. I stand up, cheer, and squeal. I run to the door and watch as Maddox unlocks his car

"Wait!" I call out and he glances back at me.

"What?" he responds and I hold up a single finger- my index this time.

"I can go! Just give me five minutes!" I yell to him. He nods and rests his back against the car, closing his door in the process. I shut the front door and run upstairs to get ready. As I yank on some jeans and a shirt, I started tucking things into my pockets- money, lip balm, gum. I braid my hair, put on a coat, and shove my feet into socks and shoes before jogging down the steps.

I'm about to tell my Aunt that I'll see her later when I see Maddox sitting on the couch across from her. I slow to a stop as I hop down the steps. "What's this?"

"I just figured I'd invite Maddox in while you get ready. It's cold out there and I figured, if you're anything like Vivica, you'd take a while," my aunt explains. Maddox looks up at me when he sees I'm ready. "I'll see you later."

"What time?" I ask her as Maddox walks over to me. She waves her hand at me.

"Go before I change my mind," she dismisses me  and I waste no time in running to the front door. "Wait, Liv."

"Yes?" I ask, feeling Maddox bump into my back.

"Maddox, can you go warm up the car?" she presses with a smile and he nods.

"It was nice talking to you," he says before passing me and jogging to the car. I stare at her with raised brows.

"Talking?" I ask and she shrugs.

"Just a little conversation while we waited," she replies with a small smile.

"Uh...what'd you say to him?" I wonder as I watch him open the door to the car.

"Nothing your father wouldn't say," she smiles widely, which gets a large eyed gaze from me.

"Aunt Gen!" I gasp.

"That's to make up for the fact that you're leaving when you're on punishment," she smiles at me. "Cooking and cleaning aren't always enough, you know? Sometimes, I feel evil."

"Oh, no," I sigh quietly.

"I'm joking, Liv. My goal isn't to embarrass you. I asked him how his midterms went," she replies with a roll of her eyes. "I have the graveyard shift tonight but I trust you'll be home at a reasonable time?"

"Yes," I confirm with a nod.

"Alright," she says with a smile. "Love you. I'll see you tomorrow morning."

I leave the house and jog down the path. As I come upon the car, I notice that Maddox is turned in his seat with his head facing away from the window, probably searching the center console for something. I quickly make the decision to scare him before he can turn back around. I slap his window and he turns around with a jump. When he sees that I'm laughing, he glares and purses his lips. I walk around the car in a state of amusement and tug on the handle. I slowly stop laughing as he stares at me with a deadly expression on his face. I continue to tug at the handle.

"Maddox," I complain. The wind is nipping at my cheeks and my feet are getting cold. I should've worn thicker socks.

"No," Maddox responds. I can faintly hear him through the window of the car. "You scared me."

"Maddox, come on," I whine with a puckered out lower lip. "Let me in the car. It's cold."

"No," he responds bluntly as he assesses my puppy dog face. "You don't faze me." I drop the act quickly and start back in the direction of my house. The sound of the door unlocking sounds and I smirk and turn back around. Just as I reach for the handle, the door locks again and he laughs maniacally from inside the car.

"Open the door before I rip it off the hinges," I threaten him.

Maddox rolls his eyes as he unlocks the door. "I'd like to see you try," he encourages.

"Thanks to you, I'm cold now," I comment with a shake of my head.

"What do you want me to do about that?" he asks. A hug would be nice.

"For you not to be a jerk," I reply as I place my hands in front of the heaters

Maddox shakes his head with a small smile. "Be realistic, Olive."

"A hug," I smirk at him and he stares at me with raised brows. The smile doesn't leave his face and he chuckles.

"It's more likely that I'll be nice," he replies back.

+ + +

When we arrive at the bakery, everyone is already there and waiting for us. "Why are you guys so late?" Nicholas asks as once enter the warm and comfortable place. The lights are dimmed and calming music plays in the background.

"We said we'd all be here by 5:15; it's 5:47," Jackson complains with a glance at his imaginary watch.

"Sorry, I didn't expect my aunt to let me go. I am grounded, you know." I give a tight lipped smile to Maddox who simply lifts one of Winona's fries into his mouth.

"They sell fries here?" I ask curiously as I turn and search the menu.

