it’s been a real slice

Don't worry, baby, I'll make sure this is all you can think about afterwards. Meg's words made a shiver run up Maddox's spine that quickly turned into an electric feeling of desire. The way she had called him baby all but made him drop to his knees for her. Thoughts of this being their goodbye were already fleeting away because now all he could think of was the way she was so certain this night is all that would be on his mind. She was right. Maddox was already falling victim to her classic trap she had laid out for him. So, when she demanded he open the door after she had fished the keys out of his pocket, which emitted a whine from his lips as she had grabbed his throbbing bulge, he willingly took them from her hand and reached behind her to unlock the door. Once inside Maddox's lips were needily on Meg's again. He pushed here against the wall, hands travelling up and down her body until they rested on her hips. She was intoxicating. She always had been. Maddox was never going to be able to break the spell she had on him. He wasn't entirely sure he wanted to.

the sight of maddox on his knees was not unfamiliar to meg, but it still always brought a satisfied hum to her lips. she could do this; no-talking, lust controlled, no complications. of course she never really got the full package with him, but he's always been a bit of a lover boy. her hands tangled in his air as her hips moved with his tongue, fingernails digging deep into his locks and gripping tight. every time she felt herself getting lost in the feeling, her thoughts fading, he brought her back and it was almost some form of cruel torture. that was his punishment for her; he wanted her to feel some type of way towards him, towards the fact that he understood her body in ways a lot of people did not. he wanted to be special, to mean something, and she just couldn't let that happen. meaning something to meg was a death sentence and she already cared too much to let that be his fate.

Maddox's feet instantaneously began to follow the direction Meg walked towards the moment she took a step. The shiver that had run down his spine from her words about a 'thorough reunion' ran back up the minute her hand had run down his chest. Despite the hair standing on the back of his neck and the throbbing against black denim he didn't take the time to recover as he followed. He really was like a lovesick puppy who had just bonded to its owner the way he followed her so quickly and closely behind. He didn't say much on the walk, almost on auto-pilot mode as he walked, eyes wandering to her ass every now and then as they walked.

When they reached his front door and she turned around to look at him his instinct to grab his keys was suddenly gone. Instead, Maddox rose a brow before closing the space between their bodies and placing a hand on the door above her head as he leaned down. A smirk crossed over his features and his free hand ran along her thigh until his hand was in the right position to being her leg up around his waist. "If you're in such a rush just tell me. You have somewhere better to be? I thought we had all night," he said just above her whisper into her ear. His free hand moved from the door to bring her other leg up around him.

Was he so foolish that he would toss everything he'd just said to her aside for the chance to taste or lips and get intoxicated from the scent of her perfume one last time? He sure the fuck was and Maddox knew he didn't need to speak the words to confirm it's true. Thoughts of missing her transformed into ones of kissing her neck and running his hands up her thighs, among explicit ideas of what he desired to do with her. "Provoke me? Is that what your goal is here?" He took a step towards her and looked down at her. If provoking is what she wanted he could play along just fine. "Alright, fine. Do you want me to say you're making me hot and bothered? Because you are. I can admit I'd take the chance to fuck you for a night." Maybe it would be the last night, he thought to himself, and he this could be his goodbye to her that he thought he needed.

His words rang true with how flushed he already was for her. His heart was pounding so hard he felt it would burst from his chest. Even his already warmer than average temperature was rising because he was both aggravated from her words and felt lust seeping into every cell of his body. Both things were her fault, he thought to himself. He shouldn't be this fucking turned on right now by her. She was supposed to be a lost memory yet there they were, standing face to face as Maddox threw away every ounce of rationality he had. His impulsiveness would be the death of him someday. Without thinking he took the half step left towards her until he was nearly touching her. He could smell her perfume and it nearly made him weak at the knees. He really always had been putty in her hand. He would have done anything for her at one point, and it was arguable that he would still.

