born to make history

[Let’s follow father and son outside now. Horchata and Lucy are still inside, and alas, it is too dark outside for them to be able to see what’s happening out there. 

But, yes, outside they are, and it’s v dramatic, because Maddox is facing away from Waldo, and it’s chilly, so you can see their breath, and if you asked Maddox why his arms are across his chest, he’d say it’s because, IT’S COLD, but no, it’s more of a defense mechanism, because though he’d never say it in front of that bastard otherwise known as his half-brother, he’s feeling huRT. 

Papa Waldo is approaching, though. There is a sigh that swirls around the chilly night with that v dramatic fog.]

Maddox, I’m sorry.

For what? Not being as much of the shitty guy Mom made you out to be? Not quite shitty enough to only care about yourself, but shitty enough to completely ignore a son you obviously knew about while having another son, and another family. Sure. You’re totally forgiven.

No, it’s not like that. It’s not that I was ignoring you, or didn’t care, or didn’t want you even. Because I did. But, clearly you know your mother. You’ve known her a lot longer than I did. ‘Cause, you see, the thing is-- I did love your mother. 

Bad taste.

[A sigh.] I was ready to marry her-- to start a family, for us to raise you together. But, truth is, she wasn’t ready to make a commitment. She said no when I proposed. She wanted me to have nothing to do with you, and I think it was mainly out of spite, because the way she made it out-- she didn’t want a kid. 

Damn straight she didn’t want a kid. She still doesn’t. I haven’t spoken to her in months. I’ve been disowned, essentially. And it’s because you listened to that bitch when she said she wanted you to have nothing to do with me. I spent eighteen fucking years living with her-- being told you didn’t want me, or her, and you bailed.

That’s not true. 

True or not, she’s spent my entire life holding that shit over my head. Telling me I was like you, and hating me for that reason... I’ve been treated like her second-rate problem all my life, and now you’re going to try to tell me that you wanted me all this time? Now? After all the shit I’ve been through in my life, I get to find out that I could’ve so easily had a chance at having a decent fucking life, but because you were too much of a coward to stand up to my mother, I spent my life runner-up to my dead fucking cousin. [I regret to inform you his voice has broken, and he’s got the misty-eyes.]

I never wanted that. And had I known any of that was going on... I wouldn’t have let it happen. But there was no use fighting Kelly. 

So, I wasn’t worth a fight?

I didn’t mean it that way. If I thought I had a chance of winning... But you already said she told you I wasn’t a good person, right? She would’ve told that to anyone, and it’s a lot easier for mothers to get custody. She... She practically disappeared after we broke it off. I figured... maybe you be better off without that kind of fight going on around you. But if I had known she was treating you any way other than amazing... 

But instead, you got married and had another son, and you never looked back. Because why give a shit about the kid with the crazy lady, right? 

It’s something I regret... Giving up as easily as I did. Hayden listened in on a conversation with his mother. You can ask him if you don’t want to believe it. I have thought about you every day for nineteen years. I didn’t forget about you. But I guess I figured, after all this time, there was no reason to interrupt your life. But now that I’m here-- now that I’ve met you, I want this to be made right.

How are you gonna change nineteen years? 

I can’t change nineteen years, but I can make the next nineteen different. If you’ll let me. I can’t make you believe me when I say that I regret things. I can’t force you to want anything to do with me, just like I couldn’t force your mother to let me have anything to do with you. But, just know, I want that. Just like I’ve always wanted it. I won’t push myself into your life if you don’t want that. But I am here. And I don’t want anymore regrets in my life. 

I’ve made it through all these years of shit without you, you know.

Yeah. I know. You’re a strong kid. That much I can tell. But I’d like to be there... If you’d let me.

[Pausing. Real quiet. Like, aside from the rumbles of the cars on the street, you could hear a pin drop. And, it’s clear by the few sniffs, poor Maddox is still feeling the hurt. There’s a shaky exhale, punctuated by him rubbing at the corners of his eyes, and he’s turning to his FATHER for the first time since he’s walked outside.] What’s your name?

Waldo [um last name... uh, i wrote ‘bennet’ for Hayden I think. uh. I don’t think where’s waldo has a last name. let’s go with Hayden’s for now ok.] Bennet. People call me Wally though.

[A quiet snort.] My fucking dad’s name is Waldo.

Not as cool as Maddox, I’ll admit.

Not even close. 

[A nod.] That girl inside... That your girlfriend?

In a matter of speaking, yeah. 

In a matter of speaking? 

[Not telling stranger father about engagement. Nope.] Yeah. She’s my girlfriend. Lucy.

Hm. [Another nod, probably thinking about what Hayden said, but isn’t gonna mention it, because that appeared to be a sore spot.]

It’s fucking cold out here.

It is, isn’t it?

I’m gonna go back inside now...

Alright.

[He starts walking, but oh boy, he’s gonna turn back with an eyebrow raised.] Ya coming in too, old man? Or are you gonna catch a cold out here?

[A snort.] Yeah. I’m coming.

[ARE WE READY FOR THIS??? I’m not, but here we go anyway. So, since it’s almost Thanksgiving, and all, ol’ Maddy here gets to take a nice long break from all his music dealings, and so that means it’s Mucy time, and it annoys everyone, as usual. Yes, it’s great you two are happy, and you get to see each other, but for God’s sake, the PDA must stop. We beg. I’m sure their buddies that have been away at college are also currently back, so I’m sure they’ve definitely missed Mucy. So much. 

But, as WE BOTH KNOW, this is not the point of this post. No. PDA is great for them and all, but we are here to serve a higher purpose. Because the kiddos are out, probably at their little diner, or whatever, since that’s the only place they seem to know here, and they’re, idk, eating dinner and whatnot, having a swell time, and not expecting anything out of the ordinary to happen. Not at all. 

How foolish they are, because they should know by now that nothing is every ‘ordinary’ or ‘normal’ for them. It should be a day like any other, but not so. Because while they’re eating their french fries and what have you, dinG DING goes that diner door bell. Obviously they wouldn’t think anything of this door bell, because people come in and out of the diner all the time. It’s not strange. They don’t even pay attention to it. 

Little do they know, however, that this particular ‘ding ding’ of the door bell is about to change some lives. How did the life changing people know that Maddox would be here? Well, you may call it a hunch. Or you may call it a happy accident, but here come the life changers now. Mucy has yet to notice, as they are enraptured in each other, but a certain half-brother of someone’s has noticed. ‘Jackpot’, I’m sure he’s thinking to himself, as he is Margo Jamison all the way. 

Without words, Horchata is dragging frickin WalDO (who will henceforth be known as Wally, I swear to GOD.) all the way towards Mucy’s booth. And perhaps good ol’ Wally just thinks he’s found a really good table he wants to miss, but, again, Horchata is a schemer, and he’s been scheming since the Summer for this exact moment. 

So, they’re in front of the Mucy table, and, of course, that’s gonna be when Mucy finally looks up, and imagine the look of surprise on their faces when they’re greeted with the familiar face of Horchata. Maddox doesn’t look pleased, if you could guess.]

You know, when you didn’t show up after three weeks, I was just hoping you wouldn’t show up at all. [He hasn’t seemed to notice the extra party standing RIGHT BESIDE HORCHATA.]

Had to make a few plans first.

Whoopie~. 

What does he mean by that? Do you know these people? 

Yeeeeeeah.

And how do you?

Remember when I disappeared for a couple of weeks?

Obviously. Your mother and I lost our minds. 

“Your mother and I”??? Hayden, who is this?

About that... [Maddox may look slightly shook.]

I’m his father. Who are these kids, Hayden?

Your father??? You said you didn’t know your father! 

You said you didn’t know me??

I had a reason for all of that. I was trying to--... Well, I wanted to set up a sort of... surprise.

A surprise for what?

He’s my father. 

I got that.

He’s-- come on. [To ol’ Wally.] This is your son.

[You could hear a mouse FART at that table. Everybody’s just staring. Waldo at Maddox, Hayden at Waldo, Lucy between Maddox and Waldo, and Maddox at the table.]

My son?

Yeah. Maddox Bravo. Your son. Happy Thanksgiving.

Hayden, how do you even--...

I heard you and Mom talking about it. That’s why I left... to try to find him. And, well, I got there eventually.

[So, he’s back on Maddox again, who is still staring at the table in front of him. Lucy is looking on with concern, because it looks like Maddox might puke.] You’re... You’re my son? Kelly Bravo’s... son, right?