"No, I got them from Wendy's," she shrugs.

"Can we order now?" Jackson whines as he held his stomach.

"Yeah, fine," Maddox agrees with a shrug.

I notice Abel sitting in the corner of the booth, rubbing his hands together and chewing on his lip. I approach him and plop down beside him once everyone gets in line. He looks anxious and I can tell that something's wrong. "Hey," I greet him.

"Hello," he smiles at me.

"What's wrong?" I prod him as I lean across the table.

"Well, uh, I have a favor to ask," he mutters quietly, bowing his head in embarrassment.

"What is this favor?" I inquire as I stuff my hands in my pockets.

"Well, I invited Caroline to come with us assuming that you weren't going to be able to make it because you said you weren't! I mean, I wanted you to come but you said that you couldn't because you were grounded! Now that you're here, she's going to expect you and Maddox to still be in a relationship," Abel swallows.

"And you're sure you can't tell her we broke up?" I question, not wanting to have to pretend to tolerate Maddox's childishness today.

"It's been, what, two weeks? You guys broke up and are good enough friends to hang out in two weeks?" Abel quietly rants. "I already thought about it. I've exhausted my options."

"So you want me and Maddox to pretend again?" I ask him with a defeated sigh.

He nods and rubs his hands together nervously. "If you don't mind," he proposes.

"I'll talk to Maddox," I respond with a half smile.

"Do it quickly, please; she's ten minutes away," he urges me nervously.

I nod and approach Maddox, who's waiting in line to order. Everyone else is in front of him and he doesn't look to be in too much of a hurry. Tugging his arm slightly, I nod towards the emptier side of the small restaurant. "Can I talk to you for a moment? In private?"

He doesn't even glare at me, which surprises me, and he just nods and lets me lead him away. Maybe he won't be a jerk today. "Yes?" he asks once we're away from listening ears.

"You remember Caroline, right?" I prompt the conversation.

"No," he replies sarcastically. I was wrong. He's a jerk everyday.

"Well, she's coming and Abel needs us to—," I start and he quickly shakes his head.

"Nope," he answers almost immediately.

"You don't even know what I'm going to say!" I retort with my hands on my hips.

"Yes I do," he confirms with a nod. "Abel wants us to pretend to be a couple again. I'm not doing it."

"Come on, this is for your brother," I retort.

"You don't know the things the guys will say to me," he responds as he wags his finger 'no.'

"What will they say?" I ask him as I tilt my head with my hands on my hips.

When he realizes that I don't take it the way he intends, he quickly shakes his head dismissively. "No, nothing like that."

I cross my arms. "And you act like I won't be teased by Winona and Cassidy," I retort.

"What can they possibly tease you about? I mean, you'd be in a pretend relationship with me," Maddox responds cockily and I roll my eyes. Little does he know.

"Are you going to do it or not?" I ask him with a sigh.

"No, I already told you," he denies once again with his arms crossed over his chest.

"I'll buy your food for you," I attempt to convince as I rock from the heels of my feet to the toe.

"I can pay for it," he assures me with a shake of his head.

"Maddox," I complain yet again. It's too early for Abel to reveal that he was too scared on their first date to go alone. Caroline seems like a nice girl but she'll probably think he's a wimp.

"Olive," he mocks my tone.

"Come on, do it for your brother," I try again to convince him.

"I feel like you enjoy pretending to be my girlfriend," Maddox theorizes as his eyes search my face. My stomach flutters incessantly and I try to calm it by rocking back and forth on my feet.

Though my face is red, I try to make it less noticeable by wrinkling my nose in disgust. "Gross."

"Yeah," he nods with a knowing look on his face. "Gross."

"So are you going to do it or not?" I snap as I ignore his suspicious gaze.

"I already told you- no!" he denies strongly.

"Maddox," I threaten with a finger pointed at his chest. "I will hug you."

"Is that supposed to scare me?" he questions with a quiet scoff.

"I will hug you right here, right now, until you say yes," I inform him with a flat look on my face.

"I'm not scared of you, Olive," he assures me with a roll of his eyes.

I take a daring step towards him and he takes an even larger one back. I take another step forward with extended arms and he looks at me with a slightly fearful look on his face. "Olive, don't."

