Just Like Fire ▹ Dump Truck | Liv and Maddie

08 ▹ NERVOUS RAMBLINGS

"Hey, gumball machine, you know Oz Caverly, right?" Dump Truck asked the middle schooler, his eyes trained on Oz who was sitting on the stairs with the other detainees.

"Yeah, she's my sisters' best friend, why...?" Parker trailed off before he let out a sound of realization, "You like Oz!"

Dump Truck did what Oz had done a while ago and put his hand over Parker's mouth, shushing him.

"Don't be so loud, gumball machine!" Dump Truck said to the young boy, turning to make sure Oz hadn't listened to them.

"So you do like her!" Parker stated with a smile. The smile on his face faltered as he realized that he couldn't tell him that she liked him too. He had promised her and Oz would never tell him anything ever again, even if it did benefit her.

"Yeah, and I just wanted to know what she liked, something she doesn't tell people in public. Something personal she only tells her close family and friends." He stressed on the word friends, referring to Parker.

"You know what, dude? Just tell her." Parker responded to him simply.

"Just tell her?"

"Just tell her." Parker repeated before he put his finger up, "Just give me a second."

Parker rushed towards Oz, pulling her away from the group of teenagers she was conversing with and to a secluded area, talking to her in a hushed tone.

"Oz, tell Dump Truck you like him!" Parker said, officially being apart of the ship that was almost ready to sail.

Oz looked at him in shock, shaking her head vigorously, "No, no, no. That would be awful. It would be totally catastrophic. It would ruin everything and I would look like a complete idiot when he says that he doesn't feel the same."

"Oz, how would you know that?" Parker exasperated, his tone causing Oz to quiet done from her rambling and look at his serious face, "You need to tell him sooner or later. And you're going to regret it later. Go tell him, trust me, it'll be best if you do."

Oz looked at him, both holding serious expression before she nodded her head, taking in a long breath, trying to control her racing heartbeat. She looked at Dump Truck who stood by himself and looked back at Parker, a pleading look on her face before he gave her a stern look.

She finally took in a shaky breath, walking towards Dump Truck. She stood in front of him and he turned to look at her, giving her a smile that made her knees shake. She involuntarily smiled at his smile before she opened her mouth, closing it the minute she felt the lump rise in her throat, turning around and walking away.

Suddenly, she stopped and thought for a moment. She turned back around and opened her mouth, trying to speak to him as butterflies flew in her stomach.

"I—" She took in a deep breath, finding it so much harder to tell him then she thought, "I like you, Dump Truck." The words that fell out of her mouth were heavy and slow, "I really, really like you, like I like, like you. Like a lot. A whole lot." 

Dump Truck had a dumbstruck look on his face causing Oz to let out a nervous chuckle, "And can you please say something now? Because I'm starting to get nervous, and when I get nervous, I start to ramble and when I start to ramble, I start to rub my neck and then when I start to rub my neck, i start to stutter and—and—"