[Ah, that name brings him back to life. He’s snapping his head to look at him.] I hear from her... my whole fucking life how shitty you were, and that you didn’t give a fuck about anyone but yourself, and you’ve got some wife and other kid somewhere??

Kelly’s still a lovely lady, I see.

She’s a bitter-ass bitch. That doesn’t explain shit.

I think you and I should talk about this alone.

Oh, like hell I’m leaving that one [referring to Horchata, obvs.] alone with her. [obvs to Lucy.]

That was five months ago. Jesus.

What was five months ago?

I... maybe... sorta kissed her, but that’s the past. It’s fine. 

[Maddox snort.] Last time I talked to you you still liked her.

Again, another four months ago. 

Maddox, go talk to him. It’s fine. I promise.

What if I don’t want to talk to him?

I think you do.

[A pause, a huff, an eye roll, and he’s getting out of the booth and silently going outside with his arms crossed, because yeah, he’s just expecting WalDO to follow, which, yeah, with a fatherly look of ‘we’ll be talking about all this’ to Hayden, he is following Maddox out the door.]

You told me you knew nothing about your father.

What? I was supposed to give all my information out to a stranger?

You had no problem kissing a stranger. 

Water under the bridge, Lucy.

... Just tell me this guy isn’t gonna hurt Maddox.

I don’t think he’d do it on purpose if he did. From what I overheard from that conversation with my mom... he has a lot of regrets.

... I hope Maddox lets himself give it a chance.

Yeah... So do I.

[And entertain he has, for the past two and a half hours now. This was the fun part, right? It so was. This was the best, and least stressful part, you feel me? Because his only worries here were making sure that they didn’t hit their heads, or hit each others’ heads, or-- ya know, steal each other’s pacifier, as Lucy had instructed. (That had been tried several times.) 

There’d only been a couple more diaper incidents, but nothing crazy. He fed them some of those star-shaped puff things that have no actual flavor, and he had to try to stop them from throwing them at each other, which they seemed to think was hilarious (Rather, Beau thought it was hilarious, and Merry was getting irritated.). To which Maddox just said ‘You two are gonna be so sweet to each other growing up. I can tell already’ with an eye roll. 

Both seemed to be trying to make attempts at crawling, which really just consisted of them doing push-ups and then falling back down, which, yeah, was funny to look at. And, yes, he sent videos of this to Lucy. And yes, in the background of the video he could be heard saying ‘Look at these nerds. Can’t even crawl. Family disappointments.’ Before switching to that baby voice again with an ‘aren’t you???’ and leaning forward to smooch their baby heads. Because he’s that kind of dad. Lucy only replied with a cry-laugh emoji and ‘stop being mean to our children.’ 

But now, after all of that good fun, and mocking his crawl-less babies, they were starting to get fussy again, and, well, yeah, it’d been about three hours, so that meant it was time for another nap. And that meant carrying the babies back up to the nursery where the rocking chair was, and all that good stuff. 

Though, if you know babies, you know babies fight sleep like the diCKENS, and even if they’re worn out, and it’s their NAP-TIME, they wILL NOT SLEEP. SO, as soon as Maddox has got both his kiddos in his arms, and he’s rocking them, they’re fightING IT, and CRYING AGAIN. He takes in a deep breath.]

Guys-- you’re only crying ‘cause you’re tired. Come on. [Here we see Maddox logic-ing infants again. They can’t be logic’d]

[So, they’re screaming again, and at this exhausted point in the day, he really is thinking of calling that wife of his for some advice, because help me logic these children, but he left his phone downstairs, and there was no way he could get all the way back down there. He had to keep rocking, right? 

A sigh, even. A deep sigh as he tried to rock harder, but that didn’t seem to work.]

Shh sh shhh. You’re gonna make me look bad, and you’re gonna be so tired later. Your mom will kill me. Don’t do that. Don’t make your mom kill me. 

[This doesn’t stop them, and I swear, they’re screaming for a good thirty minutes, with Maddox just repeating ‘shhhs’ to them, over and over again. It’s no good, my man. 

So, he thought to himself, they just want Lucy, right? Lucy was usually the one that rocked them to sleep. Both of them even. So this was just weird to them. They didn’t want him to rock them to sleep. Right. 

What was it that Lucy had said to him about this situation before she left? About how he could fix it too, if they were crying? Oh. Oh, right.

And this sparks an idea within him.

So, here, over the noise of the babies crying--, just slightly loud enough to where he was over the cries...]

Never knew... I could feel like this. [YUP, HE’S SINGING. DO I NEED TO TELL YOU THAT?] Like I’ve never seen the sky before... [The babies have calmed down to just whimpers of cries. He takes this as encouragement to KEEP GOING.] Seasons may change, winter to spring. But I love you, until the end of time. Come what may. Come what may. I will love you until my dying day.

[The babies have stopped crying now, tbh. They’re looking up at their dad with wonder even. Maddox may cry, and whether that’s from relief, or the fact that his children are looking at him like that, he doesn’t EVEN KNOW.]

Suddenly the world seems such a perfect place Suddenly it moves with such a perfect grace Suddenly my life doesn't seem such a waste It all revolves around you And there's no mountain too high No river too wide Sing out this song and I'll be there by your side Storm clouds may gather And stars may collide

But I love you until the end of time.  [And he could see it, while he was singing the song so gently to them babies-- they were actually closing their eyes. THEY WERE FALLING ASLEEP. IT WAS WORKING, AND WAS HE ACTUALLY CRYING BECAUSE OF IT? BET.

And by the time he trailed off, yup, the babies were completely out. Like a light. And Maddox was the one crying now. Indeed. So, instead of getting up and putting them in their cribs, he just stays like that.  And he thought to himself, maybe he wasn’t gonna be so shitty at this parenting thing after all. Maybe he could actually do it-- and he was thinking that for the first time since he found out Lucy was pregnant over a year ago. 

SO--]

[Pretend that other baby is asleep ok. He also kisses the other head too, ok.]

I love you two... so much. I hope you never forget that. You’re the best things I’ve ever made. 

[And he’s wiping at his own tears, because AAAAAH. But, really, he’s so exhausted. Two six-month-olds are exhausting, and since he’s not moving from that rocking chair, he’s falling asleep himself.]

[It’s about an hour-or-so later. It’s like, idk, eight o’clock. Lucy’s gotten home, and she’s looking for her husband, and all that good stuff. He’s not in the living room, or in their room, and she doesn’t hear yelling children, so she’s confusedly heading up to the nursery, and there we have it. Maddox is asleep in the rocking chair still, sleeping children in his arms.

She looks on with such adoration and love. Like, how cute is this. She’s taking a picture. She’s sending it to Cilla. Yup.

And then she’s gonna go over to the chair, and she’s gonna put a smooch on her hubby’s forehead, just as a gentle lil wake-up. She’s still smiling when his eyes open.]

Luce-- you’re home.

Tired?

Your kids sure do like to scream.

Mhm, but I see you managed to get them to sleep though. [She taps him, like, ‘come on, get up and put them in their cribs’, and very gently takes one from him to put them in said crib.]

[So, he’s putting the other child in the other crib. Nice and gentle. Good job. No babies stirring.] Well, I did what you said. I sang to ‘em.

[An eyebrow raise as they’re quieTLY stepping out of the nursery.] Did you?

Mhm.

What’d you sing? 

[He dips his head like he’s bein’ bashful about it, the nerd idiot.] Come What May.

Well. That makes sense.

Why?

Because I sing that to them when you’re not here.

You do?

Yeah.

[A snort.] We are so married.

Well, duh~. But, how did it go? Today? With the babies? You mentioned screaming?

It... wasn’t as hard as I thought it would be. 

Oh, really~? 

I guess I’m not as shit at it as I thought I’d be.

I never thought you would be.

[Bc she’s proud that no child is dead, and she loves the goof to death. And heck, maybe that kissing goes on a little while. Or a lot while. Lucy pulls back with a giggle.]

This is how we ended up with twins.

Hey, clearly we can handle it. 

Mhm. Two.

Nah, I got this. I’m Superdad. Let’s have like six more. [He’s lifting her up bridal style even. Go you, Maddox.]

You’re not the one that has to carry them for nine months, Maddox~~.

Eh, I’ll settle for the thing that makes it happen~.

Yeaaah. I bet.

[Okay, so wife was wrong. Wife was dead-wrong. It was not five minutes after Lucy had walked out the door that Maddox heard the beginnings of some fussiness. That fussiness that happens when a baby wakes up and is about to start screaming. And, tbh, he was praying, nay, begging that whichever child that was would go back to sleep for the rest of the allotted time that was given to him. 