"Maddox, you'll only have to pretend for, like, an hour," I remind him.

When he sees that I'm advancing, he extends his hand to ward me off. It doesn't stop me and eventually he sighs in defeat. "Fine, I'll do it! But no physical contact whatsoever. And don't kick me."

Any normal person would probably be offended by his rudeness, but I simply hold back a grin. I guess you can say I'm used to it. "Great, I'll tell Abel."

+ + +

Because we have a large group, of eight to be specific, we have to pull chairs up to the booth. I'm shoved between Winona and Maddox, and across from us are Cassidy, Abel, and Caroline. Jackson and Nicholas are tucked away at the end of our table in stools taken from nearby tables. It's an awkward date, if you'd call it that, but I don't really think of it as that. I basically had to threaten Maddox with a hug to get him to agree to this. And I'm only doing it for Abel.

Maddox shakes his leg nervously and I clench my jaw to hold back my annoyance. His thigh occasionally bumps into mine and it's the only thing I can focus on. Many times, Caroline will be talking to me and I'll try my best to listen but Maddox's leg will rub against mine and I'd feel the heat emanating off of it; I'd have to ask her to repeat herself. Maddox seems to notice this because whenever Caroline or Abel open their mouth to address specifically me, he moves his leg so it's touching mine, or he'll adjust his arm so that it's lightly pressing against me.

I'm practically sitting on top of Winona because I'm trying so hard to avoid touching Maddox. She furrows her eyebrows at me and I smile in response. "You guys missed out on the last date," Caroline assures us with a teasing smile and the two boys at the end of the table suddenly take an interest in the conversation. "I beat Abel in mini-golf so badly that he almost cried."

I laugh at this and Abel rolls his eyes at her. "I didn't almost cry," he defends himself.

"You were tearing up," Caroline laughs at him.

"I was not!" Abel responds with a shake of his head.

Conversation continues and for the most part, things are okay... until Caroline has to go and say something that causes Nicholas and Jackson to go berserk. "You guys are such a cute couple."

"They are, aren't they?" Jackson asks with a mischievous smile.

"I know right!" Winona confirms through a mouthful of brownies. Cassidy tries to sneak a cookie from Winona's large plate, which could probably feed all of us, but Winona slaps her hand away.

"Kiss for us, will you?" Nicholas teases with a smirk.

I shoot daggers at him and he locks eyes with me and even goes as far as to wink. That's how I knew that he's aware of my feelings. And if he's aware, that means that Jackson is aware. And that means that if Maddox doesn't know already, he'll know soon. "I don't think that's a good idea," I respond bluntly.

"Come on, one kiss won't hurt," Winona smiles with a light nudge at me.

"Yeah," Cassidy pipes up. I don't even want to look at Maddox. If I thought his leg bouncing was bad earlier, the speed at which it's going right now could probably power a small country.

"I'm not a fan of PDA," I try to excuse. I'm glaring at Nicholas for bringing it up but he's staring at something behind me. And so are my other friends. Curious as to what they're looking at, I turn and am caught by surprise when Maddox pecks my mouth. My eyes widens in surprise as I stare at him. His eyes seem to grow in size for a second as he looks at me. I guess I wasn't supposed to turn around. He was supposed to peck my cheek.

Abel, sensing the awkwardness, changes the conversation and once everyone is talking and things are lively, I turn to look at Maddox. "What was that?" I hiss as quietly as I can.

"I was trying to kiss your cheek!" he whispers back. "Not your mouth! You idiot- you had to turn!"

"You're the idiot!" I snap back. "You had to kiss me! I was handling it! What happened to no physical contact? First the leg touching, now a kiss. You're breaking your own rules!"

Maddox was about to say something before he smirks. "So it was distracting you."

"No, it wasn't. It was just annoying," I bite back.

"Yeah," he nods with that obnoxious smirk on his lips. "Annoying."

I glare at him for a brief second. "Even sober, you're a bad kisser."

+ + +

Caroline and Abel leave after they finish their food. They're going to go do couple stuff, like go to the movies or something. I don't bother asking because I don't want Caroline to extend the invitation. She's a very nice girl and I'm glad Abel has her; I just wish that Maddox and I didn't have to pretend. It'd be a lot more fun to hang out with her without having to lie about being with Maddox.