His arm went around her waist and he leaned down slightly. There was no denying he was only agreed being his emotions had gotten the better of him. "Alright then, let's go. We don't have to make this an all night thing if you don't want. I think you'd prefer that." He could be wrong. He was wrong about a lot of things. He pulled her closer and brushed his lips against hers, lightly biting down on her lower lip and tugging it with his teeth as he looked her in the eyes. Maddox then pulled away suddenly, arm dropping from her waist. "Unless you have all night, in which case I think we could find plenty of ways to pass the time."

"Who knows? It's been a while. Gotta make sure we have a thorough reunion." She dragged a hand down his chest before turning to walk towards the familiar path to his place. She's for sure been there enough times to know her way from here. Turning back to look at him once she gave him a wink before continuing, knowing full well he was following her. Whether he was pissed at himself or not for giving into her, he always followed. Some would find that charming and endearing and somewhere deep down, Meg did, but she wasn't going to let that show. She could never let it show that while she knew he wasn't going to reject her, she couldn't have handled it if he did.

When they arrived to his place she leaned against the door, turning to look at him. They've done this song and dance so many times she was sure she could predict his next moves. All there really was to predict was the fact that he was going to try to be unpredictable. He was going to try and show her that there was no one else like him, that he was the only one who could satisfy her urges, and all that jazz. He was both right and wrong, but the outcome was the same no matter what. He could never be hers and she could never fully be his. "Are you gonna let me in, hothead?"

"Oh no, no, thank you." Evelyn had no idea how, but there had been some kind of miscommunication between herself and the person sitting next to her at the wine bar - one that included them believing they were friends and the reality in which they absolutely were not. "I really have no interest in seeing a picture of your niece or cat or whatever Betty is." She cringed at the thought of it, making eye contact with someone else who could hopefully intervene or would make it onto her shit list for leaving her in this predicament.

Her words shouldn't have caught him off guard. He shouldn't be surprised by the way she was acting with flirtatious insinuations. Maddox knew Meg so well like she had been a routine he had done every morning for his whole existence. In a way she had been a routine. It was routine to tell her good morning and try and fix the mess they'd made after an argument later the same day. It felt like in the end that the latter was their only routine. Maddox gazed into her eyes, so vacant that it almost scared him. "There's no rush," he tried to play off coolly as he brought the cigarette to his lips to inhale again. He almost choked on the cigarette at the mention of him leaving her breathless. "Trust me, buttercup, you and I both know I've done a lot more than leave you breathless," he said after he exhaled the smoke that he had nearly choked on moments prior.

Meg had once been Maddox's starlight, a little nickname he'd ended up adopting to use for her. She had brought light to the darkness around him despite how she viewed herself. Even now she somehow ignited a feeling within him that made him feel like they were just talking as they once did. She really brought out light in the darkest of moments. "Of course I'm tired of pretending," he said in an almost exhausted tone. He wasn't one to normally give in so quickly. He wasn't even really drunk like he had been last time they crossed paths at Wonderland. Maybe a little buzzed, but hardly enough to be considered liquid courage. "I only really have because I thought that's what you'd prefer. I've only ever done anything that involved the two of us because I thought it was what you wanted."

His words had bit him in the ass. What she said was true though; there really weren't any strangers in Evermore. Maddox may not have known the whole town by name but he certainly did see enough of the same faces that it became dull and depressing. "Even if I was hoping to see you tonight what's your goal here, Megara? Throw it in my face and piss me off? Or do you have some other ulterior motive." Or maybe you feel the longing I have for so long. Was he a big enough of a fool to say that though? It was an uphill battle that he'd lost the moment he said, "or maybe you're just too afraid to admit you miss me too. Not just missing things or how they were. But...me. Do you really miss memories of us screaming in each other's faces or do you just only remember the heated make-up sex afterwards?" But, god, was it some of the best sex he'd ever had. Meg had been a lot of the best he had ever had.

