ENCHANTED - Axl Heck

1

Maeve hated meeting new people. She preferred a life of solitude and introversion rather than socialising constantly.

This is why she was miserable at the stupid barbecue hosted by her new neighbours. They seemed nice. Almost too nice but she had been informed that that's just who the Donoghues were.

She was sitting in a lawn chair watching her brother talk to a small boy about his age with a short buzz cut. They looked like they were becoming fast friends.

Unlike his sister, Killian was an extrovert. He loved making friends with people and didn't like it when people didn't like him.

Her brother ran up to her and said "Im gonna play with Brick over there" pointing to the patio where it was quieter. "Sure" She replied, pushing him back over to his new friend.

"You look like you're having fun" Her Dad said teasingly to her as he threw himself into the chair beside her. "Tonnes" She replied shortly.

"Oh come on sweetheart. Cant you at least try to make some friends? It would make starting school a lot easier" He reasoned.

She rolled her eyes when she realised it was the logical option. Her dads smile grew when she rolled her eyes and stood, walking towards the group of teenagers that were gathered by the fire pit.

Who the fuck is rich enough for a fire pit?

She sat down in an empty space on the outdoor couch and was thankful none of them really paid much attention to her.

Apart from the three boys she sat next to. "You must be Shane's daughter" A friendly looking boy said to her, holding out his hand.

She looked at it weirdly for a second, having not known anyone her age that used handshakes during introductions.

She snapped out of it when she heard the quiet laughter of the curly headed boy sat next to her. She took the boys hand and shook it saying "Maeve Walsh"

He nodded at her and said "I'm Shawn Donoghue"

"This is Darrin and Axl" He introduced. She nodded at the two boys before she made eye contact with the curly headed one, Axl.

She broke the eye contact with him after Shawn started talking again but she tuned him out, feeling Axl's stare boring into the side of her head.

"So Maeve. Where are you from?" Axl butted in, interrupting Shawna rant. "Oh, I'm Irish" She answered.

"Oh cool. Which state is that in" Darrin asked her. He seemed genuinely curious but Maeve didn't know if he was kidding or not so she just looked at him confused. She saw Axl kick Darin's leg and say "What he means is, is this your first time in the US?"

Maeve looked at him amused at the pathetic attempt to save the conversation and said "Yeah i've never been outside Europe before"

Darrin still looked confused and Maeve realised he was actually serious. She looked at him weirdly (she didn't know Americans were this stupid) before turning to Axl who was, to her surprise, still trying to keep conversation.

"What do you like to do?" He asked her. Maeve was silent for a second, wondering what to say that wouldn't make a bad first impression.

"I like music. Also reading and painting" She replied after a second.

"Cool. Eh we're all actually in a band" He said pointing to the three of them. "Really? What kind of band" She asked genuinely interested.

"Ehh, we haven't really got any songs yet..." Axl said, scratching the back of his head with an awkward look on his face. Maeve raised her eyebrows with a teasing smirk.

Axle quickly tried to correct himself by saying "When we do though, you'll be the first to hear them"

Maeve nodded at them with a smile and said "I'd be honoured"

Axl smiled back at her dreamily and Shawn had to step in to keep the conversation. "What kinda books do you like?" He asked.

"Do you read?" She asked him with a small smile. He nodded and said "Yeah sometimes" Axl looked annoyed as he watched them talk about books and stuff that he couldn't even understand. He wanted to get to know the pretty girl more but he didn't know any of the books they were talking about.

"What's your favourite book?" Shawn asked her. Axl perked up at the chance to find something out about her. "Anything by Stephen King or Jane Austen, but i love Harry Potter too" She replied with a smile. It seemed that she liked to talk about books and things she enjoyed.

Axl made a mental note to ask Brick about those books. Maybe he could tell him about them, or Axl could read them. (That's unlikely)

When the party came to an end, Axl caught Maeve before she left. "Hey!" he called out as she was walking on the path to her house. She turned around and asked "Whats up?"

Axl was dizzied by her accent again, he found it very attractive but he snapped out of it and said "Can i get your number?"

She raised an eyebrow and smirked at him teasingly. He stuttered over his words as he tried to correct himself "I mean- so that we can keep in touch and i can tell you about the band" He said.

She nodded at him with a smile and said "Hand me your phone" He passed it over and watched as she entered her number and saved her contact as 'Maeve :)'

"See you later" He said smiling widely. "Bye Axl" She said, turning around and continuing her walk home.

Axl entered his own house with a smile on his face and saw his mother in the kitchen looking excited. "I saw you with a that girl at the party" She said, watching him go to the fridge.

"Mom!" He shouted, embarrassed. She raised her hands in defence and said "She was really cute"

Axl smiled again and said "Yeah, she was"

Frankie made an 'aww' sound and Axl rolled his eyes at her. He didn't want him Mom to insert herself in this like she usually does. He wanted to get to know her before his family ruined it.

"You will leave this alone" He said, pointing at his Mom. She nodded excitedly and said "Just think how cute your babies would be!"

"Oh my God!" He shouted, covering his ears and running to his room.

Although, he did agree with his Mom. Their babies would be adorable.