//𝘈𝘯𝘰𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘵𝘺 𝘥𝘢𝘺𝘴 𝘐'𝘮 𝘭𝘰𝘴𝘵 𝘢𝘵 𝘴𝘦𝘢, 𝘐'𝘮 𝘫𝘶𝘴𝘵 𝘨𝘰𝘯𝘯𝘢 𝘴𝘸𝘪𝘮 𝘶𝘯𝘵𝘪𝘭 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘭𝘰𝘷𝘦 𝘮𝘦.//
Maddison Conklin has always loved Jeremiah Fisher, but she's in no hurry to tell him. But when her sister Isabel f...
I was downstairs in the kitchen, waiting for Belly to come down. Mom had brought her the dress she actually liked the other day.
When she finally did come down, I could tell she was over the moon about the dress.
Mom, however got surprisingly emotional. I smiled. Belly and her relationship always seemed to be all over the place.
After mom released Belly from her hug, I asked her, "Can we talk?"
Belly looked at me and nodded.
I followed her up to her room.
"First off, be careful around the rest of the girls today. We went skinny dipping last night. Nicole saw a text I got from Conrad, jumped to conclusions, got jealous and then stole my clothes when I was in the water," I told her.
"No way."
"Yeah. Also, what's going on with you and Conrad and Jeremiah?"
"Umm, I'm going with Jeremiah to the ball. I'm over Conrad."
I raised my eyebrows, "You're over Conrad?" She nodded.
"No, you're not." She frowned.
"You're not over him. I know you. And I know you're still hoping for a miracle. Some far-fetched way in which you would end up dating. You're still thinking stuff like 'if things were different', or 'if I acted sooner', or something like that. That's not called getting over someone."
She looked away. "But I like Jeremiah. He treats me well, he shows up, he doesn't play games. It's just easy," she said.
I frowned. Easy was not what I would call it.
"Easy shouldn't be what you're looking for," I said. "Look, who you take to the ball isn't some indication of who you truly love or something. Take Jeremiah to the ball, you could decide later. Its not like you're dating." I turned to walk to the door.
"Actually, we sort of are. Me and Jeremiah," she said.
"Oh," I said, walking out without turning back.
I ran to my room and closed the door. Sinking to the floor, I collected my thoughts.
She was still confused. But I was sure Conrad was the guy for her. Or maybe I hoped, for his sake and mine.
Maybe I should tell Jeremiah how I feel.
No, that wouldn't change anything. Nothing was really in his control. I would wait for Belly to decide. And if she chose Jeremiah, I would let go of him. Be happy for them.
*****
I walked into the kitchen. Conrad was sitting at the table looking all sad.
"What's up?" I whispered to him, conscious of Jeremiah by the sofa.
"I got muffins for her. She didn't eat them," he said.
"Do you mind if I have them?" I asked.
He rolled his eyes. "Have at it."
Steven walked in then. I'd sort of been avoiding him since the incident.
He walked up to Jeremiah though. "You couldn't bother to tell me you were dating my sister?" he accused. I coughed. "Belly, I mean," he corrected.
Jeremiah's eyes fleeted to me and then back to Steven. "Belly told you?"
"No, I just saw you guys kissing." I clenched my jaw.
"You're not gonna beat me up, are you?" Jeremiah asked. I would love to beat up Steven just then. There was no need to do this right now.
"I'm really thinking about it," Steven said.
"Look, I really like her," Jeremiah said.
"Dude, you like a lot of people."
"Have you seen me hooking up with anyone this summer?"
"Yeah, I saw you with that guy at Nicole's party."
"Yeah, but that was like a month ago," Jeremiah defended. "Listen, Steven, I would never do anything to ever hurt her. C'mon, it's Belly."
"Fine, but still should've told me," Steven conceded.
"I should've, I'm sorry."
I cleared my throat.
"Umm Stevey? Keep an eye on Belly tonight," I said. "Nicole might sabotage her or something. I'll tell Shayla too."
He frowned, "Why would Nicole sabotage her?" I explained what had happened last night.
He looked away. I could tell he wanted to laugh. I flipped him off.
"Alright I'll look out for her," he laughed.
"And I'll be right by her side, Madi. Don't worry," Jeremiah said.
I looked at him, but didn't react.
*****
I walked down the stairs to where everyone was waiting, all dressed up. Except Jeremiah and Steven of course, they would get dressed later.
"Ready to go?" I asked everyone.
Susannah gasped. "What?" I asked, alarmed.
"You look beautiful," she said. I rolled my eyes, but smiled. I really did love how I looked in this dress.
Looking at Susannah though, I felt guilty. She was sick. That's what I should've been upset over, not some stupid boy drama.
I should be spending every moment I can with her.
I hugged her tight. "You look great," I tell her. "You too, mom. Conrad, you've gotta try harder," I grinned at him.
He laughed, "Don't think I can compete with you girls anyways," he said, eyes twinkling. "C'mon, let's go."
