Staying Grand For You ~ICONic Boyz~

Chapter Eleven

Madison Alamia

I felt like the biggest asshole in the world. How much had Candace heard? Did she hate me? I would hate me...

"Bye, guys." I said to Thomas and Louis. Vinny and Jason next. Nick was busy texting Candace, he was the only one she would reply to anymore.

"She won't come down here." He sighed.

"Go up there," I suggested, wishing we hadn't been talking about any of that.

"I don't wanna push it." Nick shook his head and sat on the stairs next to Mikey.

Mikey had ran after Candace when she turned on her heel to go back to her room. He wrapped his arms around her waist and whispered in her ear.

"No, Mikey. Don't. Just don't." She pulled away and left. Mikey had sat down on the steps and he hadn't moved once, face in hands.

"I'll go talk to her when you leave. You okay man?" I pushed Mikey's knee gently.

"Whoa dere, why you crying?" I used his own quote to try and make him smile. Yeah, Spikey Mikey was crying over a girl.

"Wouldn't you be?" Mikey muttered, glaring at the floor.

"Madison," Nick mouthed at me. "Go talk to her." He jerked his head in the direction of our room. I nodded and went to face what very may well be my death.

***

"Hey," I said softly, sitting next to her. Candace had a tear sliding down her cheek, I wiped it away. "If it makes you feel better, Mikey's crying too."

"Why? Because he was caught in a lie? Poor baby."

"Do I note sarcasm in your voice?" I asked, pulling her into a hug. She laughed once. "There's that beautiful smile."

"Mad, I'm sorry."

"About what? I'm the one who should be sorry."

"I kinda overreacted."

"You're a girl, though. You're supposed to." I laughed, and she punched my arm.

"Is he really crying?" Candace asked tentatively after a few quiet moments.

"Yeah... Nick's down there with him. Okay, why'd you forgive Nick so easily and not us?"

"I don't know... I already forgave everyone. That doesn't mean I want to talk to you though. I wanted to talk to Nick." She looked into my eyes, a smile playing on her lips. I smiled back.

"Will you come talk to Mikey?" I asked, as she lay her head on my shoulder.

"I really don't want to right now," She said.

"Next week?"

Candace grinned. ''Yeah, next week."

She didn't know I would actually hold her to that, though.

***

Mikey Fusco

Words cannot explain how much of a douche I felt. Oh my God why did I say that?! My life is ruined.

I didn't know a human being could be so stupid. And I didn't know that the stupid human being would be me. Why wouldn't she believe me? Well, I wouldn't believe me either...

"Nick." I said.

"Yeah?"

"I lied. I do like Candace. I like her more than I've ever liked anyone in my entire life."

"I know you do. We all know that. But I'm not the one you should be saying that to."

"I already tried telling her and... She didn't believe me." I said quietly, ashamed I had lied in the first place.

"Why did you lie about it?"

"I thought you guys would make fun of me..."

Nick laughed. "Bro, why the hell would we do that?!" He started singing Sexy Chick by David Guetta.

"Alright, Mara, out of my house." Madison said behind us.

"What? Why?"

"There's only one person that can call Candace sexy in this house. And that's me." He held Nick by the shoulders and steered him to the door.

With Nick gone, Mad turned to me.

"You good?" He asked.

"Not really." I grimaced and stood up.

"Well, I have a plan. In exactly one week, if Candace doesn't talk to you by then, here's what we do..."