For someone who was so hellbent on getting out of the damned town he sure had a hard time letting go of her. He should have never got hooked on her, he had told himself. He should have never fell for her spell. Did he regret it though? Not a damn bit. If anything he regretted how he treated her and that he should have done better. He had a temper, that much was true, but she had brought him to levels of anger he didn't know he was capable of feeling. At the end of it all though she'd meant everything to him. She really was his starlight. Even now, his heart aching at the sight of her and cigarette long forgotten about because his thoughts were entranced by her, she still meant so much. Maddox tossed the cigarette into the street after he realized the fire in it had died out. He didn't even want to relight it and finish it at this point. It wasn't like he technically had a physical lighter and he wasn't about to ask her for one to relight it. He didn't even care. His emotions were getting the best of him and it was starting to piss him off. He masked his emotions with anger most of the time. It seemed like it was the only emotion he knew sometimes.

"Maybe the best dynamic isn't that at all," he said, trying to seem calm despite his tensed shoulders and the fingernails digging into his palms so he could focus on something other than the explosive thoughts he wanted to yell out. "Maybe it's admitting we're both dickheads that hurt each other and move on. Isn't that what you want? I don't know what pot you're trying to stir here, but...but...I don't know." His expression changed into visible discomfort and hurt as he looked away from her. "Do you just want to hear me say that I miss you? Because I do. I always do. I just have to block you out of my mind. I don't think you would have went out of your way to talk to me tonight if you didn't still give a shit." He glanced back at her, catching her eyes out of the corners of his. "Tell me right now that you don't miss more than just the dynamic we had. Tell me you miss me too."

"Miss you? Didn't I already said I did? There's nothing to admit. I can admit that I miss the fun we used to have. If that's not enough for you, sweetie, well, I'm sorry to say that's all it is." She wasn't going to rehash the part she played in messing him up or messing herself up further. It was pretty black and white. It was clear as anything. The two of them were a toxic match made in hell and that was why she wasn't seeking more than a warm body for the night. As much as she hated to admit it, she was someone who both enjoyed the days of solitude and was desperate for a temporary connection. She shouldn't be able to have it both ways, but she managed just fine.

"I'm talking to you now because you look as good as the day I left you and I think you're easy to provoke enough to have a good night. If you really want to waste that chance with me, I'm more than capable of finding someone different." Maybe that increased her risks of meeting some stupid guy who couldn't deliver in the ways that mattered, but it was what it was. Life was a gamble and Meg tended to always come out on the unlucky side. It didn't mean she wasn't still going to try and gamble with fate when the moment came. Pushing off from the wall she sighed as if she was already ready to move on. She wasn't, but maybe Maddox would stop brooding faster if he thought she was going to go.

"Obviously, the ball in your court, hot shot," she said with a smirk. "Either take me or don't. You're not going to get a tearful confession or proclamation of passion. But you'll get something better, even if it's only a one night only thing."

Maddox wasn't sure how he ended up at Wonderland or what had brought him there. Well, he did, but he was ignoring the fact of the matter. On top of him just being there he had come alone. Why the hell would he do this to himself, he had thought after having a few drinks at the bar. He tossed some cash on the bar before exiting, a cigarette already in his mouth by the time he stepped out of the door. He stepped to the side to light it and inhaled deeply as he took the first drag off of it. When he turned around and exhaled he saw her approaching. He had seen her working and had hoped he'd disappeared quick enough that she hadn't noticed him.

Being face to face with Megara after the last time they spoke, which had been an unpleasant experience all around, left an uneasy feeling in his stomach. Maybe he hadn't been ready to talk to her again which only left him more puzzled as to why he so desperately felt he needed to see her again. There was still a part of him that wanted her to be okay, but when his mind would wander back to memories of them screaming at each other during a heated an argument that usually left him with regret by the next morning. There were good times. There were so many good times. And in that moment as he stared at her, cigarette burning between his fingers, he could only remember the good ones. The way she batted her lashes at him had all but made him collapse from the way his legs suddenly seemed to become gelatin. He really did miss her and her words made it evident that it was becoming more clear as to why he came back.

