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Maddie shut the door to her house, noticing Mackenzie on the couch, watching TV. Once the door shut, her sister looked at her, and grinned mischievously at her.
Maddie raised an eyebrow, "What?"
"Mom got a call from your school today."
Even though Maddie was a little nervous by this new discovery, she managed to cross her arms and put on a professional poker face, "Okay...so?"
Mackenzie's grin widened, "You're in trouble." She sang in a sing-songy tone.
Just as she had said that, Maddie heard the unmistakable shout from her mother, "Madison Ziegler! Get up here immediately!"
Maddie felt like she was trying to swallow rocks down her throat as she put her backpack off to the side and walked hesitantly into the kitchen, where her mother stood with her arms crossed and a glare so strong it could wither flowers with just one look.
Well...I'm screwed. Maddie thought glumly, noticing their house phone, still grasped firmly in her hand.
"I got a call from your principal today," She started off, hanging the phone up, "And he told me that you were in a food fight!"
"Mom, I can explain." Maddie replied calmly, even though her heart was hammering in her chest. She'd honestly never seen her mother so furious before, and she was sure she wasn't going to like the outcome of all this.
Her mother stood there, glaring at her in a way that made her want to jump out of her own skin, "Well, I'm waiting. Please explain."
Maddie bit her lip, looking everywhere in the kitchen except for her mother's face, "Well...I was simply going to get some soda, when all of a sudden Gino appeared out of nowhere, teasing me and being annoying, and I just couldn't take it anymore. I snapped, and poured soda all over him," Maddie still refused to make eye-contact, "I'm sorry mom, really I am, and I regret everything I did."
"Well, I'm glad you regret your actions, but that still doesn't get you out of being grounded for three weeks."
Maddie's blue eyes widened in shock, while Mackenzie snorted loudly from the living room.
"What?!" Maddie's voice nearly rose another octave.
Her mother's eyes narrowed, "Just because the principal punished you already doesn't mean I can't. I'm very disappointed in you, Maddie."
Oh no. There it goes again. That immediate, sinking wave of guilt she got every time someone said those five words; I'm very disappointed in you. Maddie swallowed hard, her gaze locking on the ground to hide how hurt she really was. It sounded even worse coming from her own mother, and she silently made the decision that she hated these five words, more than she hated anything else on the planet.
And she vowed to never screw up like this ever again. Because starting tomorrow, she was going to pay the price.
XXX
"Will you stop doing that?!" Maddie snapped, glaring at the brown haired boy as he shot her a lazy smirk. Oh, how she wanted to wipe that smirk off his face. But instead, she balled her fists up and kept them at her sides, so they weren't tempted to connect with Gino's face.
Meanwhile, Gino lounged lazily on his bed, staring up at the ceiling while clicking his pen on and off constantly. Maddie sat at his desk, her chair angled to face him, when secretly she really wanted to throw said chair at him.
"I can't help it," Gino defended, "When I'm bored, my brain finds ways to entertain myself."
Maddie rolled her eyes, "I don't care what you're stupid brain does, just stop clicking that pen. It's annoying as hell."
Gino rolled his eyes, before staring back up at the ceiling, grumbling something under his breath that sounded suspiciously a lot like the word "bitch."
Maddie's eyes narrowed into dangerous blue slits, and before she could stop herself, she grabbed the nearest object on his desk, which was his Xbox game controller, and chucked it at his head. She grinned wickedly when an "oww" came from him, followed by a loud and completely dramatic groan. He sat up on his bed, looking at the controller as if it flipped him the middle finger before glaring at Maddie.
"Really? Why did you have to aim for my head?" He growled.
Maddie shrugged, flashing him a sickly sweet smile, "I don't know. Thought I could probably knock some sense into you."
Gino's brown eyes narrowed, and Maddie's narrowed again. They both glared at each other for a long time.
"You are the most annoying girl I've ever met." Gino suddenly stated.
Maddie snorted, "The feeling's mutual."
She then went back to the history textbook on the desk, and her black composition notebook splayed out on her lap. "Now, what is the word for when the power of a higher court reviews the decisions and changes outcome of the decisions of the lower court?"
Gino shot her a look, "Do you really expect me to know the answer to that?"
"It's 'Appellate Jurisdiction'," Maddie sighed, "Guess no sense was added."
"I heard that, and that's not the reason why." Gino said, easily sliding off his bed, and stretching his arms up over his head, and Maddie was surprised to see a glimpse of abs under his shirt. She knew Gino was an arrogant stud, but she'd never imagine he worked out so much that he had a six-pack.
