TANGLED PLANS

13

I have yet to get Max out of my head. It's worse that he shows up around my house all the time, and I can't escape him. Even though I complain about him being here, I can't help but go and fill up my water bottle in order to see him.

I can hear him shouting things at the television with my brother while I fill up my water bottle. I take the bottle and head up to the stairs that were for my advantage, located right by the living room.

"Daisy, Daisy, Daisy." I hear my name being shouted by a familiar voice and turn around to find Max looking at me. "Yeah?" I ask, and he gestures for me to walk over to him, so I do with a hand on my water bottle. Once I'm standing by him, he says, "Can you get me a snack?"

Right, sometimes these two boys used me as their personal waitress. Right on cue, my brother says, "Me too, Daisy."

"Okay," I say to the both of them, purposefully avoiding Max's eyes as I head back to the kitchen. I walk toward the pantry, pick out a few snacks that Brayden seems to like and that are favorable, and take them to the living room. I drop it onto the coffee table and say, "Take a good look, because I'm heading upstairs and not coming back."

Brayden looks at the items and smiles widely in reaction. "Dais. Those are all my favorites!"

I smile at that and then feel a hand on my water bottle. Before I'm able to regain hold of it, Max takes it from me and pops open the top. His mouth goes to the straw of the water bottle, and he starts to chug the whole thing. I'm watching the water fall off his lip and down his chin every so often, and I have to resist the urge to find out how far the water would go.

After he is done, he pops the top back on and says, "Thanks, sweetheart." I give him an incredulous look and say, "You could've asked for me to get you a water bottle."

"Maybe I wanted water from yours," he says in answer, and before I can comment on it, my brother slaps his shoulder. "We have to go," my brother shouts, and then the both of them turn back to the television and resume the game. I take the water bottle that I find almost halfway empty and head over to the kitchen. Grabbing two water bottles, I head back to the living room.

I place it on the coffee table with the rest of the snacks and then turn back to the staircase. Once I'm there, Max looks up at me and gives me a small smile. I take that as a win and try not to run up the stairs.

In conclusion, my tactics for wanting to get rid of my crush on Max turned out to be doing the exact opposite.

🌼

I'm not sitting at my original table for lunch today. I'm sitting at the table next to it because Maria invited me to sit with her and her friends at the lunch line today. I was more than happy to join them, considering Keilly was already waving at me once I got to my table. I took my stuff off the original table and to their one.

I've been listening to the girls talk to me animatedly about how they became friends, and it was interesting. I knew I was welcome here, but I hadn't said many words. I was scared to say the wrong things, so I was only nodding and saying either yes or no whenever they asked for my opinion. Maria smiles and says, "The last time I had a party was during my Quinceanera."

"Oh, yes!" Keilly says with a big smile. "I loved it. It was the best night of my life, she says, and then turns to me. "When was the last time you went to a party, Daisy?"

"Oh, me?" I ask her in shock, and she only nods, raising her eyebrows a bit. I give them a shrug and say, "Well, you know, I go to parties from here and there."

"Like what?" Maria asks as she scrolls through her phone, probably to find the pictures Keilly had asked for earlier. She had been scrolling on her phone for a long time. I give them a shrug and say, "Whatever comes up."