BUT NO. Merry Bravo is an asshole, even as a baby. Yes, Merry started it. Who else? The fussy, quiet cries turn in to all-out wailing, and this sets of twin chain-reaction, because Merry’s crying is immediately followed by Beau’s crying, and Maddox is rubbing his face again, calling towards the nursery.]

Dad’s coming!! [He sounds like he going to his death.]

[In he goes to what I’m gonna say is probably a shared nursery, because why keep twins in other rooms when they’re this young? Yikes. He’s gonna go to the loudest offender first, and, yes, that is his little evil princess, Merry. He’s gonna pick her up, and start bouncing on his way to pick up the other evil child, Beau.

He’s bouncing, and he’s bouncing as he’s walking towards the kitchen, because, hey, if they woke up, it must mean they’re hungry now, right? They’re still crying, anyway, so that must be it, eh?]

Gonna make it hard on Dad, aren’t we~~? 

[So, he puts the children in their respective bouncy seat things as he goes to prep that milk, my dude. And yes, wifey was right, he’d at least done this before, so no, getting a bottle ready was no trouble. HOWEVER, he’d never had to feed both of the children at one time, since Lucy was ALWAYS here, and they’d each take a twin, but noT TODAY.

So, once he’s tested that milk, and he’s decided it’s not too hot for his young children’s mouths, he has to come up with a plan of attack here. And so, scrambling, and so confused, he’s like ‘UH’, as his children keEP SCREAMING. Like, can the children hold the bottles up themselves by now? Will they choke on milk if he lets them do that? Oh, GOD, if one or both of the twins choked to death on milk on his watch. JESUS. 

He comes up with this. He’s gonna bring their bouncy seats close together. He’s gonna double-fist those milk bottles like his teenage-self double-fisted red solo cups, and he’s gonna hold both bottles of milk while each child drinks BOO YAH. GOOD IDEA. 

And, ah, the quiet. His ears were still ringing from the double screaming. He’s proud of himself for that one, though. CRITICAL THINKING SKILLS OF A FATHER. HECK YEAH.]

See? Dad’s not a complete moron, is he? [That’s in a complete baby voice, and I wanna cry.]

[It goes well, minus that time Beau started coughing in the middle of the bottle, and Maddox almost had a heart attack, but everything was TOTALLY FINE. He just managed to get hiccups from drinking that Ba too fast, y’all. The piggie. 

BUT YES, other than all of this, Maddox feels totally accomplished in his bottle-feeding abilities. Like, hey yaaaa, I don’t need Lucy to feed my kids. I can feed my kids all alone, so long as she leaves some food behind, you feel me, because he can’t really provide that. Yup.

However, how does one burp two babies at once? Does it have to be at once? Can one wait a little while, or will that hurt their stomach to wait? Is he gonna have to put one on each shoulder? Does he have the coordination to burp two babies at once without dropping one? 

Lucy had told him to text with any questions, but, lbr, Maddox is just too stubborn to text Lucy and ask her anything, despite the fact that he’s currently the Mr. Krabs meme, all because he’s worried about his babies getting a screwy stomach from not being burped in time. 

Here you will see a speedy-af googling of ‘how do i burp twins’, and an even speedier scrolling. ‘One on the lap, one on the shoulder’ YES. GOT IT.

He’s gingerly taking his sweet babies from their seats so as to not make them, YOU KNOW, SPIT UP? And away he goes. Okay. Yes. This is easy. But oh, GOD, what if Beau (on the lap) burps before Merry? Is he just supposed to leave the kid laying across his lEG? This confusion was way too much. 

I’m gonna say the gods have smiled down upon him, though, because there’s almost a simultaneous burping, and he breathed a sigh in relief.]

Good to see you two are actually looking out for your old man. Thank you so much. Shit. I mean-- heck. 

[He adjusts them kiddos, one in one arm, one in the other, because we gotta move now, probably back up to the nursery, because oh dear, one or the other or both probably need a diaper change. Cue the dramatic music. So, up to the changing tables we go. And here it will be much easier, because we can just put the one not getting changed into their crib. 

One would think, right? WELL.  

As soon as he’s placed Merry down, she’s right back to screaming, and Maddox becomes the Mr. Krabs meme once more.]

Hey, hey. Merry-- shhh. Just give Daddy one second, okay? I’ll pick you back up in one second.

[Maddox, you can’t logic a six-month-old. But he’s trying anyway, and he’s gonna try to hand her a toy which, honestly, in a perfect imitation of her older-self’s attitude, she’s gonna throw it right back at Dad’s face. He purses his lips, and there’s a Beau giggle even. Merry’s still screaming.] 

Thank you, Lucy Jr. [That’s directed at Merry.]

[The devil child is still yelling, but Maddox has got to get this done, ya know? Diapers must be done, and so he must block out the yelling of his daughter, while he has to dive into this. Diapers-- this is something else he’d done. Many... many times. Who knew something so tiny could make sO MUCH-- ah. Yup. There we go. THANKS, BEAU. There’s an eye roll to the ceiling.]

Sorry, kiddo-- [This is directed to Merry again.] This might take longer than I thought. 

[And he’s gotta dELVE INTO THIS WITHOUT THOUGHT, BECAUSE IF HE THINKS ABOUT IT TOO MUCH, HE’S GONNA YELL HIMSELF. Fatherhood-- gross, man. 

But, he did get through the toxic waste known as an infant diaper, only to tune back into his other child’s screaming, and he remembers that he has to dEAL WITH THIS AGAIN. 

Then he doesn’t have to deal with it again, because HEY, NO TOXIC WASTE TO BE FOUND IN THIS DIAPER. He sighs out a deep sigh, because thank Christ. He leans down further to his lil sweetie.]

I ever told you you’re the favorite??

[As if six-month-old Beau actually understands this, there is another toy whipped at Maddox. He looks back at his son with an eyebrow raised, because GOOD ARM, KID. LIKE YOUR MOM.] 

I’m joking, buddy. Come on. [Arms out to his sides like, don’t do this to your old man. I’m trying my best.]

[BUT GUESS WHAT? In this break, Merry’d decided she was gonna be a little shit, by, well, NOT LITTLE SHITTING, THAT’S FOR SURE.]

OH-- FU--S H... CRAP. 

[He’s scrambling again, trying to put that dirty diaper back under her, as to not waste a fRESH ONE, but that damage is already done, and, oh boy, it’s gone everywhere. He just slumps and awaits the dam to close back up, because no sENSE IN TRYING TO KEEP IT ALRIGHT NOW. 

Merry, now, is the one that is letting out lil baby laughs. And really, it melts his heart, because baby laugh, but it’S ALSO SO NOT FUNNY.] 

I’m glad you think you’re so hilarious, kiddo. [He’s got a smile he can’t hide though, because man his kiddies are just the best, aren’t they? So fun and adorable. The cutest, even if they’re lil shits.]

Come on, honey. It’s only for a few hours. Stop looking like you have to defuse a bomb.

I know that. But-- like...

I know. I know. I’ve never left you alone with them before.

They are like defusing a bomb.

They’re your children. Of course they are~.

They’re your children too, asshole. [He’s huffing, and looks like he wants to barf even.]

They got all the calm genes from me~.

[He’s just gonna huff loudER this time, because he doesn’t even want to arGUE that, because hE TRULY BELIEVES IT.]

They’re just six month old babies, Maddox. 

What you’re telling me here is that that is six months of solo child-REARING EXPERIENCE THAT I DON’T HAVE.

They’re napping right now, and they’ll stay that way for a while longer if you stop the yelling.

[A groan.] Do you have to go out with your mother?

Mhm. She’s forcing me-- said I’ve been shut up in the house too much.

Tell her I said thanks.

You’ll figure it out, honey. 

That’s encouraging.

You’re great with them. It’s not gonna be a problem.

Yeah, when you’re around. I’ve never had to do this shit by myself before! What if one of them starts crying, and I can’t get them to stop because they want you, or something???

Feed them, rock them, change them, sing to them. Do whatever, Maddox. You’re their dad. They know that. They love you. If they’re crying over something, you can fix it too.

I’m just-- nervous, okay?

I was nervous the first time Mom didn’t stay over and you were at a show too. But, honey, that’s everyone. Once you’ve done it, it won’t be nearly as scary anymore. I promise.

... [A sigh.] There’s no convincing you to stay, is there?

