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CHAPTER 2

Max

Later that night, I couldn't get the thought of Bradley out of my head. It seemed silly that a comment he made would make me so confused. He's crazy! That's what I should have thought of when I thought of him. Instead, my mind wandered to the moment he grabbed my lip piercing. "You don't even know how well I could tear you apart." And I blushed thinking about it.  Something was wrong with me. Maybe I was just lonely, no one had touched me like that in a while, or perhaps it was his bravery that struck me stupid. Who grabs someone like that, anyway? 

Suddenly, I realized I was alone with my thoughts. P.J nor Bobby were there. "Hello," I called as if they'd respond through the walls.

What was I supposed to do? I should've done my homework, or read my newest book, but instead I ended up on my phone watching funny cat videos. As I stood, cats just truly weren't as cute as dogs are. 

I got a notification that someone had started typing. Curiosity killed me and I opened the empty chat. The three dots typed and typed before disappearing completely. "What the hell?" I was too curious to let it slide. 


Max

Hello?

Unknown

Hey. It's Bradley.


Bradley? The Bradley?


Max

Why do you have my number? How, even?

Selfish Idiot

None of your damn business, freshman.

Max

Stuck up as always. At least answer why you have my number.

Selfish Idiot

Why not? What's the saying ... keep your friends close and your enemies closer. You could say that's what I'm doing.

Selfish Idiot

You should be afraid, freshman. I bite.


If it weren't for the context clues given, I would say he was flirting. Maybe that was my damn wishful thinking on my end. God, I needed to get out more.


Max

Terrified.

Selfish Idiot

Don't pretend to be scared. When I'm finished with you, you'll beg for me to be kind.


Damn, he really needed to fix his way of texting. Still, I texted back.


Max

Go ahead. You know where to find me.


Bradley could come find me if he wanted to.  I knew after everything that had happened,  he wouldn't do anything. He was afraid as is. And, if we were betting on what he texted earlier, Bradley would beg, not me. Stupid Bradley.

He didn't text back after that. I silently hoped he would put up more of a fight so I had a reason to tease him a little longer. Something was so interesting and intense about talking with Bradley. 

— — —

The next day, I skated to the cafe.

It was beyond crowded. I ordered and waited patiently on the side. They called my name, and I picked up my drink. When I turned to ponder my seating options, only two tables were open. First option, this beautiful girl who was eyeing me since I'd stepped in the line, and of course, the second option being Bradley. He was always there, wasn't he? Everywhere I went.

The entire cafe was packed with couples. It made me a little sad I didn't have someone to bring along. Sure, the silence could be a gift sometimes, I didn't have the stress that was keeping up with friends, other times, I just wanted someone to talk to.

"Max," someone cheered. I turned around. "Seats free." I sat down with my friends. Fortunately for me, today was not the day I had to confront Bradley. Lucky me.

"Bobby and I were in there forever studying for that test. We fell asleep. She shut us in there, Max. She left us!"

"P.J, cool it, we're both out and alive, aren't we?"

P.J scoffed. "It's stuffy in there, Bobby. It was terrible." 

Children, really. That's what I was dealing with. "Anything good happen while we were away?"

I thought about mentioning the texts. Were they worth mentioning? I looked behind me, Bradley was sitting alone. His eyes glanced up at mine, and it was worth mentioning that his eyes weren't the usual dark, stormy clouds. You could see the icy blue in them, which made them beautiful. My stomach swirled. "Nothing exciting happened."

P.J and Bobby glanced at each other. "Why'd you turn around, Max?" They tried looking at what was behind me, but I shuffled in their view. "You're no fun, Max."

"Drink your coffee," I muttered.

Something changed with Bradley. I mean, no one goes from a total douche to a semi normal nutcase in a few hours.  What changed from yesterday to now? 

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