MaliaHis text seemed to call out to me.My thumb hovered over the screen. I should have just ignored him and should’ve tossed my phone across the room and buried myself in assignments or music or literally anything else that doesn't include continuing the conversation.But my pulse began to race with anticipation, with Maverick, you could never be certain. Before I could talk myself out of it, I hit video call.The ringing barely lasted two seconds before his face filled the screen. Maverick was sprawled across his bed, shirtless just like in the photo he had sent and on his face was a lazy and satisfied grin, like he knew he’d already won.“Finally,” he drawled. “Took you long enough.”I swallowed hard and tried to mask my nerves with annoyance. “You’re ridiculous.”“Yeah? Then why’d you call?” His eyes gleamed, shifting as he angled his phone lower. He stretched and I saw his muscles ripple, he made a show of settling back into his pillow.I rolled onto my side, clutching the phone
Later that day, as per our new routine, I waited for Maverick by his car for him to take me home.The ride home was quiet and not in a peaceful way, it was undeniably heavy with the things neither of us wanted to admit out loud. Thankfully the hum of the engine filled the silence while I diligently scrolled through my phone, pretending to be invested in posts I wasn’t even seeing.From the corner of my eye, I could see him watching me intently. I could tell before he even opened his mouth that he had come up with something to say.“All day, I’ve been thinking about how funny some things are.” Maverick said in a voice edged with a familiar tease. “Rumors have a way of being right sometimes.”Heat flooded my cheeks and before I could stop it, the words were out of my mouth. “You’re insufferable.”His grin widened. “And yet…” his eyes flicked to my face, catching the way I was biting down on my lip, “…you can’t even deny it without blushing.”I groaned and sank lower into my seat, glari
Malia The smell of grease and overcooked fries from ether cafeteria amped up my discomfort, I felt like I was walking into a boxing arena ready to take hits. I could feel the looks before they landed, hear the hushed whispers before they were spoken, my skin buzzed with negative anticipation, today was going to be the same as yesterday, if not worse. As I walked into the cafeteria, tray in hand, I could feel like somehow things had quelled down. Had someone else become trending news? Some sort of relief flowed through me. I clutched my tray tighter, bracing myself as I scanned the room. It didn’t take long to figure out why things had changed. Venessa. She sat on top of one of the long tables, With her legs crossed and her glossy hair catching the fluorescent light. Around her, her group leaned in, hanging on to her every word like she was performing. Which, knowing Vanessa, she absolutely was. Her voice carried, loud enough for the entire cafeteria to hear. “Oh my God, can we
Malia The silence in my room felt heavy. Dinner was over but the weight of it hadn’t left me. I could still feel the ghost of Maverick’s hand against my knee under the table, a touch no one else had noticed. Now he leaned against my wall, arms crossed over his chest, eyes pinned on the floor instead of me. His shirt stretched tight across his shoulders, and the chain at his neck reflected the dim lamplight. He looked untouchable, like he wanted to stay that way. I sat on the edge of my bed, pretending to adjust the hem of my dress, but really I was trying to figure out how to breathe in a room that seemed too full of him. When he finally spoke, his voice was low and full of warming. “Don’t look at me like that. I don’t need pity.” My chest squeezed, what I felt for him wasn’t pity, it wasn’t not even close. What I felt for him had weight and the kind of ache that came from watching him act like nothing touched him when I knew deep down everything did. “It’s not pity,” I counte
Malia Before the dinner, I had been pacing around my room since I returned from school. My stomach tangled in knots after everything that had during the day. Ethan’s careful voice still rang in my ears, his eyes sharper than usual when he asked me about the rumor, and I had pretended like it rolled off me. Pretended like Maverick’s stare in the cafeteria hadn’t burned me through and through and like I wasn’t still restless, waiting for the other shoe to drop. I leaned over the mirror, fixing my hair for no real reason. My reflection looked flushed and uncertain. I tugged the hem of my dress straight, smoothing the fabric against my thighs as if that would settle me. I knew dinner downstairs would be nothing more than my mom talking too much, Maverick brooding in silence, and his father pretending to play the part of a man who cared but still, my pulse picked up. Maverick would be there and my body couldn’t wait. Mums voice rang out from downstairs. “Malia! Dinner!”
Maverick By the next morning, the rumor had teeth. Before I even got to my locker, I could feel the stares on me. They were staring for longer than they usually did, and then pretended not to, then leaned close to themselves to whisper. I knew exactly whose name was in their mouths, and it made my blood run hot. Then I saw Nancy walking like she was proud of herself, all sway and lip gloss, eating up the attention. I didn’t hesitate. I fell in step a few paces behind, silently and steady. She didn’t notice of course, why would she? She was too busy smiling at the mess she’d made. She pushed through the back doors, sunlight hitting her hair just right, like the world had staged it for her. Out on the field, it was quieter and we were without any audience. That was when I called her name. “Nessa.” She turned around and looked at me with her stupidly fake smile. “Maverick,” she said, like she’d been expecting me. I closed the distance, and the smile slid off her face