The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes (Liv and Maddie)

6

A bee in your bonet

The crisp autumn air crackled with a nervous energy, mirroring the butterflies fluttering in Maddie's stomach. The annual Oakhaven High Fall Festival was in full swing, a vibrant tapestry of bobbing apples, pumpkin carving contests, and the highlight of the day – the inter-class horse race. Maddie, never one for pageantry or livestock (thank you very much), found herself drawn to the makeshift racetrack nonetheless. Her gaze scanned the row of nervous riders and their magnificent steeds, a mix of excitement and apprehension brewing within her.

Suddenly, a frantic buzzing filled her ears. A bee, fat and black, had landed right on top of her carefully constructed braid and bonnet. Maddie screeched, an involuntary reaction born from a lifelong fear of the buzzing insects. In her haste to swat it away, the delicate bonnet, barely secured on her head, went rogue. A rogue whipped away by a sudden gust of wind, no less. Time seemed to slow down as Maddie watched in horrified fascination as her prized bonnet, a vibrant blue adorned with tiny white daisies, sailed through the air with the grace of a drunken pigeon.

It landed, with a comical plop, right onto someone's face. Maddie's heart hammered against her ribs as she recognized the broad shoulders and toned form of the unfortunate victim – Nate Jacobs, better known as Nate, the school's resident basketball prodigy.

Maddie knew Nate, or rather, knew of him. He was an enigma, a silent force on the court, his brooding intensity fueling his legendary steals and lightning-fast dribbling. He was undeniably handsome, with piercing blue eyes that seemed to see right through you, and a sculpted jawline that could rival a Greek god. But his aloof demeanor and rumored arrogance meant Maddie had never really seen him as an actual person. Until now.

The scene that unfolded before her shattered the carefully constructed image of Nate in her mind. Because instead of erupting in fury, or worse, chuckling at her misfortune, Nate simply blinked, the bonnet momentarily obscuring his vision. Then, with a slow, deliberate movement, he removed the floral monstrosity from his face and held it up, a faint smile playing on his lips.

"Lost something?" he drawled, his voice a low, unexpectedly warm rumble.

Maddie's cheeks burned a fiery crimson. "Oh my god, I am so sorry!" she stammered, rushing forward to grab the bonnet. "It- it just...flew off!"

Nate chuckled, a genuine sound that surprised even him. "Don't worry about it, happens to the best of us," he said, his gaze meeting hers for the first time. In those blue eyes, Maddie didn't see arrogance; she saw amusement, a hint of understanding.

The incident sparked a conversation, hesitant at first, then flowing more easily with each passing moment. Nate, it turned out, was far from the brooding stereotype. He was witty, with a dry sense of humor that made Maddie laugh, and surprisingly knowledgeable about horse racing, much to her surprise.

As the race began, Maddie found herself cheering not for her own class (let's be honest, they didn't stand a chance), but for Nate. He rode with a quiet confidence, his body moving in perfect unison with the powerful stallion beneath him. He didn't win, but he placed a respectable second.

But for Maddie, the real victory happened on the sidelines, under the crisp autumn sky. The day she met Nate, not as the school idol, but as a real person, was the day the butterflies in her stomach evolved from fear to a different kind of flutter altogether.

° ° °

Parker's tenth birthday loomed large on the calendar, a stark reminder of the time stolen by circumstance. Karen and Pete, ever the doting parents, sat at the kitchen table with the twins, brows furrowed in concentration. Planning a birthday party for a ten-year-old proved more challenging than anticipated.