It was surprising as much as it was disturbing that Maddie was still looking at him.
Gino scrunched his eyebrows together, "What are you staring at, Peanuts?"
Maddie immediately snapped out of her strange daze, and shook her head twice before meeting his coffee colored eyes. "Huh?"
He snorted, "Were you staring at me?"
Maddie's face flushed with so much heat that she was sure it wasn't healthy. "No I wasn't!" She said furiously.
Gino let out a laugh, before shooting her another one of those annoying smirks, "If you wanted me, all you had to do is say so, Peanuts."
"Stop calling me that!" She snapped, hating the way her heart starting beating really quickly in her chest.
"You're only making this worse for yourself." He crossed his arms.
Maddie was at a lost for words. Sure, Gino's teased her flirtatiously before, but this time it was different. Maybe it was because there wasn't a lot of other people watching them, or maybe it was because he was so damn close to her. But why he made her feel strange didn't matter, Gino was just being a jerk as usual and trying to get as off topic as possible.
Yeah, Maddie agreed in her own mind, Gino's a jerk. That's what matters.
"I bet you're picturing me naked right now." Gino spoke up again, and now Maddie was really tempted to throw this chair at him.
But instead, Maddie settled for shooting up from her spot in her chair and glaring daggers at him, "Shut up, you jerk! I know all your doing is trying to get off topic of studying, and it's really, really irritating. I would much rather drink toilet water than be attracted to you, you man slut!"
Gino's feigned sadness, and he put a hand to his chest, "Man slut? Ouch, that one hurt."
"Good, I hope it did because it's true! And aren't you supposed to be fooling around with Kalani, anyway?" Maddie wasn't sure why she added that last part, or why her cheeks flushed again when she did.
Gino just rolled his eyes, "Where'd you hear that from?"
Maddie just raised an eyebrow, suddenly and thoroughly very confused. "What do you mean? Kalani and her little gang of minions have been going around saying that for days, and yesterday she was sitting on your lap at lunch. Not that I care or anything." Maddie added that last part rather quickly.
Too quickly.
Gino seemed thoughtful for a moment, and Maddie was starting to dread bringing this topic up. "Yeah, we fooled around a couple of times, but I never said I was dating her." He then turned back to her, grinning arrogantly, "Why? Are you jealous?"
Maddie barked out a humorless laugh, "Yeah right."
Gino's smile widened, "Sounds pretty jealous to me."
Maddie's eyes then narrowed again, "That could be a possibility, except for the fact that I hate you and everything about you. I don't like Kalani either, and I much rather see the both of you jump off cliffs."
Gino seemed slightly taken aback by Maddie's response, before rolling his eyes. "Well, I wouldn't want to sleep with you if you were the last person on the earth."
"Right back at you, buddy." Maddie retorted.
There was an odd silence that filled the room, and Maddie was growing even more uncomfortable by the minute. She glanced at the digital clock on his desk; 5:32. She still had thirty or so minutes left before she was able to leave, and it was clear neither of them wanted anything to do with each other at the moment since they were both glaring at other objects in the room.
"I'm gonna go pee." Gino muttered, and Maddie glared at him as he walked across his large room to the door on the other side. He twisted open the golden door knob, muttering something under his breath before walking in and shutting it.
Maddie took the opportunity to scrutinize his room. Surprisingly, it was neat for a teenage boy, and huge. With three recliners, a few gaming consoles and a ridiculously large flat screen TV that almost took up most of the side of one wall.
Gino was rich. And as much as Maddie loathed him, she couldn't help but envy his huge house, big yard, exquisite and expensive decor around the house, and that stupid flat screen TV that seemed like it was mocking her.
She sighed again, picking up her notebook that she dropped in her fury and flipped it to the correct page. Her eyes ran across the notes she needed to teach him when she heard the toilet flush, and then the sounds of someone turning on the sink.
This room was starting to become more unbearable the longer she stayed her, and she threw a glance back at the digital clock; 5:39. Great.
The door opened, and Maddie didn't bother to look as Gino's footsteps echoed through the room, before she heard him plop down on something soft that wasn't his bed. She heard the switch of the TV being turned on, and she looked up to see him changing the channel.
Angered, Maddie stood up from her chair again, and walked around until she was standing right in front of him, her hands on her hips, "And what exactly do you think your doing?"
Gino ignored her, turning up the volume of the TV, even though he couldn't see two thirds of it.
Maddie was even more irritated at his rude gesture, and snatched the remote from his hand. Before he could protest, she already had the TV switched off, and the remote stuffed up her armpit, in a holding place to keep it away from him. Gino's eyes widened, before they narrowed as he glared at her.
