Talk Fast | 5 Seconds of Summer

Prologue

Growing up together and being best friends in the same Midwest town meant sharing the same ideas and having the same dreams for Ariel Vo and Maxi Madden. People who didn't know any better would think differently. On the outside, the two were such opposites. Ariel had medium length black hair and naturally tanned skin. Her eyes were practically black, smaller than most, and upturned. She had short legs that allowed her to stand at only five-foot-three, and some meat on her bones. Maxi had long, sandy locks with chocolate brown eyes, wide and doe-like. Her skin was fair with pinkish undertones. Her legs were beautifully long, and she stood around five-foot-eight. She was insecure about her height, as ever single decently looking guy was either shorter than her or barely at her stature. She was on the thinner side, but she was healthy. She just wasn't "thicc" as most would say. 

Their looks weren't their only differences, however. While they shared the same ideas, they thought in such different ways. Ariel had been raised to trust her brain more than her heart. She was a planner, and she always thought everything through. Her emotions were strong, but her head was even stronger. She came off as insensitive and judgmental. She wore her heart on her sleeve, and she always let people know how she felt. Honesty is the best policy... Some would say that she was too honest. The side of Ariel that people saw the most was the quick-witted, sarcastic, irritable side. It was never hard to make her angry, and so people tip-toed around her if she seemed like she was in a mood. 

Maxi was the opposite. She was a lover in a general sense, not a fighter. The only time you would really see the fight come out of her is when you messed with her loyalties; her friends always came first. She believed in fate and destiny; she rolled and adapted to everything around her because everything happens for a reason. Openness and vulnerability were two things that seemed to be important to her, but she would struggle to allow herself to confide in others. Her feelings were always put at the end of the line. She was the friendly type that seemed so inviting. 

It could be that maybe Maxi and Ariel simply balanced each other out, and maybe that's why they were such great friends. That was what people would come to realize. Ariel kept Maxi grounded when the blonde would get carried away with ideas. She had to remind Maxi what was realistic and what was only just a dream. Ariel's logic balanced out Maxi's childlike wonder... Ariel reminded Maxi that her feelings and mental health were important too. Maxi also needed a reminder that her mental health was important too, and that she can't run around trying to help everybody when she needs to take care of herself. Ariel was that person for her. She was also reminded by Ariel that it was okay to be angry even when she didn't think it was necessary. Ariel's lack of empathy balanced out Maxi's abundance of kindness. 

Maxi was the one to tell Ariel that it was okay to have big dreams. Just because people tell you that there is a small chance doesn't mean there's no chance. She was practically Ariel's hypeman, and whenever Ariel was discouraged, Maxi was there to pick her back up. Maxi is also the one who tried to get her friend to open up more. Ariel had walls, and Maxi was always working to break them down. Of course, it was always done, but it was always through music and metaphors, but hey, at least it's something. Maxi made her friend a more sensitive person. As time went on, Ariel felt like she became a better person. She began to think more about how other people may feel. She began to recognize the moments where it was the right time to make a joke or comment, and when it was the wrong time, she kept her mouth shut. Maxi being in touch with her emotion balanced Ariel's front. 

Or maybe it was just the fact that Ariel was an Aries and Maxi a Gemini that allowed them to work so well together. Who knows if it was really written in the stars?

But again, growing up as best friends in the same Midwest town together meant that you would share dreams and ideas. The two shared plenty of ideas, politically and creatively, and the two had plenty of dreams they shared together: moving into an apartment together as soon as they graduated, going on a road trip across the country, seeing Italy and trying authentic cuisine—they wanted it all together, but their biggest dream? Well, they both shared a passion for writing and music, and that was something they would always share.