Match Made in Quarantine

25. This or That

After playing a few games on his console and another questions game, I felt like I had a mild buzz going. Compared to Maddox though, it was nothing. He'd had at least six beers by now and the most shocking part was that it didn't seem to have affected him. It seemed like I wasn't going to get to ask him the questions I really wanted.

"What?" He asked and I looked at him in confusion. He pointed to his forehead and smiled, "You were frowning."

Ah, lovely.

"I was wondering if I'd gotten you drunk enough." I blurted out, clearly my already thin filter becoming very much non-existent after three beers.

His eyes widened for a moment and then he chuckled, shaking his head. "Full of surprises..." Taking another large sip of his beer, he turned toward me and spread his arms in an open gesture, "Ask away, love."

A pleasant shiver ran through me at this new nickname and I had to actively remind myself not to read into anything he says.

I took a deep breath and played with a strand of my hair, wondering how I should start. "Um, you are your dad... aren't close?"

He snorted as if I'd said something utterly ridiculous, "Not close... I don't think we even live on the same planet." he shook his head, a dark expression crossing his face, "He was never a loving father but when mom died he stopped being a father all together. To be honest, I think when he lost her, he lost what still made him human." He shrugged as if everything he just said wasn't completely horrifying, "He's a venture capitalist now, heartless is part of his resume."

I was quiet for a moment, processing the information he'd just shared and screaming internally. My life wasn't perfect, but at least I knew both of my parents loved me.

"So your grandma..."

"Is my Mom's mom. She took care of me, put me on the right path. I was eleven when Mom died and I... I wasn't doing well for a few years. Got bullied at school, acted out, you know how it goes...." He said, scratching the back of his head - his usual nervous habit.

"You were bullied at school?" I asked in complete shock. I'd envisioned him as the quarterback prom king type. Not the troubled, bullied kid. My mind spun in confusion.

"Yeah, is that so surprising?" I just nodded and he let out a dark chuckle, "I was a biracial kid in a private school, without a mom and with a dad that kept being featured in Business Insider. Things were kind of stacked up against me when I was going through puberty."

Wow. I would have never guessed that and I couldn't help but feel guilty about my ignorance. I kept calling him an asshole but as it turns out, I was kind of the asshole.

"So what..." I started, unsure of how to even phrase the question.

"Changed?" He guessed what I was wondering and shrugged, "I did, I guess. Observed people, learned what they wanted from me, gave them that... You know what they say, it's survival of the fittest so..." He pointed to himself and forced a smile I could tell was fake, "I became the fittest."

I was speechless. Tears pooled in my eyes and I bit down on my lip to keep them from spilling over. We make so many assumptions about people without knowing their story. Without even wanting to know their story. Almost like we so desperately want this person to be exactly how we assumed they were and refuse to hear anything that would contradict it. I'd never really thought about it before but....

"People suck." I said the ending to my thought out loud, earning a chuckle from Maddox, "I'm so sorry you went through that." I continued, trying to find the right words for his story.

He reached out and ruffled my hair, peering into my eyes. "Hey, it's fine. Don't go crying over a past I don't even think about anymore. It's not worth it." He said in his kind voice that only made me want to cry more. Noticing his words had only made my eyes glisten with a new coat of tears, he sighed.

"You're really..." He started shaking his head, "I've never met someone who cries for others so easily."

Licking his lips, he used his index finger to lift my chin and force me to meet his eyes before he spoke again.

"I really do like you, you know. I'm not just playing around."

My chest squeezed. All oxygen seemed to disappear from the surrounding air. The dizziness in my head intensified.

Caught completely off guard, I couldn't steel myself against his words. They ravaged through my body like a firestorm, burning everything in its path. My eyes flickered between his eyes and his lips. Those lips that I'd been wanting to taste for longer than I'd even admit to myself. I took a deep breath, realizing those three beers had completely annihilated my resistance to his charm.

Unexpectedly, he let out a sigh and stood up, "Sorry, I know that was abrupt. I just... wanted you to know I was serious." His voice had a barely noticeable hint of sadness, "Anyway, it's past midnight already, we should get to bed." He said and stretched, starting to walk away from the couch.

"Wait." I stopped him, knowing fully well I was about to do something incredibly dumb. 

Hi lovelies! ❤️

So, I posted this a few hours later than I've been posting these days, because I've had like the biggest migraine since yesterday. I'm so sorry if it affected the quality of this chapter! 😭

I try not to overthink stuff and just post it cause I know I can always fix things when I go into the editing phase but still... 

I hope you liked this chapter regardless. How do you feel about the little bits of information about Maddox? 

Also, if anyone is down to play a round of this or that with me, here's a few questions

Pizza or burgers?

Love or money?

Rain or snow?

Fire or ice? 

Sweet or salty? 

Hehe, I'd love to hear your answers if you're willing to share! ❤️

Anyway, so today marks the end of my 7-day upload schedule! Can you believe it's been a week already? Did you like this daily update schedule?

I'm considering continuing with daily updates, as long as you guys wouldn't mind if I missed a day in case I really need it.

Thank you so much for reading, and commenting, and voting and just existing. You guys are the best! ❤️ (Now, I'm off to reply to all the comments from yesterday that I missed due to my headache)

Stay strong and stay safe.