Maddox flicked the ash off of his cigarette before bringing it back to his lips and inhaling. "There's only so many places to go in this town," he stated as he exhaled. "I figured by now we could just ignore each other and move on with our lives, whether or not we're in the same place." He shrugged, trying to play off as nonchalant. "And for the record, I never said I hated seeing you." Not that he could recall, at least. He had been beyond drunk the night they had spoke and Maddox only remembered bits and pieces of their conversation. Maybe that was for the best. He hoped it was. His expression had mostly stayed the same. He was trying to act like her presence didn't bother him and there wasn't a throbbing ache in his chest whenever he saw her. He also knew he was likely failing miserably. He was still angry though, there was no denying that. He was angry at so much but mostly at himself for giving up. Looking back on the past had no use though and Maddox knew he should take his own advice and act like she doesn't exist. Showing up at her job doesn't really help with that though. The whole night was a mistake, he thought, and he needed a way out before he got too caught up on the way she looked or lost in her eyes. He'd avoided eye contact thus far but he had no control as his eyes went to gaze into hers at this point. "I was just leaving anyways. Don't waste your breath on me."

"What's the rush?" she asked, leaning against the wall as she studied him. "I'm not afraid to lose a little breath. I think you know better than most how to leave me breathless." She had forgotten about the cigarette she was going to get herself. She had made her mind up and the only thing that was going to stop her was him outright rejecting her. She wouldn't push him if he didn't want anything to do with her in the moment.

"Do you ever get tired of pretending that you don't....miss things sometimes? We fought a lot...but we made up a lot too. Sometimes I think that's the best dynamic to have. A lot easier than meeting some stranger and not knowing what to expect....though, like you said there aren't that many strangers in Evermore anymore." Meg didn't know a lot of people in town because she didn't want to. It was a waste of time to put herself out there for those who couldn't afford to stay around her anyways. Bad things always happened when she cared too hard....so she had to care less. Especially around the ones who matter. Case and point...Maddox. "I think a part of you was hoping to run into me tonight. Even if you don't want to admit it."

His head was spinning and Megara's words echoing against the four walls didn't help the matter. He could get up, walk right past her, then head straight through the door. Instead though he didn't. He couldn't. Not when she was just arms length away, pouring herself a drink. His eyes followed her as she moved across the room but he couldn't quite focus. Not when there was a horrible longing feeling in his chest. She was so close and yet...untouchable. She was unobtainable in every sense of the word and as much as he'd longed for her touch in the past there was still the small craving to be close enough to feel her soft skin and the scent of her perfume. He couldn't let those thoughts consume him though. He was better than that. It was her that made him swear off relationships all together, knowing now what it was like to get close to someone only for them to obliterate his soul. He was bitter and he had every right to be, or so he believed.

"We both know how this is going to end. In an argument, like it always has. I'm wasting your time more than you're wasting mine. You're the one that was probably expecting some scumbag that's a bit too handsy but has a pocket full of cash that you don't give a fuck where it came from." His words were slurred and angry. It was almost like he didn't know how to treat her other than aggressively. His light the flame and would likely add fuel to the fire. He was the one that bit first this time. The idea of drinking with a ghost was almost laughable. Meg wasn't a ghost. No, she was something far worse and scarier. Maddox could deal with phantoms but Megara crossed into the barrier of banshee. She was a walking bad omen and that almost hurt Maddox more than seeing her.

"I'm not afraid," he scoffed. "Maybe you are. I don't know. I don't care." He crossed his arms across his chest and leaned back into the couch he was sat on. His head kept spinning and he wasn't sure what else to say. He should have wanted to leave the room, though Meg could have walked out as soon as she'd seen him. Yet, she hadn't. "What's the point anyways? You're wasting your time talking to me. You should have walked out that door the minute you saw me. You didn't though...why?"

"Probably the same reason you didn't walk out the door the moment you realized who was hired to keep you entertained," she said with a shrug. Finishing her drink she quickly made work on fixing herself another. Maybe the burn of the drink would make her keep her mouth shut a little better...but probably not. "You are the one that sound scared, though. Just because you're reacting with that good old anger and bitterness at my existence doesn't mean I don't know you." She dared to take a step closer to his seat, even sit near him a little bit. He looked too good. It was not something she should even be thinking about but all she could stare at were the way his muscles fit in that shirt. "Talking to you is never a waste of time. In all honesty, it can even be enjoyable sometimes."