downpour / mileven au.

eighteen.

CHAPTER EIGHTEEN;
PRINCE CHARMING.

"eleanor jane, i am so disappointed in you!" max scolded just after el broke the news to her. the ginger grabbed her peach milkshake and took a furious gulp before continuing, "dean was supposed to be a rebound, not your boyfriend!"

yes, it was true. after their fourth date in the span of three weeks, dean popped the question. el thought it seemed a little fast but with the bouquet of roses in his hands and hope in his eyes, the word 'yes' slipped her lips before she could reassess.

el rolled her eyes. "max, be nice. dean is great. you're the one who told him i liked him, let's not forget," she reminded, sipping her own strawberry milkshake before slouching back in the booth.

"oh, no, no, no. don't blame me for this mess. you were supposed to hit it and quit it. now, look at you. you're stuck with prince charming out of guilt," she said.

the brunette scrunched her brows. "why is that so bad? everyone dreams of having their own prince charming."

"prince charming is boring, el. he's boring!" she accidentally yelled, turning a few heads in the typically busy diner. max threw them a glare to dismiss their stares. "he won't even let you open your own doors, and he listens to tom petty. don't even get me started on all the hair gel, my god."

"stop it! he's a good guy, max. don't i deserve a good guy? i mean, after troy and.." she trailed off before shaking her head. "dean isn't like them."

max shrugged. "i'm still team mike."

el groaned, "would you stop with that? we're just friends! i've told you that a hundred times."

"well, that was a lie, but nice try, kiddo," she joked, earning a growl from her best friend. "real talk, now," she begins, the lightness leaving her voice. el nods. "dean is nice, you're right, but you don't want to be with him, el. he's safe, i get it. you've been hurt before, and you're just protecting your heart. i don't blame you, but it's not fair to him. you and i both know you'll never be able to return his feelings."

a part of el knew the words were true, but she refused to admit it. she liked dean. that's what she told herself, at least. "no, you're wrong. i could really like him. i mean, he's perfect for me."

max recognized the lie in her tone but decided to let it go. perhaps it was something el would have to learn the hard way. "okay, el."

el shook her head, "can we just- can we talk about something else? what about you and lucas? how's that going?"

max smiled at the mention of his name. "oh, it's perfect, el. it's like, now that we've broken up and been without each other, it makes being together so special. before, of course, we were happy, but now, it's so different. it's a different type of happy. i can't put it into words, but it just feels so right and so certain."

el smiled, "i'm glad you're happy, max."

"speak of the devil," the redhead alerted, nodding her head towards the door with a smirk. el heard the bell jingle and looked to find both mike and lucas entering the diner.

lucas spotted his girlfriend and immediately approached, "hey, babe."

"hi, baby. what are you doing here? i thought you were all staying at dustin's tonight?" she asked, confused but still excited to see him.

"yeah, but we're picking up food before we go," he explained.

mike joined behind them, their order of food in his hands. "i got it, man. oh, hey, max, el," he greeted, his eyes lingering on the quiet brunette.