[She shakes her head.] Uh-uh. Because Mom’s car just rolled up.

Shit.

I’ll be back in a few hours. You’ll be alright. Just text me if you have a question, okay? The babies should wake up in about half-an-hour to be fed. Milk’s in the fridge. Run the bottle under some warm water to heat it up, test it on your arm before you give it to them. You should already know that. You’ve fed them before. If they get fussy, music works. And for God’s sake, keep their hands off each other’s pacifiers. Just trust me on that.

[He’s still trying to process all of that information and store it to memory, tbh.] Right. 

Good luck~. 

Don’t say that.

[She chuckles, gives him a goodbye smooch, and heads for the door.] I’ll see ya later, Daddy~.

[A GROAN AT HIS EVIL-ASS WIFE AND THIS FACE.]

[So, this is still last night, I was just tuckered out, but I had a two hour disco nap, and I don’t have to wake up till like 7 tomorrow, so I’m ready to go. 

But, all throughout the show, I’m sure Lucy’s been kinda frowny, because, much like you, Jerica, she’s felt really bad for Horchata. Because, hEY, she can see that he feels really bad for what happened, and all that, and she can see he just really wants a chance at having a family member. 

And while she knew Maddox had a right to be upset about what had happened, he shouldn’t hold it over Horchata’s head, right? He apologized-- multiple times even. Why shouldn’t Maddox at least try to hear that out? And... ya know, not punch him in the face again. Because the second time was enough as it was. 

So, Lucy did something she probably shouldn’t’ve as soon as she got in that mainstage area with Stage. She pulled out that handy-dandy phone of hers, and she went to that number that hadn’t been used in a couple of weeks, and she told Horchata-- lemme tell you what she said. ‘Don’t leave yet. I wanna try to make it right.’. Which, yikes, we’ll see how that’ll play out.

Sooner, rather than later, too, because, yes, now the show was over. And Lucy was telling Stage that she was gonna go wrangle that boy of hers from backstage, and that they should wait outside--. She said this mainly because she knew how on fire Maddox was when he left to go get on stage, and also because of how he was acting while performing, and, my dude, she just didn’t know what to expect out of him. She didn’t know if he was gonna yell, or if he’d suddenly be fine. 

Backstage she was. And there was her lovely, probably still a little bit steamed, boy, and without speaking, she decided she was gonna pull him into a room alone. SO, there’s that. They’re in a room alone, and yes, Lucy was right, he di still look pretty pressed.]

Don’t you think you acted out a little... dramatically?

Dramatically? Over the guy that kissed my girlfriend, and thought it would all be fine just because he said we’re supposed to be brothers? No, I don’t think it was dramatic. 

He apologized multiple times, Maddox. 

Apologies are for shit. You heard him say that he liked you, right? There’s no way he doesn’t still feel the same way.  And I’m just supposed to let him be a part of my life knowing he’s got a crush on my fucking future wife? Seriously?!

You don’t know if he does or not. You’re making an assumption. He said kissing your girlfriend was a mistake that he never would’ve made had he known who my boyfriend was, so, no, I don’t think he does still like me. 

If he liked you, he did not get over you just because he found out you were my girlfriend. That’s not how it works. You don’t just get over someone, and especially not you.

You’re looking at that from the perspective of someone that’s in love with me. Not from the perspective of someone who only knew me for two weeks. 

I don’t give a shit. I don’t trust the guy.

You’re being unfair. He deserves a chance too, don’t you think? 

What do you mean ‘too’??

I made a mistake. I kissed him back. [There’s that jaw clench from Maddox again.] I knew it was wrong right after it was done, and you forgave me for it. He apologized. He said it was a mistake. Why can’t you forgive him? 

Did you catch feelings for him?

No.

I don’t want to forgive him, or even call him my damn brother, especially, if I’m too busy being concerned that he’s falling for you even harder. I’m so sorry if that upsets you, Lucy, but I’m not gonna fucking do it.

He just wants to get to know you-- he wants a brother. Have you never wanted a brother? Not even once?

Had a brother once. He’s dead. Never really cared to replace him.

I think Cas would probably want you to take this opportunity, Maddox.

You don’t speak for Cas, Lucy. 

[So, Lucy frowns, because he said that in a rather RUDE WAY.] I wish you would try. For me. Because he really does feel bad. I could see it. 

And I really don’t give a shit.

You’re being so--... terrible.

I guess I’m just gonna have to accept that you feel that way, because I’m not changing my mind.

[Alright, but do you feel this air of disappointment? Because it’s strong. Are you ready for something to be added to that air? Because here it comes. The door’s opening? And who is it? Sage and Steve? No. Corey? No. Some other random band member? Definitely not. Oh, dear. It’s brother. Hi, Horchata.]

How the hell did you get back here??

... Snuck back here. The security really sucks.

[Maddox breathes in real deep, and he rolls his eyes to the ceiling. Snuck through security. Yup. Gotta be sorta related, right?] And why are you still here?

Lucy told me not to leave.

... Of course she did.

I wanted you two to be able to talk.

We already talked. 

No. He talked. You used your fists to talk for you. 

I didn’t have anything to say. And he had that hit coming. 

The second one too? 

Yes.

Would you just talk to him??

If he’s my brother, then it’s none of your damn business, Lucy. So just leave it alone.

[Okay, now THAT riled her up.] If I’m supposed to be your wife one day, then your business is my business.

... I should just-- go. 

No. No, she wants us to talk, so I’m gonna talk. I have a question for you, brother. 

... What?

Do you still like Lucy?

I... [He pauses, looks to his feet, and sighs.] I would never try anything, because she’s your girlfriend.

[Lucy gives a look like ‘BOI, YOU COULDN’T HAVE JUST SAID NO???’.]

Ah, see, Luce? ‘He only knew me for two weeks, he couldn’t still like me’, mY ASS. So, yeah, fucking forgive me, both of you, but if he’s still got a thing for you, Lucy, I’d rather him not be in my life. [ ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ ]

I just said I’m not gonna try anything. She’s nice, and she’s pretty, but that doesn’t mean I’m gonna try to steal her away, or something. I’d rather have a brother than steal a girl from him.

Yeah, and I’d rather not take that chance. Thanks.

Do you need me to say I don’t want Lucy? Because I can say that.

YOU JUST SAID YOU FUCKING LIKE HER???

Maddox, don’t scream.

Lucy, I’ve heard enough of this shit for one night. I don’t want to spend the only time I get with you for the next two and a half weeks talking to that asshole, alright?

I just want you to make some sort of effort. I’m not asking anything more than that.

[So, he’s looking at the ceiling again, and he’s huffing. Multiple times, because he doesn’t want Lucy pissed off with him, but he also really, really doesn’t want to keep talking to his shiTHEAD BROTHER either. But, really, and GOODLY, his love for his fiancee wins out. He looks back to Horchata.] Come talk to me again once this tour is over. Just give me like three fucking weeks, and try talking to me then. And try your best to get over my f i a n c e e before then. 

I can do that. [A single nod.]

[He looks at Lucy.] Good enough?

[A nod of her own.] Good enough.

Thank Christ. [He starts to pull Lucy from the room.] Let’s go. Steve and Sage have to be wondering where the hell we are.

[Lucy’d honestly forgotten in all the hub-bub that Steve and Sage were even waiting, omg .So, she’s going willingly with fiance, because he’d made an attempt, and so she wasn’t so unhappy with him anymore.

They left Horchata behind in that room, but Lucy’s phone dinged with a text alert, and it was just from little ol’ Horchata. It just read ‘Thank you.’. 

oh my god it’s beaunana i’m gonna scream

[Okay, hi, hello. It’s been about two weeks since the children have seen each other last, and, obviously, it’s been a dang sad two weeks, but since I’m such a lazy procrastinator, I never managed to write a post where Maddox was telling his fIANCEE that he would be coming through town, so here we are. 

Maddox has come through town, bringing along all his lovely band folks with him, and all that good stuff, even though he’s already informed them that, yet again, they better stay out of his business while he’s with his lady, because he’s got more important things to worry about than some speakERS that needed moving around. That more important thing is his FIANCEE. And, yes, that is how he keeps addressing her to everyone in the band scene. Lucy, my FIANCEE. My FIANCEE is coming around, guys. Ah, look. Here comes my FIANCEE. 

Everyone hates to hear him talk even more now. 

Love my idiot son. 