Once they leave the bakery, everyone turns to look at me and Maddox. The green eyed boy glares at each of them individually, silencing them before they can even get a word out. "Don't say anything," he threatens.

"But—," Winona starts only get cut off by Maddox's sharp glare.

Maddox and I end up leaving not too long after the couple leaves. Every time someone starts a conversation, it slowly makes its way back to the entire "fake couple" scenario and Maddox isn't having that. So when he leaves in a fit, he takes me with him. I follow him to his car and get in without a word.

He drives us back to my house and I'm silent as I stare at the road ahead of us, thinking of the many ways that this night could've ended. This is one of the worst possible ones. As we pull up to my house, I turn to Maddox. "I'm sorry about that. I didn't mean for that to happen. I didn't think it'd be that bad," I explain awkwardly.

"It's whatever. I'll handle it," he responds casually. I'm surprised he doesn't yell at me or glare.

"Yeah, well, I'll see you on Monday," I mutter as I unbuckle my seatbelt. I suddenly remember something. "I have your sweatpants, too. I washed them and everything."

"Oh," he replies with a furrow of his brows.

"I'll give them to you now seeing as you're already here," I shrug. Plus, I don't want people to think that I was in a situation where I put on Maddox's clothes. That's the last thing we need.

Maddox gets out of the car and follows me up the path as I dig around in my pocket for my keys. As I'm about to put the key in the lock, I feel Maddox's hand on my shoulder. "Olive."

"Hmm?" I ask as I turn around. I'm completely caught off guard by how close is to me. Before I can say, or do, anything, Maddox is pressing his lips to mine in a soft and slow manner. His lips are soft and his mouth tastes like chocolate. I feel his hand drift from my shoulder to my face, which he cups delicately. His other hand ventures down to my waist and settles into a tight grip. I leave my hands on his chest as I kiss him back, trying to match his pace. My heart beats  incredibly fast and my mind is racing. My stomach feels as if the butterflies have tripled in a matter of seconds.

Slowly, Maddox pulls away and watches me let out shaky breath. Then, with a wide smirk, he tilts his head to the side. "A bad sober kisser, eh?" he wonders and I feel my knees threaten to give out.

"Eh," I manage to say with a small shrug.

"Keep the sweatpants," he insists. "If they're anything like the sweater, they're better on you than me."

I wait until he turns around before moving to unlock the door to my house. My shake hands drop the keys twice and I know he hears it. I listen as he chuckles until I manage to actually open the door. When I do, I wave once before locking the door and exhaling slowly.

+ + +

The following Monday, Maddox acts as if nothing had happened. Though I want to, I refrained from telling Cassidy. I want to tell her because I need a female's point of view, but I'm scared because what if she says something like Winona did? The last thing I need is Maddox knowing for certain about my crush. He's already arrogant enough; he definitely doesn't need the ego boost.

However, I do tell Abel at work on our shared break. Apparently, he already knew, though. That surprised me; I didn't think Maddox would say anything. When I asked him how and why, he laughed and told me that he can't explain and that I wouldn't like it if he told Maddox everything I said about him. I understood and grudgingly accepted the fact that Abel knew both sides of the story.

It isn't until I arrive at lunch that I realize what's actually going on. "How was the kiss?" Winona asks me bluntly.

I look at her and try my best to not act surprised. Is she talking about the bakery kiss? Or did Maddox blab to her again? "What kiss?" I retort.

"The goodnight kiss," she winks at me before closing her eyes, wrapping her arms around her body, and sticking her flailing tongue out of her mouth. She begins making slurping noises and Cassidy says things like: "Kiss me, Olive!" and "Of course, Maddie!" in tones to match those of the ones speaking.

"What?" I ask with wide eyes. How does she know about that?

"Don't play dumb. 'Eh,'" Cassidy mocks me. He even told them that?

"How do you know about that?" I repeat curiously.

"Jackson and Nicholas told us," the girls reply in unison.

I turn to Jackson and Nicholas and they point to Maddox. My neck snaps to the green eyed boy, who has his head down and eyes locked on his tray. His cheeks are pink and his jaw is clenched. "You told them?"

