Community Service

Chapter 16: On Fire

The next morning at 6 am, while Maddie wakes up and Jake is beginning to pass out from partying, Patrick comes up to Maddie's place with Betty.

"Hey Maddie, how are you feeling?" Patrick says.

"Oh, I'm good. I didn't drink much, so not too hungover." Maddie smiles.

"Okay, well, just be careful with Jake, he's a drinker and a flirt, to be frank, you don't know how to drink or flirt."

"I'm sorry, I'm finding it hard to concentrate. Your eyes are magnificent."

"That's your idea of flirting?"

"It's the best I got," admits Maddie.

Patrick laughs, "Good luck this weekend, and go for your dreams, don't let Michael limit you."

Maddie laughs, "What does that mean?"

"Nothing, it's just you have a bright future, but make it the future you want, not the future someone else wants for you," he says as if he's Albert Einstein."

"Okay...thanks."

"Just be you," he smiles.

"Why are you giving me Tumblr quotes?"

"I'm not. These quotes are coming straight from my heart." He shrugs his shoulders and walks away.

When Maddie gets back into the house, she is met with a furious Betty, "Staying out till 1 am with Jake, are you serious? What were you thinking?" She yells.

"I wasn't out with Jake. I was just out."

"Where does Michael think you are?"

"That doesn't matter."

"You were honest with him?"

"Yeah, totally." Maddie says as she starts to put on her lipstick, "I just told him I'm going on a girl's weekend with you to celebrate finishing my community service. He was a bit upset he couldn't come, but I told him it's just girls."

"Okay, so you bluntly lied to his face." She takes a deep breath. "Maddie, if he finds out, he's breaking up with you!"

"If he's that controlling, then I don't even want to be with him." Says Maddie as she struts out of the room.

Betty shouts a "UGHHHH" as she's frustrated with her friend.

Maddie goes back to the action where she sees Jake, who just got 2 hours of sleep, "Hi," she says in a friendly tone as she puts her arm around his neck.

He then kisses her on the cheek, "Hey, it's great to see you!"

"You too!"

Betty then follows her and tugs her arm as she says, "Come on, Maddie, it's time to go!!"

Maddie gets annoyed but follows directions as she smiles, "See you later," she then goes over to Betty and says, "What's wrong with you? Are you trying to make this weekend miserable?"

"I'm trying to save you from making the worst decision of your life, even worse than getting arrested, but if you don't want my help, fine!"

"Betty, I don't want your help! I know what I'm doing!"

"No, you don't." Betty looks her up and down.

Jake comes to Maddie and says, "Hey, wanna see the Cirque du Soleil performers with me."

Maddie looks at Betty, smiles, and then looks at Jake, "Thanks, I would love to." She takes his hand and walks towards the performance.

Maddie feels bad for fighting and ditching Betty, but who is she to say whether Jake is a good or bad influence?

After the show, Maddie and Jake go to another DJ set where the DJ is premiering his new song. They stay at the main set until 3:49 am, spending the whole day and night together, just the two of them. While Jake puts his hands all over Maddie's corset while they talk and party.

Even at 4 am, the night is not over yet as Maddie and Jake go back to his place, but they don't do anything. When Maddie falls asleep, he returns to the party, where he hangs out with many other girls with blonde, brown, and even blue hair in their 20s.

He comes back at 5 am with sunglasses on as he's already starting to feel the hangover. Maybe he's taking his bender too far, but he's enjoying his time off of school.

On the other hand, Maddie is in bed thinking about Jake, she can pretend that she doesn't have feelings for him, but she can't just pretend she's not in love with him.

At one point, they loved each other, or so she though,t but it all disappeared...oh wait, did she forget she's dating Michael?

She tells herself she's so moved on from Jake, but is she?

The next day on Saturday, Maddie puts on red lipstick and sunglasses to look her best, while Jake wears sunglasses that match her energy. They look hot together.

He takes her hand and smiles, "You're such a sweetheart."

She looks at him and smiles. She and Jake play ping pong in the desert. They watch the performance as they dance. They don't hang out with any of the people. They came with, only each other. They take a walk as they finally talk.

"You're so important to me," says Maddie as Jake puts his hand around her and her black lace outfit.

"I feel the same way," he smiles.

Jake turns Maddie around, and they kiss. They then back away, look at each other but then keep on kissing and kissing.

"Let's go back to my room," he whispers.

They kiss all the way to his room as her legs straddle around his hips.