But, here we go. Yes, Maddox is in town, and Lucy’s on top of the world, because two weeks felt like an eternity, and their ‘hello’ was about ten times longer than their ‘goodbye’, much to Corey’s discontent, but, as Maddox told her, her ‘opinion doesn’t matter. bye.’. 

So,  the children have been out-and-about, and they’ve had a great time, catching up, laughin’, smoochin’, probably more than smoochin’. Who am I to say what they’ve gotten up to? I am no one. 

But they’re at the venue, now, and I’m guessing that Stove and Sage are coming to whatever show is happening tonight (Sage is coming with a frown, because she doesn’t want to engage with the show hooligans, but she’s gonna be S U P P O R T I V E.), but it’s only still slightly early, so they aren’t there yet. There have been people milling around, trying to get things ready, etc. etc., and people could easily slip by without anyone else noticing, though, so no one could be too sure that Stage wasn’t already here, and they’d just gotten lost in a sea of roadies. 

Maddox and Lucy weren’t paying that much attention anyway. Nope. They figured Stage would text one of them once they arrived, so they were huddled in a corner together, probably doing some canoodling of some sort. Why aren’t they canoodling backstage? Well, that’s a good question. One that I won’t answer. Sorry to tell you. 

I’m here to tell you, that they’ve been canoodling long enough that the doors are open now, and Maddox should definitely be backstage at this point, as per what he was instructed by Corey, but he only half-heard her because of the canoodling that was going on. 

buT, again, very close to time for this thing to start, so Lucy figures, hey, I need to go to the bathroom or something before curTAIN, sO--. She’s just gonna get up from Canoodle Corner without even trying to tell Maddox where she’s going, tbh.]

Hey-- where are you going?? [Confused at this fact of just getting up without saying anything. Don’t play him like that, Luce.]

The bathroom??

Oh. [He gets up from Canoodle Corner too.] I’ll go with you~~.

No you won’t, crazy. You’ve gotta get backstage.

I still have time. [:C]

Corey’s gonna end up murdering you, me, or both of us if you keep neglecting your duties~. 

I’ll fight her. 

[A sigh.] So clingy~~~.

I’m not clinging nearly as much as I could be.

I’m so sorry I have to miss that. 

You won’t have to if I sneak to the bathroom with you~.

Trying to stop you from doing what you want to do is like trying to put toothpaste back in the tube, so just come on. [She’s rolling her eyes in a totally loving way at her dumb future husband.]

Scooooore.

[Off they go to the bathroom, or, they’re trying their best to wade through all the people, but they do finally make it out into the outer area where there’s the entrance to the bathrooms, and the crowd out here had started to thin out, for sho, but there were still a few people around. 

And, right before the kiddos could get into the the bathroom door, there is a calling of Lucy’s name. Just Lucy’s name, and that was rather weird because the only people that would know Lucy here weren’t here yet, that she knew of, and the voice sounded like neither Stove, nor Sage. 

Both she and (an annoyed) Maddox turn around, and oh buddy, you’ll never guess who it is. Because Lucy’s eyes have definitely gone wide.]

Hayden?!

Hayden??

[Okay, so Hayden’s been approaching, and he’s in front of them, and he’s looking weary af, but he’s looking.] I know-- I should probably... explain why I’m back here...

A better question is why are you here here?

[It’s safe to mention Maddox is probably shaking over there next to Lucy. A nice hard shake. Like he’s holding back, you might say.] It’s about my... brother that I told you about. [A look to Maddox.] And I figured I should... probably clear some things up.

I’ll fucking say.

[Lucy’d never heard him sound that pISSED at one individual before. Not even herself the last time that she was at his show, ya feel?] Maddox--. [It’s like a warn of ‘not here, please’.]

No, I mean, he’s right, Lucy. I-I kissed you, so--... [Lucy can feel Maddox tense beside her oh dear.] I just thought she was such a great girl, I-- couldn’t help myself.

You knew she had a boyfriend, you little shit. [There is no gif in existence to show how pissed he is, so just use your imagination.]

I did know. And I didn’t care, because I, you know, kinda liked her, but then I--...

OH. Didn’t care? Of course you didn’t care. Holy shit. I cannot listen to you for one more second. [HERE WE GO.]

MADDOX. STOP. [Lucy has to interject because there are STILL PEOPLE OUT HERE.]

No, I-I deserved that.

[Maddox honestly has him by the shirt rn.] See? He knows he had it coming. So tell me why I shouldn’t push his shit in??

Because he’s sixteen, and I don’t want you getting fucking arrested. That’s why!

Honestly, Luce, it’d be fucking worth it.

DON’T SAY THAT.

Look, just-- let me explain things first, and then you can beat my ass, okay?

I’ll hold you to that. [Has he let go of his shirt? Nope.]

Lucy already knows this part-- I was in town because I’d never met my dad, but I found out that he had another kid-- a son-- someone who lived in this town. I came here to try to find him, but I couldn’t. I went to his address, and all I found there was some grumpy-ass lady. So, I went home after I kissed Lucy. [Maddox’s grip gets tighter on him, tbh, because he doesn’t even like to hear that sentence uttered.] But what I found out... that same night was that... my brother was out of town then. He was out of town... with his band.

[I don’t think Maddox has quite grasped what he’s saying, mainly because he’s too busy steaming from the ears to actually listen with them. Tbh, he’s just waiting for Horchata to finish so that he can make good on beating his ass. 

However, Lucy was listening. And Lucy’s definitely grasped what he’s saying. Her jaw is almost to the floor.] Oh my god...

Lucy never mentioned your name when she talked about you... Not until after...  And when she said your name was Maddox...

Are you... saying... Maddox is the brother you’ve been trying to find? 

... Yeah.

Bullshit. You’re just trying to save your own ass.

[To Lucy.] You never told me his last name, right? You just called him Maddox. [Lucy nods. He turns back to Maddox.] Your name is Maddox Bravo. You’re nineteen years old, you were born on May 22nd, your mother’s name is Kelly, and you have no siblings-- other than me.

[Maddox is EVER SO SLIGHTLY SHOOK, but this news does not make him any less murderous.] What? And this is just supposed to be some happy family reunion??? I’m just supposed to drop the fact that you kissed my fucking girlfriend because you’re my brother??? Don’t you think that bit of information makes it a hundred times fucking worse???

If I had known she was your girlfriend, I would’ve never done it in the first place, alright? She said her boyfriend’s name was Maddox, and I bolted. I’m not a fucking bad guy, okay? I just-- I wouldn’t go around kissing my brother’s girlfriend.

... Why the hell did you come here?

To meet you? To talk?

What did you think would happen? That we’d become best friends, and start having family dinner together every weekend??

No, I expected you to beat the shit out of me. 

Hey, maybe we are related, since you’ve read my fucking mind. [He’s shook the kid just a little bit, and suddenly, fiancee’s got her hands on his shoulders.]

Maddox, don’t.

Like hell ‘don’t’, Lucy.

I’m sorry for kissing your girlfriend. I would never even try again. The only reason I even came back was to clear the air. And to let you know the truth.

Well, I don’t give a shit about the truth, so...

You know it now whether you give a shit or not.

[Maybe Lucy’s actually succeeded in pulling this steaming boy away just a bit. Maybe she’s gotten his hands off Horchata, and she’s trying to get him backstage before Maddox can do anything else, but honestly, Lucy, Maddox is like a foot taller than you, and he can swerve outta your grip as easily as anything, SO.]

And that’s for coming here and reminding me that your stupid ass shit actually happened!

MADDOX. That was SO fucking unnecessary. [Her hands are back on him immediately, tbh. They’re right on his shoulders.]

I. Don’t. Care. 

[Alas, in the distance, someone’s manager has finally caught up.] BravO! WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING? SHOWTIME’S IN LIKE FIVE MINUTES. GET YOUR ASS BACKSTAGE.

[His jaw is clenched tight, and he shakes Lucy’s hands off his shoulders, and there’s one final look to that cinnamon-y half-brother of his.] Just... stay the fuck away from me and Lucy. [And off he goes to follow his lovely manager.]

[And there is Cinnamon Rice standing there, probably wiping blood away, I’d bet, and Lucy’s just looking at him like ‘sweet fuCK’.]

Don’t look at me like that.

Why the hell would you try to casually introduce yourself as his brother??

Just a crazy guy, I guess~. [Saaaar~casm~.]

You should’ve just left it alone. 

If you knew you had a sibling-- something you’ve kinda wanted your whole life, wouldn’t you take a chance at it?

I’d recommend listening to him. I’d rather not have to bail him out of jail for assault. 

