We Were Right About Magic

Remembering Westland {romance}

"Looking for a little more drama?" Jacob asked, swallowing down the next shot with a grimace.

"Looking for a little more success," Madison admitted. "Hard to throw a successful life in your ex-boyfriend's face if you haven't got a successful life to brag about."

"If it makes you feel better, I haven't got a lot of success going on either," Jacob admitted.

"You walked into a bar and asked for something cheap. I kind of figured," Madison said.

"I think I'd be a bit embarrassed if it hadn't been so long," he admitted. "What's it been, twenty-five years since high school?"

"Twenty-seven since our last date," Madison said. "We broke up sophomore year."

"Right," Jacob nodded. "I forgot about that."
He wished he could say he remembered that day clear as ice, but he really barely remembered it at all. He thought there had been something to do with a Valentine's day dance and some comments she had made about a football player. It all seemed so high-school, looking back.

He looked up to comment on that to Madison, but she had already moved on. She was serving the only other customers in the bar, two teens who were giggling over their shots and couldn't possibly be overage. Jacob wondered if he and Madison had ever looked like those two kids, hands all over each other as they found relief from the dull town in each other's arms. He couldn't remember if they had ever really kissed.

As soon as Madison was done with the teenagers, she returned to Jacob. She poured him another shot that he wasn't even sure he could afford, but he didn't drink it yet. He rubbed his thumb along the smeared edge of the shot glass and looked back up at Madison. He felt like he should say something more, continue their conversation, but it had been so long since they last talked that he had no idea what to say.

"So are you in town long?" she asked, seemingly thinking the same thing. "Or just dropping in for a while?"

Jacob really didn't want to admit his living situation, but there was a genuine curiosity in Madison's eyes. He figured he would have to get comfortable telling people at some point, and he could always avoid the bar later if she was cruel about it.

"Hopefully I'll be out of here soon," he said. "I ran out of options and money, so I'm actually coming back to live with my parents for a while."

Madison grimaced, but she didn't seem to be mocking him. She pushed a stray hair out of her face. "That sounds really rough. I know you fought for years to get out of this place."

"I guess you can only fight for so long," Jacob said, finally drinking the shot she had poured. He looked up at her. "That's probably all I can afford."

"I'd offer you some on the house, but the bar can't afford that, and neither can I," Madison said.

"It's fine," Jacob said. He hadn't been looking for a free drink, he just really couldn't blow more money here. "I just needed enough liquid courage to get me through my dad's lecture."

"Well you were always a lightweight. Three will probably be enough."

Jacob smiled, and he found that he wanted her to stay and talk a little longer. She was sweet and understanding, and something about her made him long to stay close to her. He couldn't even think of a reason why, but he wanted to keep talking to her.

"I've laid my cards out on the table and they aren't very good," he pointed out. "Now's your chance to do that bragging you were talking about. You don't even need a lot of success to throw it in my face."

Madison smiled and shook her head. "Still not a lot to throw at you. I'm not living with my parents, but I am still living in Westland, which is practically the same thing. I think I told you in high school that I wanted to be a stock-broker, and as you can see, that didn't work out."