Artists Curse

Maddie didn't move from his lap or even let go of his neck. Silly as it was, she would have felt more awkward moving and dragging attention to the situation than just staying as she was.

"I, uh, probably have to get back to my r-room. I'm already way past curfew...and — Is cherry a compliment?" Her voice was getting higher the longer she talked. Stop talking Maddie. Stop talking. You're embarrassing yourself.

"Scenic," Maddie said before giving herself time to think. Her cheek was hot to the touch, and it only grew hotter when he had poked her.

"I should...probably let go of you, huh?' She asked. Nervousness and uncertainty filled her voice. Despite this, she didn't let go.

Maddie couldn't remember hugging a boy before, excluding her adoptive father who didn't count. It was much warmer and firmer than hugging a girl, not that Maddie had ever hugged anyone outside of her family.

She wondered if this would be considered hugging or cuddling? For the sake of her poor already shaken nerves, she decided to couple it with hugging. Yup, def only hugging. One hundred and ten percent.

Behind every other concept swarming her head and drowning her thought process, Maddie believed the hug was nice. She felt safe in it. Was that what it was always like to hug a boy? Safe and warm and firm?

Maddie cried out and buried her face into his neck, her grip like iron.

"Don't lemme go, don't lemme go!" she screamed in terror.

When he stopped, she hesitantly peeked out. "Are we dead?"

Then she saw the city and her mouth gaped. Her arms loosened around his neck as she leaned away to get a better look.

"Pretty..." she reached one hand out and pretended to pinch one of the lights. "I feel like a giant up here," she said with a giggle.

Her laughter shook her body and the moment it did, Maddie squealed and fell back into him.

"Y-You better not drop me."

"It's pretty...but..." she looked at him to the ground. "Okay, just pretty. Very pretty."

She relaxed, the tension that had plagued her slowly ebbed away to nothingness. Soon, Maddie was only enjoying herself.

She was starting to point out stars to him, saying what she believed they looked like.

"That's a bunny with a cape! And that one is a vampire eating cereal. Mm, cereal sounds good. Speaking of cereal, that's a bowl of Trix!"

Maddie's mouth fell open. "Nu-uh!"

She searched out where he had pointed, but she had trouble seeing this serpent. "Really? The whole world? We could go to China right now and still see it?"

She wiggled excitedly in his arms, trying to look over his shoulder as if she might see the end of this constellation.