... Of all the girls I have to run into at the mall... it has to be his fucking girlfriend.

[Lucy doesn’t know how to respond to that. She’s not even sure how this situation makes her feEL, because YIKES, how Maddox had just walked away from here. OH BOY.

But, luckily, she doesn’t have to respond, because there’s the familiar voices she’d been waiting for, calling her out. Hi, Stage.]

Luce, there you are. You would not believe the traffic. We got here just in time. Are you ready to go inside? 

Uh, yeah. Let’s go.

i mean seriously let’s just write jordan out of gb gdi

NOPE

[FOR REFERENCE: So, punched in the stomach look, and all that, right? Stovie and Maddox have headed back to the former’s apartment, having been silent the whole way there, because, 1. Maddox doesn’t want to hear Steve’s damn implications, and 2. He was honestly too busy thinking about that drunk girl to have a proper conversation. 

Once they arrive at the apartment, Maddox is heading straight to his favorite couch that will become his one and only bed sometime soon, Stove is not heading to his room, as Maddox HOPED he might. Nope, Stove has more questions that he would like to ask. You’re not getting out of this one, ol’ Maddie. He’s gonna come sit on the couch with you. He’s gonna give you a look. He’s gonna try to say something. Maddox says NAH, with a hand.]

Don’t even fucking think about it.

Don’t think about what?

Don’t.

So, I’m not allowed to ask you why you were in that girl’s house for so long? 

EXACTLY.

You just dumped her in her room, right?

Yes. 

So, why’d that take so long?

Listen, Stove. Fuck o f f.

[An annoyed face at the ‘Stove’, but that’s not enough to stop him.] You looked pretty mesmerized in that backseat~. 

I’m gonna mesmerize your face if you don’t shut the hell up.

You were running your fingers through her hair, dude. 

I was not!

I saw it happen. 

Trick of the light.

Mhm, sure. Why’d you look so traumatized coming out of her house? 

Maybe I was just winded from carrying a person up a flight of stairs??

Winded, traumatized-- not the same look. D’something happen in there~?

I’m honestly gonna fucking axe kick you in a minute.

Why are you acting like it’s such a big deal, hm?

She kissed me, alright??? Her drunk ass kissed me while I was in there. Jesus. Get off my fuCKING BACK NOW.

And a kiss had you that shaken? Really?

I have a ~girlfriend~.

Oh, sure. That’s why you look like you were socked in the gut. Because you’re worried about ~cheating on your girlfriend~, like you’ve never done it before in all the time you’ve been together. Right. I believe that.

I don’t think I understand what you’re trying to get at here.

What’d I tell you earlier?

I do not fucking like her! 

Ya don’t, huh~? 

No.

So, what’d you do when she kissed you then? Did you push her away~?

[A scoff.] I’m saying I don’t like her. Not that I’m an idiot.

But if you’re so worried about ~Harley, why wouldn’t you push the closet girl away~? Ya know, since that’s why you looked the way you did when you came out. 

I told you she’s just a girl, okay? Nothing special about it. I just-- didn’t expect her to kiss me. That’s all. Fuck.

I bet you also didn’t expect to smile so adoringly down at her while she slept with her head in your lap either, did ya?

I didn’t pick where her head fell. 

Mhm, just like you didn’t pick to take her home.

Carmen fucking told me to, okay?

You never listen to Carmen. 

SORRY FOR BEING A FUCKING GOOD PERSON?

Is it so hard to admit you like that girl? Like, really? You wouldn’t keep giving her the time of day if you didn’t have feelings for her, dude. I know you too well. 

Fucking--... Having a crush is not the same damn thing as being okay with having sex with someone.

And, as it seems, you aren’t having sex with her. What’s the only option left, am I right?

Would you just go to sleep now? Holy shit.

Sure~. [He’s up off the couch and walking away, but here, it’s my favorite thing, the final word before walking off.] Sweet dreams, Romeo~.

[Yup, classy, creative titles with Parrish. You know how it is. Here we have it. The promised Maddox POV posts begin here. I’ve already said what this one would be, and here we have it. We’re gonna start off here~.

However, we begin towards the end of this journey. My little Maddox has already done all of his apologizing. Lucy deserves better than what he’s being trifling at. You know the story. WE BEGIN HERE. INITIATE MADDOX POV.]

[Yes, Maddox is confused af, as mentioned in the base post. A kiss on the cheek? A cheek kiss is a confusing kiss, because WELL, IT COULD BE TAKEN IN SO MANY WAYS. It could be friendly, it could be romantic?? What was he supposed to take out of this? 

So, he’s staring, and yes, he’s got literal ‘????’s above his head, and then she smiles a real, genuine smile as she thanks him, and tbh, his heart literally skipped a beat. Full-on, he could’ve gone straight into cardiac arrest. Then, dang it all, she giggled. She actually laughed at him, and nothing had ever sounded so beautiful to him. He was, well, moonstruck is the only way to put it. 

And normally Maddox was really good at presenting some sort of front based on how he wanted to be seen, and what he wanted to keep from other people, but being as dazed as he is right now, looking at this girl in front of him that’s smiling and laughing and kissing his cheek and whatnot, his mouth seems to have a mind of it’s own. And we got what we got.]

Your smile is really pretty. 

[Which, BANG, CRASH, SCREEEEEEEECH. What the hell did we just say? Why has our mouth betrayed us so? His mind was backtracking so hard as soon as the words escaped him, because no, we cannot say things like that. That’s showing our hand far too much, and it doesn’t really matter if Lucy Warner is literally the most beautiful girl we’d ever laid our eyes on, we are just NOT SUPPOSED TO SAY IT OUT LOUD. Nothing of the sort.

So, it can’t just be our mind that backtracks, and we have to backtrack out loud, quickLY.] 

I mean, as far as smiles go... [Yeah, that’ll do. That totally works.]

[And, oh God, Lucy’s face. HER FACE. She looks so confused and shocked while she’s stuttering out her thanks. He can’t see his own face, but he’s pretty sure it looks dAMN similar to Lucy’s. Eyes bugged, jaw slack. Yup, he was mortified with himself.

So, what’s he do now? Well, we know that already.]

I’m gonna… let you do whatever it was you were doing… now. Bye.

[And he, as I put it, sprouted wings and flew out of the library. But that’s where it ended before. We just saw Lucy smile a cute little smile, and it was all over. But no, Maddox did not see that cute little smile. 

He was out of the library in about five seconds, and his heart was going about a THOUSAND MILES AN HOUR, and he was mentally beating his own face in, because what the HELL had he even just said? An apology, sure, that was fine. Apologies happened, and they didn’t mean anything more than just ‘I’m sorry’. ‘Your smile is really pretty’, though? That meant something on a while other level. And, again, while it was true-- he never, ever said stuff like that to anyone. It just wasn’t who he was. 

But, he’d never felt the need to tell any girl that anyway. Not even subconsciously. So, maybe it was who he was, but he’d just never found the girl to tell it to? But, SHIT, man, Lucy was just someone that he wanted in the pants of, right? That was all it was. 

But, okay,  maybe she was gorgeous... and smart... and fun to be around... and funny... and basically all-around borderline addictive to be around, and maybe he-- actually-- kinda... liked her, but thaT DIDN’T MEAN ANYTHING, RIGHT? He’d never lost his cool enough to say something like ~pretty~. He didn’t call anyone pretty

So, what changed? What made his dumb mouth say that stupid shit?

It wasn’t... because...

I’d say he was nigh upon this revelation when he gets back to his locker, and his ~girlfriend is there waiting for him.]

Where the hell have you been?

I don’t know. Around?

Around who?

Steve. [A shrug.]

Oh, Steve. Right.

You’re gonna get jealous of Steve now? Come on, woman.

Call me woman again, and I’ll break your nose.

Yeah, sure, cool.

Don’t give me a reason to be jealous, and I’ll stop being suspicious. How about that~? [A bitchy smile. Bet.]

What the hell have I done, even? 

Oh, please. 

I get it. Steve’s the hottest chick in school. You have all the reason in the world to be jealous. [THE SASS. An eye roll.]

You know this isn’t about Steve.

[YUP. HE KNOWS. And, honestly, the further he gets into this conversation and his revelations that he might be trying to come to still, the more he realizes that maybe you really do have a reason to be jealous and/or suspicious, Harley.] I thought you dropped that like, a week ago. Ya know, after you punched her.

I’ve dropped it if you’ve dropped it~.

I never picked it up to begin with.

