from his shoulder, and his intense, beautiful eyes locked with mine. Panic coursed through me, making my eyes wild and my face white as a ghost, but he didn’t stare at me like I was some pathetic loser.
Maddox waited patiently. Because he believed in me.
I chewed on my lip as I tried to calm my breathing. The muscles in my body spasmed, but I fought to stay conscious.
“Put me in the car, Maddox.” I tried to sound firm, but my voice only came out as weak as the cries of a newborn kitten.
He pressed his lips together, searching my eyes. Maybe he saw the resolve in them because he nodded. We got to our feet, and I struggled to stand upright. This time, when Maddox opened the passenger door, I climbed into the car on unsteady legs. I slumped into the seat, my heart banging viciously against my ribs.
He placed the seatbelt around me as I held onto my seat, knuckles white, fingers aching with how tight I was holding on.
He pressed his thumb over my full lips, putting them away from my teeth. “Trust me,” Maddox rasped.
Trust him? I did, wholly and truly, with all my heart.
That was the scariest part.
“We’re doing this.”
He grinned. “No, you are doing this.”
Maddox closed the door, and I watched him move around the car to the driver’s seat. He climbed in, and I took a deep breath. His hands were on the steering wheel, waiting.
“Do it, Maddox.” I trust you.
“Before we do this, I need to tell you something,” he paused. I cocked my head, waiting. “Those yoga pants you’re wearing should be illegal, Garcia.”
My lips parted, and a sudden laughter bubbled up from my chest.
“Maddox!” I was still laughing when he turned the ignition, and, without me realizing, the car started rolling forward.
My smile slipped off my face, and I gasped.
“Oh God.” My breath stuttered.
That night… the memories…
Everything hit me at once, and I was drowning, sinking… dying.
I can’t breathe.
Maddox grasped my hand. “I got you.” His deep voice was soft but powerful, with a rich silky tone. “Lila.”
“I am.” Mom… dad… I love you. I love you so much. Can you hear me? I’m sorry.
A warm hand folded around mine. “I’m right here. You’re not dying.”
So warm, so strong, so familiar.
Cold wind brushed against my sweaty, overheating skin.
“Open your eyes, Lila.” No.
“Trust me,” he said.
Anguish twisted my stomach. I pressed a hand over my chest, trying to rub the ache away. My eyes fluttered open as I wheezed through each breath.
My window had been rolled down, hence the breeze brushing up against my hair. And…
Oh my God.
“Beautiful, isn’t it?” Maddox spoke.
I couldn’t blink, couldn’t take my eyes off the pink and orange sky. The sunset. We were apparently driving over a hill, and I recognized that it wasn’t too far from my house. I never knew the sunset could be so beautiful up here, like this…
I couldn’t stop the tears burning my eyes and threatening to spill. They slid down my cheeks, and I choked back a cry.
“Maddox,” I breathed, my hands shaking in both fear and… something else, I didn’t know. Maybe in relief?
“Look out and feel the wind, Lila. I got you. You’re safe.”
I brought my head closer to the window and felt the breeze against my face. More tears spilled down my cheeks. My stomach churned with an anxious feeling. Panic and fear thrummed through my veins.
But…
I was in a car.
Maddox was driving.
I was… alive.
My lips wobbled with a smile. “Hey, Maddox?”
“If you’re about to confess your undying love to me, I’m going to tell you to stop right there, Sweet Cheeks,” he rumbled.
“Still an asshole, I see.”
Maddox chuckled, and my stomach fluttered. Thank you.
“Friends?” I asked, showing him my pinky. It was something so silly to do, but it was us.
He grinned and hooked his finger around mine. “Friends.”
Maddox drove for hours, until the sunset disappeared and the stars came out in the dark sky. He eventually stopped the car over a hill and cranked up the radio, which was ironically playing Lauv’s There’s No Way. He reached behind him to the backseat and handed me a small brown paper bag.
I peeked inside and smiled. A mint chocolate muffin. I took a bite, my eyes going to Maddox to find that he was already looking at me.