The Secret (Boston's Best 1)

Chapter Forty-Three

Matt

"Matt pass!"

I throw the ball over to Alex and he scores the final touchdown of this game because we are all heaving and out of breath by now.

I think we've been playing for an hour now. Alex, Nick, and Maddie were on my team and Darius, Felix, Penelope, and Evelyn were on the other team.

Brooke wore heels to have a picnic in the park so she opted out of the game.

Today –Senior Skip Day, has actually been the most fun I've had in a while. When Alex and I first arrived only Brooke and Pen were here.

They found a semi-secluded part of Boston Common for us to chill at for the day. They had two picnic tables set up with tablecloths and paper plates, cups, and cutlery.

And a foldable table that's covered in food and cakes that Brooke made and everything else that we all brought –just store-bought things because I don't think any of us really know how to cook.

There was also a box of blankets and foldable chairs and a few balls.

Props to Brooke though, because if she didn't plan all of this then I most definitely would have just stayed in bed watching television or playing video games all day.

"What's the score, darlin'?" Darius asks Brooke.

She looks up from her seat where she's been filing her nails. "4-6 to your team and 7-4 to Matt's."

Alex runs around screaming like a mad person and lifts Maddie in the air who's also screaming and laughing. Nick and I 'bro hug' as Maddie would call it.

I know I should probably be jealous of how close Mads and Alex are and how he can do things like throw her in the air and peck her head in public and I can't. But surprisingly I'm not.

Maybe it's because I know at the end of the day it will be me that she FaceTimes while she's getting ready for bed, and it'll be me that's allowed to kiss her. No matter how private she wants it to be for now, she's still mine and I'm still hers.

Plus that's just Alex's personality, if he wanted to make a move on her he would've done it weeks ago and dumped her by now. He isn't exactly a relationship type of guy, more like a been there done that.

Which isn't a bad thing like he always tells his partners that he doesn't do exclusive. I think he's been seeing this guy Ben, I think, who just moved to West Roxbury. I bet that's over by next week, maximum.

I grab a bottle of water and sit down on one of the chairs, they're quite comfortable for foldable chairs to be fair.

I just watch everyone who isn't dying running around playing a game of soccer and of course my focus lands on Maddie. She's just wearing leggings and an oversized sweatshirt and white sneakers and her hair is pulled back in a messy ponytail but she is still the most beautiful person here.

After god knows how long staring I hear someone clear their throat from beside me and I turn my head and see Evelyn looking at me with their eyebrows raised.

"What?" I ask.

They shrug, "Nothing." They stand up, "I'll leave you to it."

I feel like I just got caught doing something that I shouldn't. Even though I was just admiring my girlfriend, and even if Ev doesn't know we're together it just looked like I was looking around at everyone.

Hours later, it is now four in the afternoon and the girls and Evelyn have taken residence on the blankets gossiping and have sent us boys on a run to the store to get drinks and some pizza.

Nick and Felix went to get the pizzas and Alex, D, and I are now in a 7-Eleven buying basically everything we can see.

Alex has two six packs of beer, some candy, a pack of gum, and a pack of cigarettes.

Darius has Cheetos, Flaming Hot Takis, Doritos, M&M's, and a few bars of chocolate.

I was in charge of the drinks, so Pepsi for Maddie, Darius, and me, Dr Pepper for Felix and Evelyn, 7Up for Brooke, Coke for Nick, and Mountain Dew for Alex and Penelope.

I had to write it down because these people are picky as hell and I'd probably be burned at the stake if I came back with the wrong things.

We all pay separately and then walk down the street to Sal's Pizzeria when Nick and Felix went.

We sit down and Darius turns around to me, "So, what's going on with you and Maddie?"

I nearly choke on my own saliva and I just hope I keep my face in a neutral expression. "What are you talking about? Nothing's going on between us. We're just friends."

"No." Alex butts in, "Me and her and just friends, you guys are definitely not."

"Well, if y'all are such good friends then wouldn't she have told you if something was going on? Which there isn't."

"Mmh." They both hum and look at me for a second before Darius shrugs, "Fine, if you wanna be difficult 'bout it. But we support you. And besides prom is tomorrow, girls love that shit, make a move or somethin'."

I bite the inside of my gum, "Nothings going on."

"Whatever you say, bro." Alex pats my shoulder.

The guys come out of the pizzeria and we all start walking over to the park.

Once we get back the girls and Evelyn all jump and run over to take the food and drinks off of us.

"Jeez, you're welcome, you starved animals." Nicks says as they all go and sit back down to eat.

"Thank you, Nicholas." Evelyn shouts over their shoulder.

Alex gasps, "What about us?"

"Thank you, boys!" They all shout without sounding like they mean it for even one second."

Half an hour later Maddie and I are sipping on the last bit of our drinks just chatting and the bobble in hair looks like it's going to snap from holding all of her hair.

"Yeah, and then Aebhín fell and knocked the mug of coffee onto our teacher's computer and we ended up getting caught and suspended for a week."

"What rebellious children." I exclaim.

"I know right. At nine and ten we were getting suspended for a week. A bit overkill if you ask me."

"Definitely. Though, I suppose Alex and I were doing worse than slipping coffee by then."

"Oh yeah?"

"Yep, trouble marketing so we were."

She laughs, "Yous still are."

"Oh yeah," I say, "When we were out getting the food, Alex and Darius asked if there was something going on between us."

Her eyes nearly pop out of her head. "What? What did you say?"

"That nothing was going on and we were just friends."

She looks like she's about to calm down and say something when her phone rings, interrupting whatever she was thinking.

"Hold on one second."

She takes her phone out of her pocket and when she checks the called ID her face falls and she stands up, "I need to take this. I'll be back in just a minute."

She walks to the edge of the grassy area we're at, well out of eavesdropping distance so I just go and help Penelop and Felix who are cleaning up all of the trash we have here and dumping it all in trash bags.