Mhm. Better be true.

[And yikes, that happened. And maybe just now he’s realizing just how different this feels. Because he used to think that a kiss was a kiss, and it didn’t matter who was doing the kissing, it was just going to be that-- a kiss. 

Because, yesterday, when he kissed Lucy, there was so much more to it than just a kiss. There was something in kissing her that kickstarted his heart into a dang gear he didn’t even know existed. And, GOD, he felt like he could kiss her once and never stop for the rest of time. 

Right now, with Harley’s lips on his... he didn’t feel a damn thing. In fact, he didn’t feel a damn thing when he was with Harley at all, or anyone else for that matter. 

So, his mind is called back to that smile from earlier-- that beautiful-ass smile. No, he could look at it forever, my dude. And, really? Honestly? That’s all he wanted. 

And shit. There went the revelation. It felt different because, fuCK, this was love, wasn’t it? This was what love felt llike. 

Damn it all, he was in love with Lucy Warner. DAMN HER, because he wanted to kiss her and only her for the rest of his whole fUCKING LIFE. He LOVED her. He was IN LOVE. 

Clearly, this newfound knowledge is gonna cause him to draw back from Harley’s crazy lips. She’s offended that he’d even do this.]

Excuse me?

I’ve... gotta... go.

What???

Class is... class.

Class. Since when do you go to class, Maddox?

Since I don’t want fucking detention, okay? That’s since when. Now-- I’ll talk to you later, I guess. Bye.

[TBH, he’s sprouted wings again, and he’s flying off. No, this asshole isn’t going to class. He’s going to go sit his ass on Steve’s couch while Steve’s here, and he’s going to mull over the fact that he’s in LOVE, and how much that really, REALLY sucks for him. 

[I said pt 1 last night, and I meant it. Hopefully this will be a QUICK ONE, because I have Merry’ing to get to, fingers crossed for me. 

It’s the next morning, right? And you know what that means? It means it’s the day Lucy’s supposed to go back home. I can guarantee you that there was quite a little amount of sleep that has happened in this room. And I quote my son, ‘a shit-ton of time’ had been wasted, so no more time wasting, you feel? Make the most of your short time, kids. God love ya. 

I reckon there was at least a couple of hours of sleep on Lucy’s part, but I have it in good faith that the boy got no sleep. Not even a little. An AEROSMITH song is brought to mind. Alas, the light is coming through those curtains, just a little bit, because hotel curtains are ridic. But, it is enough to wake Lucy up. She’s awoken to that BOYFRIenD of hers. Yup, he’s just watching her. Probably messing with her hair or something. You get the picture. He’s bein’ dumb.]

Mornin’~. 

Ya watching me sleep, Edward Cullen~?

Can’t help it. 

Did you even sleep? 

Don’t think so. 

Maddox.

I can sleep some other time. Like, on the way to the next stop, or something. I’m fine. But I’ve already missed enough chances to look at your face while you’ve been here, so I’m making up for lost time~.

You’re dumb. [It’s said with love, though.]

I know that. S’your fault though. 

It’s not my fault at all.

Nah, you made me dumb. Pretty sure. I wasn’t dumb before you. 

Uh-uh. You were already dumb when I met you~.

Why do I put up with this abuse?

‘Cause ya love me.

Too damn much sometimes, I think.

Is there such a thing? 

Dunno. I don’t care if there is though.

See? Dumb~. 

And you’re rude~. [Again, said with love. Any, hey, what’s this?]

[I’d say they’re probably getting far too deep into this for someone who has a flight in probably a few hours. I believe Lucy probably realizes this, because little miss draws back.]

I love you too~. [Alas, Maddox is just looking at her with this doofy, half-grin kinda thing on his face. Lucy raises an eyebrow at the goof, because stop just staring you cute moron.] Earth to Maddox~. Don’t zone out on me~.

[He will oblige this request. But how? There’s a breath out.] Marry me.

[There is a face an awful lot like this one.] Come again, honey?

I want you to marry me. Once you’ve graduated. 

... Is this an official proposal?

Yeah. It is. When ya know, ya know. That’s what they say, right? I just-- I already know. 

An interesting proposal location, the bedroom~.

I’m sure it’s not the first time. 

... Okay. 

Okay? 

Did you expect me to say no? I’ve known for awhile now. -- Since you gave me this. [She holds up that ring as usual.] Me. You. June 2074. Wedding time. Mark it on your calendar~. 

I’ll circle it and everything. 

... Does this make me your fiancee for real now?

Abso-fucking-lutely.

I’ll be sure to keep it from Carmen so I don’t have to be badgered every day.

Fuck Carmen~.

Be nice. She’s gonna be in the wedding.

Eugh.

Deal~.

Yeah, yeah. Fine.

[And they’re probably gonna go in for another kiss, but OOP open goes the door. It’s Corey. Oh, yay.]

Fucking... Yup. Good. Thank fuck. 

Corey, could ya knock?

Could you tell me you’re leaving the party? Jesus, we looked for you two for half an hour last night. After awhile, I just assumed the two of you had made up. And, again, thank fuck. I won’t have to deal with you being a bratty ass anymore. 

Nah, I’m still gonna be a bratty ass. That’s my right as the vocalist.

You’re lucky you’ve got some kind of talent, Bravo. [Maddox gets a prideful, smug grin on his face.] Now, if you two could manage to get up and get dressed, Lucy’s flight is in a couple of hours.

[The return of Maddox’s :C] Skip it.

I have a feeling her mother wouldn’t appreciate that.

[:CCCCC] Fiiiiiiiiiine.

[I’m honestly trying to make this as little set up as possible. SO. What happened after where I left off yesterday is not quite of consequence. Corey took Lucy back to the hotel, Lucy cried a snot-ton, and she managed to stop by the time Maddox rolled back around. And really, for the first time since she’d been there, the room seemed dead quiet, even after he’d returned. Before, any time he came back in, he’d be kind of loud about it. (Perhaps not intentionally. But maybe so?) Not this time, though. She heard the door open, and that was about it. She fell back asleep too easily. 

This morning was filled with the same as yesterday-- too much sight-seeing accompanied by the lady who was always on her phone. How many business calls could one person get a day, honestly? ‘It’s the last show in NYC,’ Corey said. ‘I have to make sure everything’s set at the next venue.’ 

Lucy really didn’t care about the nature of the calls, but dang it if it wasn’t completely unfun to look at tourist attractions with no company. 

It all seemed to last too long, and she seemed all-too bored by it, but the time to return to the venue had finally arrived, and Lucy wasn’t sure what she was going to do when she got there, but she figured it was going to involve sitting in a room backstage again.

And, as if she could tell the future, yup, that’s where Corey sent her. ‘Sorry, kid’, she was told. ‘~Orders are orders, so don’t leave’ with an eye roll thrown in. 

Okay, so, again, Maddox had told Corey to keep Lucy away. If anything, that only served as more proof that he thought things were over. Why wouldn’t he just say it to her? It wasn’t fair to her. (Not that she really thought she deserved any sort of fairness, but ya know.) 

Night falls, and sets start, and Lucy can only hear garbledness, but it’s there. And so, Lucy wonders, if things are as over as they appear to be, why is she following rules set by him? Because maybe she hoped things wouldn’t be too easy for him. It’s not like he would notice her in a crowded room anyway, right? Not being blinded by stage lights, and through a swarm of sweaty people. Ew.

So, our child here, with her adventurous self, decides fuck the law, and she’s gonna go out there. She’s gonna stand out there, and she’s gonna listen to some mind-melting music, and she’s gonna let her sorrows drown in the sounds of dumb electric guitars, and drums that are surprisingly not busting from the intensity with which they are being played. Yay and all that stuff. 

Maddox’s set is already over by the time Lucy is trekking on out, and she automatically assumes he’s gone backstage anyway, so she doesn’t even begin to search through the sea of people for him. She just starts walking through, looking to see if there’s a good corner she could hide in. The answer was a solid ‘no’, because most of them seemed to be occupied, and that left poor Lucy swaying like an idiot somewhere towards the side of the room. 

And she stayed there for a few minutes, letting her brain bleed through the music, and then she’s suddenly being spoken too. She barely noticed because, again, how can anyone hear when this music is being played, you feel me? But, she turns, and it’s some unknown fellow thing that looks like he’s been going far too hard in the pit. AKA, he’s sweaty and gross.]

You look lonely swaying over here by yourself.

[Lucy raises an eyebrow, because did she even ask.] I’m not.

