CHAPTER TWELVE

eyes wide open

we ended up getting through the first scene, more or less.

the first thing we ran into once madeline left was finding that the tin foil on the sandwiches somehow opened. so naturally, we had a sword fight with it since there was no way we would be eating jamie-style. of course, walker won. he had practice because of the percy jackson series.

then, the wifi crapped out on us. the script wouldn't load. but what did i expect? we were outside a school in a wooded area. walker and maeve had to talk from memory, so it half worked out.

what made us call it quits was the impending renewal of the bad luck streak. just as i said the last "action!" ( which made me feel so professional ), a gust of wind pushed over the flash kit. it was offensive, really. the glass shattered, and if i didn't have that big bandage still on my palm already, then i would have gotten sliced. for a few seconds after that happened, we all kind of just looked at each other, before i sighed and gingerly collected the shards.

"why don't we just go get lunch," i asked, dumping the shards in the school's trashcan.

maeve pretended as if nothing had happened. "yeah... we could go to starbucks? they just released a new drink."

"could we go somewhere less crowded," walker asked candidly. i had somehow forgotten that he was famous for a while, that he wasn't just some cute boy i had made friends with surprisingly fast. he was smart for thinking of that, because if we went to a place like starbucks, there would be a swarm of even more clones of madeline. "if that's good with you guys," he added.

"we could go to the bagel store," i suggested. i was referencing the one right by my house, one, because it's right by my house, and two, because it's almost always dead in there.

"sounds good. we can also drop off the camera and stuff at yours beforehand," said walker.

we packed up ( what was left of ) the equipment into evenly divided groups so we could all carry it. the route to my house was a meandering obstacle course of suburban turmoil, but i knew it and i loved it. and by the time we walked through the gate, the sun had reached its zenith and the warmth brought me back to the days i used to walk home from school in the spring. winter was taking too long.

˚ʚ♡ɞ˚

i successfully got the equipment back into my house. maeve and walker waited outside as i set down the camera and mics. i felt the absence of the flash and dreaded having to order another one online. coming back outside and locking the door back up, i thought about how pointless the breaking of it was. why did i even bring it along? it was day and the flash would have done nothing but fade into the sun's rays.

a bell sounded a ding ding as we opened the door. as i expected, there were only around four people in the whole red bricked room. that was something i never understood. there was such a cozy and homey feeling to the place that was embedded into the vintage photos on the walls or the half-melted candles. the smell was just immaculate, and what they served tasted even better. this place was undoubtedly one that i would come back to after college to get that nostalgic feeling.

my stomach made the sound of a howling werewolf going through the voice crack stage of puberty as i approached the counter with the other two. "what can i get you?" asked a worker i had never seen before. she must have been new, because the others always know maeve and i as regulars.

we all got our food eventually and sat down in the little booth in the corner where us two always eat. it was perfect: there were no windows, it was cozy and personal because it was cast away from all the other tables and booths, and there was a faded photo on the wall of a farmer with the highest waisted jeans i've ever seen that maeve and i always made fun of. but the problem was that it was meant for two people, and i didn't realize how cramped it could get until maeve squeezed in next to me.

"everything good there?" walker gave a curious look at the two of us shifting in our seats and trying not to suffocate each other with our bulky winter jackets battling for space.

"no. walker, i'm kind of claustrophobic, so can you maybe take my place?" maeve got up before walker even agreed and stood next to him like a royal guard until he rose.

at first i thought this was so irrational -- maeve has quite thin arms and walker has these majestic muscles. but once i noticed the smirk playing on maeve's lips, i realized that this was her scheme. there was approximately, i don't know, zero inches between us? i really did want to take my jacket off at that point, but i also really wanted to keep it inconspicuous that i was feeling this way. because what if he didn't?

"much better," said maeve. she stretched her arms out wide.

i contemplated being all nonchalant and saying something like "way to rub it in my face," but i decided against it. being shoulder to shoulder with walker twice in one day? i was happy... a little too happy. this isn't good! now that the three of us made a group chat, making plans for just the three of us to hang out... i didn't want to admit it, but this was making maeve look like a third wheel. there shouldn't be a third wheel where there isn't a couple. walker and i were just friends. unless he didn't want that...? ugh, this was too confusing.

"so you guys go here a lot," inquired walker, basically right into my ear.

"yep, this is the spot we sit in every time." maeve pointed to the photo of the farmer. "we call him 'jeffry with the jeans.'" walker laughed so hard that he snorted, leading me to almost choke on my bagel.

once there were only a few crumbs left on our plates, we got to the stage in a hangout when you look back on what happened in the past few hours. "how did she not see the filming equipment in front of us?" walker asked us.

"because she saw you," i stated. there was no doubt about it. i think if she didn't lock eyes with him, then she would have questioned why we looked like we had been professionally recording the previous humiliating sandwich situation.

i'm pretty sure he didn't know how to respond to that. he just looked at me with an untraceable emotion. finally, he investigated. "what are you saying?" i didn't realize how suggestive that statement may have sounded.

"madeline definitely likes you," i said frankly. was that the right thing to bring to his attention?

maeve cleared her throat. she corrected me, "madeline definitely, like, thought you were michael and got distracted, is what y/n meant to say." she forced a chuckle out. "i've seen that kid. he has the same hair." under the table, she jolted her foot into my ankle.

"interesting," walker said, stretching back into the limited space he had. he certainly seemed comfortable in such close proximity to me. maeve's attempt at being a match maker could've been working.

˚ʚ♡ɞ˚

the next thing i knew, we were a few doors down the block at mine, saying goodbye to walker, who opted to walk home. maeve claimed her mom was on the way home from work and would just pick her up on the way, but i knew maeve. meaning, i knew her mom works from home, and i could tell that she really just wanted to have some girl talk.

the second my front door was shut, maeve shook me by the shoulders. "can you believe how close you guys were today?"

"yes, and it had me feeling so many things," i admitted.

"am i doing a good job at being a match maker?"

"you are. disconcertingly well."

"i'll take that as a compliment." she hesitated. "but what makes you say that?"

"maybe the reason i'm so against him even thinking of me liking him is because this is the first normal relationship i've had with a guy my age. and i don't want to ruin it, especially so early on. what if he questioned what i meant by that 'because she saw you' because he's worried i like him? and plus, he's not really a normal guy--"

"i'm gonna stop you right there." the tone of her voice made my posture straighten. "you need to stop worrying."

"well, you can't just stop worrying... that's not something you could just do."

"but you can stop looking at it so negatively. this is great that you have this growing friendship with walker and that you're finding value in it. and listen, y/n. what you can't just stop doing is liking someone."

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thank you for reading chapter 12!

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