Bad Boys Do Cry

50: Define Everybody

Am I having a heart attack? Yes.

No. Maybe? I dunno. But my heart is definitely beating faster and harder than medically acceptable. My eyes are bulging out of their sockets, not in a creepy way. My jaw might as well be halfway to China with how low it dropped. I must be going deaf because Maddy did not just call me out like that.

"No," I sputter out in a whisper.

Maddy sets her water down and crosses her arms. She gives me a pointed glare with her eyebrow raised. There's no escape to this conversation, no way out. I try my best to look innocent and unbothered, but she can see right through me. Hell, a baby could tell I'm lying. I'm rubbing my hands together and trying not to catch her eyes.

Maddy's hands drop and go to the counter between us, propping herself up. She smiles to me, knowing she's close to pulling the truth out of me.

"Hazel, you're a terrible liar."

"Fine," I sigh, staring at my suddenly very interesting water bottle, "I like Oliver Grey."

Maddy stands up straight again, a proud smile on her face. I cross my arms, now staring at the suddenly very interesting marble counter. I feel a pair of arms pull me into a hug. I relax and hug Maddy back. My short stature makes me feel so small compared to her. She's at least four inches taller than me, and thankfully she's not wearing heels like on New Year's.

"How'd you know?" I ask her when we let go of each other.

"Oh, easy, you were looking at him the whole time Grayson was telling the story. Ryder and I thought it was hilarious, cute, but hilarious," She tells me, "Oh, and you guys cuddle a lot, never seen Oliver as one to cuddle."

I nod as I take in her words. Oliver and I had been in our normal cuddling position. The one where he lifts an arm up for me and I fit into place against his body, by legs falling on top of his and my head right in the nook between his shoulder and his chest.

Thinking back, I was staring at Oliver's profile the whole time. He'd look over every time Grayson would reveal something crazy I did. He'd give my arm a light squeeze whenever I'd bash Grayson. And every time Grayson said my name, I could see Oliver's eyes snap, somehow giving more of his attention to the story.

"So, you and Ryder know?"

Maddy nods, "And so does everybody else."

My eyes go wide for the second time today, "Define everybody."

Maddy smiles to me and walks back to the other side of the counter where her water bottle was left all alone.

"Grayson definitely knows something. What that something is, I don't know, but definitely something."

I give her a small nod. Grabbing my water, I take a long swig. All this information making me feel dehydrated. Too many emotions in too little time. I thought girl talk was supposed to be more fun than having mini heart attacks back to back.

"You wanna go back? They're gonna be wondering what we're doing if we take too long," Maddy gives me a little humorous smile.

"In a sec, I need to go back to being normal."

Maddy laughs, "Normal is overrated."

After a couple more minutes, where Maddy tells me the story of how she met Ryder, we go back to rejoin the group of boys. They're arguing about something when we get back, but fall silent as they see the estrogen in the house makes its way back. Oliver catches my eyes, lifting his arm up for me. I smile and grab his hand, intertwining our fingers, as I sit myself down.

"What happened?" Oliver whispers to me.

I turn to face him and give him a small, innocent smile, "Girl talk."