midnight rain | leighton murray

eleven | mirrorball

2021
Freshman Year | Semester One

"So this is Nico?" Tatum asks Maya as she looks at the cardboard cut out of his face that Leighton had been passing around to everyone. Tatum had been analyzing the photograph for what felt like three very long minutes.

"Yep," Maya responds as she looks at it. She was trying to keep her cool about being at a party with her current girlfriend and ex-first love.

Wait.

Was Tatum her girlfriend?

Anddddd now Maya was now thinking that she had no idea what she and Tatum were. Did she want them to make things official? She liked Tatum. She really liked Tatum.

"Is he adopted?" Tatum asks as she looks up at Maya, "Or is Leighton the adopted one?"

Maya snorts at the question, "They are blood siblings. It makes a lot more sense when you see their parents. Leighton favors their father. Nico favors their mother."

"Ah, so Mama Murray didn't cheat with the milkman?" Tatum asks and Maya laughs loudly at the comment.

"No, she didn't," Maya responds.

Tatum can tell that Maya's a little tense and so she reaches out and gently rubs Maya on the back, causing the soccer player to relax a bit. One might think that Maya was tense because she was attending the birthday party of her ex-girlfriend's brother, but the real reason was that Nico had a girlfriend that he'd totally been cheating on with Kimberly.

And because she was very confused about if Tatum was her girlfriend or not.

"Everything okay?" Tatum asks.

"Oh yeah," Maya responds as she looks at Tatum, "It's just Nico's girlfriend has the same name as me. I don't want people to confuse us."

Tatum laughs, "Well I'm sure no one will confuse you. You're ten times hotter than her."

Maya's lips spread in a small smile, "You don't even know what she looks like."

"I don't need to," Tatum responds, "You are prettier than every girl on campus. Even the ones visiting."

Maya smiles, "You're wrong because I'm not prettier than you."

Tatum leans in and steals a quick kiss from Maya, pulling away with a wide smile. Maya grins shyly as she looks at the tennis player. Leighton, who the universe seems to love, walks downstairs just as the two kiss and she can feel her stomach turning at the sight. But Leighton forces a smile as she makes her way over to the couple.

Couple? Leighton thinks to herself.

No, no, no. Maya and Tatum were not a couple. They couldn't be. Sure, they kissed a lot and when Tatum saw very cute planet cookies she went out of her way to buy them for Maya but they weren't a couple. They couldn't be. Not when Leighton was in love with Maya.

But Leighton wasn't good enough for Maya and watching her with Tatum was like looking at a postcard of a picture-perfect couple. And in a way it made Leighton's heart twist inside her chest because that was exactly what she'd given away because she wasn't ready.

"They're here!" one of the frat guys yells out. The music that was playing is turned off and Leighton begins shushing everyone in the basement. Nico is ushered into the room with a blindfold on.

"Are we almost there?" Nico asks, "This blindfold does not smell good."

The frat brother takes the blindfold off of Nico's eyes and everyone screams surprise. Nico's face lights up instantly and he hugs his sister as he thanks her. Maya watches the sight with a small smile on her lips.