"Give it back."
Maddie tapped her chin as if she was actually debating this idea, before she gave a smirk of her own at him, "No, I don't think so."
Gino's jaw clenched, "You better give it back...or else."
"Or else what?" Maddie countered boldly, getting even more in his face, like Gino would typically do if the positions were reversed.
His fists clenched, but Maddie wasn't scared. Instead, she slowly reached for the remote that was secured under her left armpit and waved it tauntingly in his face. She'd make him pay for the diary-snatching. "Hmm...you know, this is a pretty cool remote. I think I'm gonna keep it."
She started chuckling, but didn't expect Gino to lunge out of the chair and straight for her. Maddie let out a small shriek, before starting to run for the open door leading out of Gino's room, and he of course ran after her.
She turned down the hall quickly, and raced down the stairs. It was a miracle she didn't trip on the seven-thousand-something stairs Gino's house seemed to own.
"Give me back the remote, you annoying little midget!" Gino shouted, easily gliding down the stairs.
"Never in a million years!" Maddie shouted over her shoulder, as she turned another corner and was suddenly in a large kitchen that look like it came out of Martha Stewart's magazine. She had little time to actually admire the Cosculleula's kitchen before she heard that sound of Gino's footsteps as her turned the corner as well. She began running again, praying that she wouldn't slip on the sleek white tiled floor in her blue and purple ankle socks.
"I'm serious Peanuts, give me back my remote!" He called out.
"Appearently not all that serious if you're still calling me 'Peanuts'." Maddie retorted.
She turned a corner again, and nearly did a double take when Gino was standing there in front of her. She knew she was short, but the way Gino was looming over her made an uncomfortable knot form in her stomach. And she started to back away, as subtly as she could.
"How...how did you get there so fast?" She couldn't help but ask.
Gino's smirk widened so much that she was sure it took up the lower half of his face as he took intimidatingly slow steps forward, "I know this house inside out. I do live here, after all."
Well...crap. Right around this corner was the front door, and so far her only exit.
She narrowed her eyes, "I'm not scared of you, so stop acting like a freaking as-"
She didn't get to finish that sentence because it was cut off by a growl as Gino lunged at her, tackling to the ground for the remote. Maddie twisted and turned, keeping him just out of grasps, and Gino cursed as he struggled every time. They went on like this for a few more seconds until Gino finally managed to pin Maddie to the floor, his hands holding her arms above her head and her body in-between his legs, putting the right amount of pressure that he could still her without crushing her.
It was then that both of them realized the suggestive, and incredibly awkward position that they put themselves in. They both stared at each other with wide eyes, and when Maddie met his gaze, she couldn't help but feel her cheeks heat up like a stove.
The remote wasn't even in her hands anymore, it was lying on the ground right next to her, and it just made everything ten-thousand million times more awkward.
And to make matters worse, Gino's front door opened, and in came the footsteps of someone until they were in the hallway. Maddie looked up at the tall man that looked vaguely similar to Gino, and felt herself blushing profusely.
The boy rolled his eyes, before his lips pulled into a teasing smirk, "Really Gino? Gonna get it on right here in the hallway?"
"Shut up, Matt." Gino grumbled, finally getting off of Maddie, and she immediately scrambled to her feet.
She was so embarrassed that she couldn't even look up at either of them, but heard the conversation all the same.
"Oh I'm sorry, did I kill the mood?" He teased.
"No! I don't even like her!"
"Then why were you all over her?" He asked, and Maddie bit her lip.
Gino was silent. And the air was awkward for all the wrong reasons. Maddie felt like she was slowly dying of embarrassment the more she stayed here.
"It's not like that Matt. She's just tutoring me." Gino finally said, his voice more quieter than usual.
"Uh huh, sure," His brother drawled sarcastically, "You better be glad I was the one who walked in on you and not dad, little bro."
"I wasn't going to-"
Maddie cleared her throat in a manner to get the brother's attention. Once they both looked up at her, she felt another surge of heat rush to her cheeks before she forced herself to look at Gino, "Um...I'm gonna go."
Gino just gave a curt nod, before picking up the discarded remote on the ground, and stalking out of the hallway. Matt muttered something under his breath before he brushed past her, "You can let yourself out."
All the Cosculluelas are rude jerks, Maddie thought as she crossed her arms, walking over to where she left her shiny brown combat boots in the corner because Gino told her to. She slipped them on, laced them up, and then opened the already cracked open door, before slamming it purposely.
That tutoring session was a lot worse than she'd originally expected.