"I didn't think they were going to say anything!" Maddox responds, looking up briefly.

"You idiot!" I snap. Wasn't he the one annoyed with me for talking about our second kiss?

"How am I an idiot?" Maddox asks with wide eyes.

"You got mad at me for telling Winona and Cass, yet you blabbed to Nicholas and Jackson!" I retort with a wave of my hand.

"I-I," Maddox starts as he searches for an explanation.

"Can you speak right?" I mock him, feeling satisfaction at being able to use his own words against him.

"So why'd you kiss her?" Winona prods curiously. She leans forward with a single hand on her face and an interested look in her eyes.

"To prove a point!" Maddox answers quickly before glaring at her. "Not that it's any of your business."

"And what point did you prove?" Cassidy further interrogates with a slow nod.

"That I wasn't a bad kisser," Maddox continues to provide explanations, which don't seem to satisfy the girls.

"So anytime someone calls you a bad kisser, you're going to intensely make out with them?" Winona questions him with raised brows.

"No," Maddox shakes his head and prepares to say something else.

"So why Olivia?" Cassidy pipes, which makes my face burn red.

"I don't have to explain myself to you! Or any of you!" he snaps. Winona and Cassidy share a knowing look before they glance at me; I'm already glaring at them for putting him on the spot like that. Nicholas gathers my attention by nodding and winking twice. Meanwhile, Jackson is too busy staring at Maddox, who yelled so loud that Jack jumped and dropped his last meatball.

"I think I deserve an explanation," I shrug as I stared at him.

"I deserve one too," he retorts pointedly. It's obvious that he was angry. For what, I'm unsure. All I know is that no one talks to him, or even mentions him, for the remainder of the lunch period. I hop on that bandwagon. I used to think that Maddox wasn't a scary person at all, but seeing him angry is like seeing a whole other person.

+ + +

During the car ride home, I try not to look at Maddox in fear that he'll whip around and punch me in the face. He's gripping the steering wheel so hard that his knuckles are white. I didn't expect him to give me a ride home, so when I came out of the bathroom and found him standing there, which is our usual routine, I cautiously follow him out to his car.

We're halfway home when I decide to try and cut the awkward, tense air with a question. "Are you okay?" I murmur into the dead silent car.

"No," he answers quite briskly.

"Do you, uh, want to talk about it? Or..." I trail as I rub my hands on my thighs. I should just stop talking now. I shouldn't have started in the first place. I should've just let him cool down.

"As a matter of fact, yes, I do want to talk about it," he answers, which surprises me. "I feel like everyone knows something that I don't. And it's frustrating. I think—no, I know it has something to do with me, yet no one will tell me. So please enlighten me, Olive. What is this secret that no one's telling me?"

"A secret?" I repeat as my palms grow sweaty. "What are you talking about?"

"I'm not stupid, Olive," he basically growls. "I see when all of you guys look at each other. I'm not blind."

"Maddox—," I start in an attempt to calm him down.

"If you told them anything about what I've been telling you, then I won't trust you ever again," Maddox tells me in a low voice. It takes me a second to try to grasp what he's getting at.

"You think I told them about Raven?" I request clarification with furrowed eyebrows.

"Well, have you?" he questions.

"No!" I deny with a quick shake of my head. I don't care nearly enough to talk about her.

"Then what is? What is it that I don't know?" he asks with a curious shake of his head. His anger is slowly dissipating as he glances at me from his peripheral.

"I don't know," I lie yet again.

"Yes you do," he insists with a quick nod.

"I can't tell you," I admit after a few seconds. "But I can tell you that it's not bad. I mean, you probably would laugh and you might even take it as a compliment."

"If it's good, why can't you just tell me?" he presses, sounding impatient.

"Because I just can't," I reject once more.

He groans out of frustration. "When will I be able to know?"

Well, whenever I get over you. "I don't know, it depends; maybe very soon, maybe in a long while," I answer in deep thought.

"You do realize how unfair this is, right?" he assures me after a moment or two of pure silence.

I simply shrug again. "You'll understand when you find out."

He releases another sigh. "And who knows when that'll be?"

"Knowing our friends, I have a feeling that it might be sooner rather than later," I mutter. "And I don't know if that's a good thing or a bad thing."