Tied Together

Senior Year

"Sweetie, this our fifth round, you can't beat me." 

"I will keep trying if it means that I am not the one doing these dishes." Zac held up his fist to start another round of Rock, Paper, Scissors.

"Nope, I'm calling Uncle. I cook, you clean." Maddy threw the dish cloth at him as her phone rang. Grabbing it off the wall, she stuck her tongue out at him and walked down the hall, cord trailing behind.

That better not be Jackass calling again. She deserves better. Zac quickly did the few dishes from dinner and wandered after his best friend. He and some buddies were going to a party the next night and he wanted to ask her along. She needed to get out without the boyfriend tagging along like some kind of leach. He heard crying through her door and stopped.

"It's not like that, Mike, and you know it. Zac has been my best friend since I was five years old." He heard the jerk yelling at her over the line and she started sobbing. "Of course I love you, i don't understand why you think I don't!" He had heard enough, he threw open her door and grabbed the reiever from her.

"Listen here, you dickless jackass, you want to tear somebody down you do it with me. I can take it. You make my best friend cry like this again and I will personally see you humiliated in the most public way possible. No girl will touch you afterwards. Leave her alone from now on, if you know what's good for you." He heard Maddy gasp and felt her grab his arm, trying to pull it the phone away. "You can certainly try, but I'm in theater, dude. BROKEN LEGS ARE GOOD LUCK!" He banged the phone on the wall before marching it back down the hall and slamming it onto the hook on the wall.

Maddy looked at him with a mix of fear and affection. "What did you just do?!" She was still crying and he pulled her close.

"Took care of your vermin problem. If he gives you anymore trouble, me and the guys have a plan already."

"Plan? You guys talk about him?"

"Well, i talk about you and the jackass and they tell me what they would do if they were me. We have so many plans for him we might as well be a fan club."

Maddy sighed, "Thanks Zac. It's nice to know i'm not worthless."

"Did he tell you that?!" Zac  moved her away from him to get a better look at her.

"He always told me that." She hunched over in a posture he knew all to well. He felt himself do it everytime his mother tore him down and he refused to let her get that way.

"Don't do that! You are worth so much. Hell, sometimes I wonder how i even got to be your friend."

"You grabbed my hand and ran, remember?" He laughed/

"Yeah, i remember. Come on, let's go get some icecream or something. It's getting far too serious in here." Maddy nodded as they grabbed their shoes and headed out.

***

"I am telling you, Zac, she is cheating on you. I saw it with my own eyes."

"Layla wouldn't do that. We love each other, we are even going to college together so we don't have t break up after grad." Maddy felt her heart sink. He fell so easily, and it was always for the wrong girls. He heart ached so much for him. It's not up to you. Remember?

"Look, i know you two don't actually get along, but please, just be nice tonight okay? It's or senior prom, we're supposed to have fun."

Maddy aquieced, but she already knew she wasn't going. It would just be too much to watch him with her and know that Layla didn't love him like she did. Hell, Zac didn't even love her like she loved him and she felt it driving him away. Ever since that night with the phone, she knew. She had also missed the chance since he had also met his weasley little girlfriend that same night. It wouldn't matter if she went or not. As soon as graduation finished she was on a plane to Texas. L.A. didn't have anything left to keep her and with her parents divorce to be finalized soon, she saw no point in hanging around anymore. It's not like they noticed her anymore anyway.

She watched Zac walk away, with a bounce in his step and a smile on his face, and felt her heart break  over the loss she knew he was about to feel. SHe was already experienceing it herself, but there was no going back now. She had done all the work for the apprenticeship and had completed the online classes to not have to go to university. Zac hadn't even known she was doing all the extra work over the past two years, he was so busy with the theater crowd, a party or Layla. It really surprised her that he even considered her his beast friend anymore. Even when the Mike thing happened.I'm sure he will be just fine without me.

*****

"Ladies and Gentlemen, i present to you the graduating class of 1996." Cheers went up loudly, caps flew into the air, hugs, kisses and back pats were given. Zac sat in the middle os the celebration feeling like a complete ass. He had been unable to find Madeline and apologize. SHe had been right and he needed to tell her that. He figured what had really made it worse was that it was his buddy, Jack that he had found with Layla. Talk about being kicked in the gut.

They all filed out and were dismissed, everyone going with their families. He found his sisters, but didn't see Maddy anywhere. "Hey, Zac! Who ya looking for?"

"Maddy. We had a fight and i wanted to apologize to her."

"You guys are still friends? Y'all haven't really hung out all year. Or last year, now that i think of it." Zac looked curiously at his sister.

"Of course we have, she's my best friend." He thought he saw her talking to the principal, but he wasn't sure. "I think i found her, give me a second"

Zac found her getting into her car. "Hey, wait! Where ya goin'?"

"I'm leaving."

"Well, why don't I come with you? We didn't really have anything but lunch planned after this, I can miss it."

"No, Zac. I'm leaving. Have fun at college, I'm sure you'll do great with the theater program I'll look for your name on Broadway."

"What are you talking about? Where are you going?"

"Away. I've got an apprenticeship to get to, and a paying job that starts in a week. I'll see you around."

"But...why didn't you tell me?"

Maddy turned to him and willed herself not to cry. Hopefully she could do this without him seeing how much she hurt. "Are you aware that the night you told Mike off was the first night in six months that you had come to my house? That you had had more than a three sentence conversation with me in the same amount of time? Then you meet your piece of trash girlfriend that same night and completely blow me off. Do you even remember what i'm doing the apprenticeship for? We talked about it for more than six years before i even started the work for it."

Zac looked dumbfounded. He was trying to remember, but for some reason he couldn't. WHen he met her eyes, she just nodded a smidge and turned back to the car door. "I'll see you around. Maybe when you've figured out what you want."

He was too stunned to do anything but watch her drive away.