You’re by yourself though. [He says it like he’s had the greatest revelation of all time.]

I’ve noticed.

Want some company, pretty lady~?

No thanks.

Don’t be that way. 

What way? A way with standards? [Lucy ain’t haVING THIS, SON.]

You’re being pretty rude, ya know. I came all the way over here to check on you.

I bet that’s what you were doing. 

You could at least talk for a little while. 

Could I?

Conversation never hurt anyone.

I get the feeling you don’t have conversation on your mind. 

Whatever you’re down for.

I’m down for you fucking off. 

You don’t have to be a bitch about it, you know. 

You didn’t have to come over here either, and yet, here you are. 

Alright, ya know what--... 

[Maybe he was starting to step into her space, but before Lucy knows it, there’s someone in between sweaty guy and herself. Guess who that someone is? Nope, it’s not Corey.]

Back off, meathead.

And who the hell are you? 

The guy who was on stage ten minutes ago. Fuck off. 

You think you can order me around just ‘cause you’re ~with the band?

I think I can order you to do whatever the hell I want to. 

White knight over here saving random concert chicks, I see. 

She’s not a random concert chick, asshat. She’s my girlfriend. Now back the hell off before I get security to kick you out.

[The guy raises his hands like ‘wHATEV’, and he backs off. Lucy is looking at him, because did he just refer to her as his girlfriend????? whAT? Maddox looks at Lucy like she’s in trouble tbh, and he starts pushing her back towards backstage by the shoulder without a word.

Once back there, Lucy is looking at him like ‘df’, and she’s super confused, even. He’s shut them both in the same room. What? wHAT?]

-- Girlfriend?

[Maddox just looks up at her, and he does a bit of a sigh, and, tbh, he ignores that.] I told Corey to keep you back here.

I didn’t listen.

Damn it, Lucy. I had a reason for that.

I know. I get it. You don’t want to see me. 

I don’t want you surrounded by a bunch of wasted punk assholes. That’s what I don’t want.

Why do you care what happens to me?

[He gives her this look that says ‘how is that even a question?’.] Nothing’s happening to you on my watch, alright?

[Okay, so she’s gonna mention the gf word again.] -- Why did you tell that guy I’m your girlfriend?

[Another deeper sigh comes from the boy.] Can we-- Can we talk about this at the hotel please?

Are you gonna to actually talk when we get there?

Fu- Yes, I am. That’s why I’m asking.

Then, fine...  

Fine. 

[And so, out the room they are going now. And are they actually going to ride to the hotel in the same car? Bet. Are they going to be completely silent in said car ride? Bet. Are there going to be no words spoken even walking up to the hotel room and getting in there. Bet. Did they not even tell Corey they were leaving? BET. 

In they go, and down on the couch goes our Maddox, but Lucy takes a seat on the bed that’s just slightly across from where Maddox is, yup. They’re sitting on their beds. Mhm. 

She looks at him, and she waits for him to say something first, but tbh, he’s just staring at his lap. Come on, my boy, you’ve had all car ride to stare at your lap. Say something.]

I’m still here, you know...

I know, okay?? Just--... [A huff, and a look up to her.] I’m having trouble thinking about what to say. 

You could start with what I asked you before...

I called you my girlfriend because... despite-- everything... I-- I’d find it hard to call you anything but.

Does-- that mean...?

[A sniff even.] We-We need to talk about this. Because there are a few things that I want to know. 

... Like what?

For starters... this guy’s name, age, birthday, address and social so I can look him up and beat the shit out of him.

[Breathy, humorless laugh #753.] I don’t think I know all of that.

I hope you know his name, at least. 

... Hayden. 

[Does his lip curl? Yup. How is it that that name sounds so close to ‘JORDAN’?] Where’d you meet him?

The mall. He-- took my phone and put his number in it. [An eye roll.]

[A jaw clench.] Did he know about me? [A nod from Lucy.] Fucking--...

I wasn’t gonna do anything with the number. Really. I was gonna forget all about it, but... everybody got so... busy. And I needed someone to talk to. It was a stupid thing to do. I know.

If you’d just told me that you felt that way, rather than pretending like you were fine, I would’ve done something about it, you know. I would’ve told everyone to fuck off, and said screw it to the damn meetings. You kept insisting you were fine. Why did you do that??

I didn’t want you to feel bad. 

Yeah, well, I’ve felt pretty fucking terrible the past couple of days, so lot of good that did.

... Do you hate me? I already told you I’d understand if you did.

Lucy... You’re infuriating. You’re compulsive, and you don’t think shit through, and you have a tendency to be selfish as hell. You seem like you’ve picked up all of my worst damn traits, and you’ve learned the other half of the shit you do from one of the shittiest people in the world. But, fuck, I could search my whole damn life, and I’d never be able to find anyone who makes me feel the way you make me feel. And none of that goes back to hate.

And what does that mean??? 

It means that... I love you. Come what fucking may, right? 

So--...

But, damn it all, Lucy, I have to know that I can trust you. I have to know that this shit isn’t gonna happen again just because you’re lonely. Because this tour isn’t gonna be the last one, and if I have to think that this is gonna happen every time I’m away--...

It won’t. I swear. 

I don’t want to be worried that you’re kissing people, or who knows what else, just because you’re lonely. Because... I never thought that shit was possible-- being, ya know, faithful. But being faithful to you is the easiest thing I’ve ever had to do. I need you to tell me... promise me, even, that it’s not too hard for you. 

It’s not. I swear. It was one stupid mistake, and it’s never gonna happen again. I’ve never hated myself more than these past few days. I just want us to be able to start over-- I want to forget it ever happened. I-I can do that, if you can do that.

[Sigh #762. He stands from the couch, and he grabs her hand and pulls her to stand in front of him.] I definitely want to. Believe me.

If I have to prove every day that you don’t have to worry about me-- that you can trust me, I’ll do that, Maddox. I will. Just don’t make me have to lose this. Please. 

... Tell me you promise. 

I promise, Maddox. You’re the only person I’ve ever loved, and I will never put what we have in jeopardy ever again. I mean that.

[There’s another pang in his chest. Another lil twinge. And maybe the whole time since he’s grabbed her hand, he’s been looking at that lil ring right there, and contemplating it, and contemplating the Moulin Rouge soundtrack, and ~how wonderfulll life is~~~, and just how ~miiiiiserable life had been thinking that he might end up losing her... It wasn’t something he wanted to be reality for him. He didn’t want life to be like it was before her. He didn’t want to be who he was before he loved her. Because she gave him a reason to be a better fucking person, and that was just one thing in a list of many things why he loved Lucy Warner. 

So, he takes one more step forward, and he rests his forehead on her forehead, and tbh, he’s probably finally had one tear escape his eyeballs that had been misty all throughout the weekend. And, God, you just couldn’t stop Lucy, as it had been throughout the weekend. 

And so, the forehead-resting very quickly becomes a big hug, and they’re probably squeezing the dang life out of each other, because it’d been far too long since they’d been able to hold each other like this, and perhaps they were re-storing the feeling to memory.]

I’m so sorry.

I know-- I know. I’m-- I forgive you.

And I love you.

Lucy Warner, I love you too.

[For the first real time since forever ago-- here we go. God bless.]

[And it’s stupid full of the love, bro. Because, lbr, that kiss on her first day didn’t count, because she could hardly kiss him back for all the guilt eating her alive. But here, now, it was real. Too real, even, and it’s TOO BEAUTIFUL, AND I’M CRYING. 

They stay that way, RE-STORING MORE MEMORIES, until the boy pulls back, and he’s breathless, ya know, because they had probably been in that emBRACE for a long time, and, well, no breathing. 

But, there’s a heavily-lidded look to Lucy, and there’s a couple of breaths in even before he speaks, but here he does now.]

You’re not tired, are you?

[Lucy raises an eyebrow in confusion.] No?

[A nod.] Good, because we’ve wasted a shit-ton of time already.

[And then he’s back on her, and THIS HAPPENS EVEN.]

[Which SHOCKS Lucy, because WHEN HAS HE EVER? She’s too into it, however. Way too into it. She’s gotta say something about it. Off she goes.]

Since when are you able to do this??

Carrying sound equipment for a month does a body good.

Mm, yeah. I have a feeling it’s gonna do my body good too.

You bet.

[TO THE BED.]

You know how you said you’re willing to forget any of that shit ever happened?

Mmmm-hm.

I’m gonna make sure of that. It’ll be like that little shit never existed. What was his name? 

Who the hell cares?

Right answer.