eight
M addy thought she could really use a good friend.
The only problem was that meeting her best friend was years into the future, not happening until mid-college at least. The reason why she could use a good friend was because it would have been really nice to have someone to discuss everything that had happened.
It would also have been nice to discuss what had eventually become a study date at Nate’s house.
A few days had passed since Maddy’s visit to Nate’s house. They’d mostly sat in companionable silence, at least until Maddy’s frustration had been too much to repress and she’d ended up wishing very bad things to her science homework.
Nate had been the unfortunate bystander, but he’d offered his valuable help here and there whenever she asked, the low music a soft background to their studying. She’d left his house a couple of hours later feeling lighter than she’d felt since waking up that morning.
Everything had been pretty normal since then, all things considered. Maddy hadn’t wanted to bother Nate though, after she’d sort of strong-armed him into helping her, so she hadn’t contacted him again.
Now, roaming the school premises, shivering in her large, warm coat, she sighed, eating her sandwich hurriedly, before the bell rang and she had to rush for her final class for the day. Being back to school was still a hard pill to swallow.
Not paying attention to her surroundings, she suddenly bumped into a very firm chest, her glasses almost flying off her face, then barely hanging on for dear life.
She should really stop colliding with any type of surfaces, firm or otherwise.
Straightening her glasses, the tall, masculine blur in front of her came into focus and Nate’s exasperated drawl reached her ears.
“Is this a habit I need to get used to?” There was a small crinkle at the corner of his eyes. She’d always liked people who smiled with their eyes.
She blinked at him. “What do you mean?”
“You, falling on my person, sometimes with disastrous results,” Nate said dryly.
She blinked at him again.
“Well, if it was, you would be the first to know, trust me,” she quipped. “Wouldn’t want to drag you to another dimension or an alien planet next.”
Nate’s lips twitched in an effort to contain the beginnings of a smile.
“Oh? Can I know what kind of planet that would be? Maybe I should be prepared just in case.”
Was he… cracking jokes again? Maybe she had broken him. Maddy hoped she did a good job at hiding her shock.
“Um, I have one in mind, but it would be populated by large, blue warriors looking for fated mates,” she said seriously.
Nate lost the battle with his smile and his light chuckle warmed her more than the three layers of clothing she currently had on did.
“The things that come out of your mouth, I swear.”
Maddy didn’t know the right answer to that.
“Ah, thank you?”
“Anytime,” Nate said, his amusement never fading.
She liked this carefree version of Nate. Not that she actually knew him. It’s just that she liked seeing him like this. She also liked that he listened to anything weird she had to say and took everything in stride. There was no judgment in his tone of voice or his words.
A shiver ran through her, probably from standing in the cold too much. She tried to bury herself further inside her coat unsuccessfully.
Nate tracked the movement, frowning. “Are you cold?”
“What gave you that impression?” Maddy scoffed.
“It’s barely 50 degrees F and you live in Oregon. Shouldn’t you be used to the cold by now?”
Maddy was not amused by Nate’s very reasonable observation.
“I never get used to the cold, Nate. I am always cold. It’s the reason why you see me looking like a glorified onion,” she said using her hand to show the entirety of her look. “This isn’t about fashion, it’s about survival.”
Nate shook his head in disbelief.
“Come meet me at the school gym after basketball practice.”
Ah, what?
Were they still on the same subject?
Maddy aimed a confused look at him. “Because the school gym is nice and toasty?”
Nate sighed heavily. “Just come and you’ll see.”
Maddy narrowed her eyes at him but said “Okay.”
Nate nodded and headed towards the opposite direction, throwing a wave over his shoulder just as the bell rang.
***
When she made her way to the school gym later, Maddy couldn’t help but snicker to herself at all the times she had not attended any type of sports practice when she had been younger.
Maybe it was time to admit that her high school experience might have been a bit lacking. But what better opportunity to rectify that right now? she thought as she slipped inside the sturdy metal door, her shoes slightly squeaking on the polished wood of the basketball court.
Well, the scene in front of her was certainly enough to warm her up.
A very sweaty Nate was locked in a one-on-one match, his powerful body moving with a strength that was almost mesmerizing. He bounced the ball skillfully, never giving an inch, exploiting his opponent’s missteps with effortless ease—almost taunting him with the way he slipped past every challenge.
He wore a pair of basketball shorts and a loose-fitting sleeveless shirt, both of which had no business looking that good on someone.
Maddy swore she had somehow acquired super vision in the past few hours because she could see every bead of sweat lining Nate’s focused face, the way it dampened his disheveled hair.
And she was really trying not to dwell on how his clothes clung to him.
If she fainted from this sight alone and someone had to carry her out, she would never live that down.
For such a tall guy, Nate’s moves seemed almost choreographed.
And Maddy was a bit starstruck. Her throat had gotten really dry and she knew words would fail her if she tried talking.
She also didn’t know when she’d gotten closer and closer to the court as her eyes followed the scene in front of her.
It turned out that maybe she could find some interest in sports.
A whistle blew from somewhere, snapping her out of her stupor.
She saw Nate head for the bench, grab a towel to dab his face, and their eyes suddenly caught. A zing of tension seemed to run between them, like a rubber band that snapped into place, and Maddy felt a small flutter taking residence in her insides.
Nate held her gaze for a beat longer and then signaled he’d be there in a few.
Sudden nerves, dangerously close to what felt like excitement, made Maddy shake out her hands in an attempt to calm herself. She was being ridiculous, probably imagining things. But the blush that had somehow crept up her cheeks had not subsided even when Nate caught up with her.
“Hey, sorry to keep you waiting.”
Maddy knew that she was supposed to answer something to that since that was how polite conversation in civilized societies worked.
The problem was, she’d just noticed that Nate had put on a dark green hoodie beneath the jacket.
He also looked freshly showered, the ends of his wet hair peeking from the edges of his hood, making it slightly harder to concentrate.
His clean, woodsy smell also didn’t help in any way to reboot her brain, and make her blush disappear. Maybe she had turned into a teenager.
Nate frowned at her. “Are you okay? You look flushed.”
God, she hated how she was an open book sometimes.
“Yep, everything is fine,” she croaked very convincingly.
Nate arched an eyebrow, clearly not believing her but letting it slide anyway. His eyes though seemed to shine with a spark that she didn’t like.
“You look much warmer now, Madison.”
His cheek was twitching now, but Maddy decided to own her predicament.
“Yes, so curious. If I knew that all it would take would be a few minutes of watching practice, I would have done that ages ago.”
Nate was openly smirking now. “That’s a pity. I guess there’s no need for what I had in mind.”
Two could play this game. “Well, I’m not sure it could even trump what I just saw.”
Nate was already nodding. “I suppose you’re right. Maybe hot chocolate wasn’t a good idea.”
Maddy stilled and she knew that if she were a dog, her ears would have perked up.
“Hot chocolate? You wanted to get hot chocolate?”
“Yes, but if there’s no need for that anymore,” he let his sentence trail off.
“There is! I am so cold, practically freezing. Look, my fingers are turning blue.” She all but shoved her hand in his face, showing her rosy fingers that in no way were turning blue.
Nate’s smirk softened into a more genuine smile.
“Madison?”
“Hm?”
“How does a hot chocolate sound?”
“It sounds heavenly.” Maddy couldn’t help but beam.
Nate nodded and led the way, his hands in his pockets. “Let’s go then.”
Maddy followed right next to him, pinching and holding on to the bottom edge of his hoodie with her fingers. Just to keep up with his long strides more easily, she told herself.
If Nate noticed, he didn’t show it.