How He Fell has made it to the second stage of voting for the Readers Choice Awards 2020. Please please please go vote for the book in the Teen Fiction Category and show some love! I beg you!
Song of the chapter: Where's My Love by SYML
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MADDOX loved Friday's.
School was always better. Everyone was always more energized and there's some kind of electricity that flowed through everyone. It's nice when everyone was collectively happy, even if it's just for that day.
Sadly, Maddox wasn't feeling the fun.
"What happened?" her voice cut through as she nudged his shoulder.
Rubbing his eyes, he groaned as he opened them. The tiredness was noticeable from a mile away. He was exhausted and something told her that it wasn't because of lack of sleep.
"I saw him."
Tiana stopped in her tracks as she tied her hair up in a ponytail. Opening her mouth to speak, she hesitated as she took a breath.
"Oh," she quietly whispered.
Maddox nodded his head in agreement, "Yeah. Oh."
Pursing her lips, she laid a hand on his forearm. Gently squeezing, she tried to comfort him.
"When? How?"
"Mall. I don't know," he said shaking his head as if trying to deny the words coming out of his mouth.
"Did he see you?" she asked with subtle anger in her voice.
"Yeah he um he was with some girl probably too young for him and I bumped into him by accident."
Looking out at the courtyard in front of them, Tiana tried to get her thoughts organized, but she found it hard to as they kept jumbling themselves up.
"He won't ever get to her," she stated after some calculative thought. Shaking her head as if trying to convince herself as well, she whispered the words to herself. Maybe if she says them enough, the lie will start to consume them into thinking it's how reality will go.
Sparing a glance his way, she pursued her lips as a small sigh of defeat escaped her slightly open mouth. Tiana didn't know how to comfort Maddox anymore in all honesty. There was once a time where she was his rock, besides Reese of course. But Reese was making his move in Hollywood and he wasn't always available to talk in person. Maddox turned to Tiana and when he did, she felt thrilled.
She felt thrilled to finally be getting that attention, the attention she definitely deserved. Considering she'd been there when bad news broke out, when Maddox would cry silently. She'd wrap her arms around him and just rest her cheek against his back. She always tried to let him know that he had someone there for him in that moment. She was never sure if her work paid off, but it was insinuated when he admitted things to her willingly.
