redefine | calum hood

twenty nine

Twenty Nine

Maddie

"Maddie, hey," Iris smiled widely as I came up to my locker. "You look beautiful today," she grinned at my outfit, which was just a pair of leggings and Calum's crewneck.

"I do?" I questioned, looking down at my outfit in confusion.

"Well, I think you always look beautiful," she winked, making my face turn red.

"Oh, thanks, you look pretty too," I said, looking down. I meant it though, she always dressed nicely. I noticed she wore lots of skirts and sweaters, something I didn't have enough confidence to wear.

"Thanks," she grinned, spinning around. I giggled at her reaction and opened my locker, putting my lunch in and switching my books around. "So I remember you saying you wanted to play lacrosse, and I'm sure if we talk with the coach we can get you on the team,"

"Oh, uh, I don't think I'm ready for that," I rubbed the back of my neck. Ashton had mentioned him being worried about my body and how weak it was. According to him I'm still recovering from everything, and I barely had enough energy for school a day.

"Oh," Iris frowned. "That's a shame,"

"Maybe next year though," I said and she nodded.

"Can I ask why?" she asked.

"Just a lot with my body and trying to recover from stuff," I vaguely answered.

"I'm sorry, I shouldn't have asked. I just wanted to make sure you're ok," she quickly apologized.

"Don't be sorry, it's ok, I promise," I reassured her and she nodded. "So, first period?" I asked with a smile.

"Yeah," Iris nodded and we walked off.

"My family said you can come over this weekend if you'd like," I told her and she nodded with a smile.

"I'd love to," she chirped.

"Great, I have to find ideas for my room," I said.

"Lucky for you I have a great eye for decor," she said, making me giggle.

"Guys, wait up," I turned around to see Jasper running over, so we slowed down as he pushed his way through the crowd. "How's it going?"

"Alright, how are you?" I asked back politely.

"I'm good," he smiled. "So Mad, have you ever dated anyone?" he asked. I saw Iris' eyes widen as she looked at him with a harsh glare.

"No, I haven't," I shook my head.

"Well, do you like anyone?" he asked and I thought for a moment.

"Uh, I'm not really sure," I admitted and he nodded.

"Cool, I'll catch you guys at lunch," he rushed off.

"I'm so sorry about him, he's an idiot," Iris frantically apologized, making me giggle.

"It's ok, don't worry,"

"He's just an idiot, a real idiot," she mumbled.

"It's ok, don't worry about it," I promised and she nodded.

The school day went by slowly, but the evening was very busy. We were still packing before the movers came. I was helping Ashton pack up the garage, which I hated. I wasn't a fan of working in the garage, but it needed to get done so I did it. My mind stayed on Iris though, how she made me feel. "Mad," Ashton snapped his fingers, making my head spin to look at him. "You've been holding that bag for five minutes now, staring off into space," he chuckled.

"Can I ask you a question?" I asked.

"Of course," he nodded, sitting down on one of the boxes, followed by me sitting down across from him. "What's on your mind, kiddo?"

"How do you know if you like someone?" I asked.

"Well, they make you feel different I guess," he shrugged. "It really depends on the person. What are you feeling?"

"Well," I sighed, being careful of my wording, "my stomach has butterflies, my face turns red, my heart beats really quickly, and I get-" I started.

"Sweaty hands?" he asked.

I nodded, "Major sweaty hands," I clarified, making him laugh.

"You have a crush, and that's normal. You're a teenager, you'll get crushes and act like a fool. Don't beat yourself up about it," he smiled. "We all do stupid things when we have crushes,"

"But what ido you do if they don't like you back?"
"There will be plenty of those, but you'll get through it. Just lean on the people around you to help you through it," he told me.

"I guess," I sighed.

"Remember, you're fourteen, you're not supposed to be able to understand all of these feelings. It's ok that you're confused right now," he chuckled and I nodded.

"Can we keep this between us?" I asked. "I don't really want anyone else to know," I admitted.

"Whatever you tell me will stay between us, I promise," he reassured me and I nodded.