Jerks of Springville High

s i x t e e n

Chapter 16: A Game for Two

Grayson's POV

"I- I'm sorry!" She laughed nervously, dropping her arms. "I didn't mean to--"

"No," I cleared my throat. "No, it's okay."

I glanced over at my two idiotic friends who just so happened to be grinning with amused looks on their faces. I wanted to dick punch them just to knock it off of them.

I looked back down at the stranger, who just so happened to start talking again. I tried to concentrate on the words she was saying, but I kept thinking about how normal it felt to be this close to her.

You have a girlfriend who you love and care about! What are you doing?

"Are you sure? Because I would totally find it weird if some stranger came up to me and hugged me after I had just spilled my deepest, darkest secrets that were only meant for a specific set of ears to hear. I mean, I wouldn't be offended if you thought I was a total weirdo or whatever. I mean I am a weirdo, but it's the good kind of weird you know? The kind of weird where people admire you because you're not afraid to be open and you can make everyone laugh. Some people find it annoying, but I learned that only my opinion should matter when it comes to myself. I'm also a very empathetic person, so when I hear that someone has been going through a rough day, I try my best to feel for them, even if I don't know them." She paused, slowly moving her hands away from my torso. "As you can see." She then backed away, tucking a strand of her long hair behind her ear. "I also tend to blabber."

"I noticed." I chuckled, amused. "What's your name? I haven't seen you around here before."

Then again she could have gone to this school since my freshman year and I never noticed. I mean, I had barely ever seen Kylie around.

"Madeline, but my friends call me Maddy or the Mad Madster, and I'm new here." She threw up a peace sign then folded her arms, leaning back.

"She is weird." Leo whispered to Jake.

"I'd rather be weird than rude." Madeline -or The Mad Madster- beamed at him while he furrowed his brows. " It's okay, not everyone has enough common sense or brain cells to know that other people can hear what you're saying."

Jake snickered, nudging Leo's arm. "She just called you stupid."

Leo nudged him back and grumbled. "I know!"

"Hey," Madeline touched my arm, getting my attention. "I'd love to stay and chat, but I need to head to the office. I really hope everything turns out well for you. I'll see you around."

I watched her as she walked away, thinking about how comforting her touch was.

There was something about her that sprang something alive in me. I felt a connection towards her that I hadn't felt towards anyone. She genuinely cared about my feelings despite the fact that we didn't know each other. It was hard to find people who genuinely cared about you. Sure, I have my friends and my dad I guess, but she was different. Maddie didn't care about how I felt about anything because all she cared about was herself. She didn't even know who I was. All she saw was a good looking, popular guy that could up her rep above everyone else's.

"We should probably get to class."

"I still need to talk to you about Kylie." Jake stated.

I sighed. "Jake, if you really want to be with her you shouldn't let anyone stop you, not even me. I'm still going to be an ass around her, but for my brother, I'll tone it down, suck it up, and deal with it."