Discover Top Posts Tagged with #jennifer oc

I Bet You Think About Me

Chapter 2: One Hell Of A Stupid Idea

Wally x Maddie

Info and warnings: alive AU, swearing, Simon is protective over Maddie, the cheerleaders are mean, alcohol themes

Summary: Maddie and Wally set the ground rules for their fake relationship before putting the first stage of their plain into motion.

Masterlist

Wally rested one hand on the steering wheel while the other drummed absently against the center console. The radio played softly through the speakers, but he wasn’t listening to a single word.

What the fuck were you thinking? He let out a frustrated sigh. Fake dating? Seriously? It had sounded like a brilliant idea, both of them could benefit from. Now actually thinking about it, it sounds completely insane.

Maddie probably thought it was the stupidest plan to ever exist in all of history. She’s probably telling her mom about the weird football captain who’d suggested they pretend to date after knowing each other for exactly one afternoon.

He groaned, rubbing a hand over his face. “Nice one, Clark.”

He pulled into the long driveway of his house and killed the engine. Running a hand down his face, he groaned. The front door swung open as the last of the book club ladies headed home for the night. He hoped if he stayed in his truck, they wouldn’t notice he was there. He couldn’t deal with them right now.

Then his phone buzzed on the passenger seat. Expecting another message from Chloe or Livia, he picked it up with a sigh.

Instead, Maddie’s name filled the screen.

Maddie: I’m in.

Wally blinked. “… Huh?”

He read the message again, and then a third time.

She’d actually agreed to his ridiculous not well thought out plan.

A nervous laugh escaped him before he leaned back against the driver's seat. “Well… shit.”

Now came the hard part. Getting Maddie to agree had somehow been the easy part. But convincing the rest of Split River High that the football captain and the girl he’d barely spoken to in eighteen years had suddenly started dating? That was going to take a hell of a lot more than one stupid idea.

He opened their message thread, his thumbs hovering over the keyboard. Before they told anyone, they needed rules. They needed a story. Above all else, they needed to make it believable.

Wally: Told you I was a genius.

He stared at the screen, waiting for the three little dots that showed she was typing.

Maddie: That’s still debatable.

Wally: Ouch.

Maddie: You’ll survive, Clark

Madde: So how is this meant to work anyway?

Wally: How about we meet at the lookout tomorrow at ten? we can go over everything then.

Maddie: Okay. See you then.

Wally let out a breath as he climbed out of the truck and headed up the driveway.

Inside, he was greeted by the scent of chocolate chip cookies and coffee. His mother, Bea, was in the kitchen cleaning the last few dishes.

“Hey, Wally,” Bea called from the kitchen. “How was football practice?”

Wally entered the kitchen, taking a cookie from the plate on the counter before sitting on a bar stool.

“It was fine. Coach thinks we have a high chance of winning the game next week.”

Bea glanced up. “Well, of course you guys will win. They have you as their captain and their starting linebacker.”

Wally bit into the cookie. “Mmm hmm.”

“How was Charley’s tonight, or did football practice run late?” Bea asked.

“Neither. We got a new project in English, and Mr. Anderson picked the partners. I got paired with Maddie Nears, so I was at her house working on the project.” “Oh,” Bea said as the sink drained and she dried her hands. “Just be careful when you’re at her house. Her mother is an alcoholic. You don’t know what goes on in that house, Wally. I don’t want you getting caught up in it with college being so close.”

Wally narrowed his eyes. “I can’t believe you just said that, Mom.”

“What?” Bea replied. “Everyone in town knows Sandra is an alcoholic.”

“That has nothing to do with Maddie.”

“I don’t care. After this project, I don’t want you around her anymore. College and football are your top priorities.”

Wally rolled his eyes. “You’re being ridiculous, and you fucking know it.”

Wally pushed back his chair and left the kitchen, heading upstairs to his room.

“This conversation isn’t over, Walter.” Bea called.

“Yeah, it is,” Wally muttered, shutting his door shut.

Wally shut his bedroom door and dropped his bag onto the floor with a sigh. He sat on the edge of his bed, elbows resting on his knees as he rubbed both hands over his face. He couldn’t believe what his mom had just said.

Maddie wasn’t her mother. Sure, Sandra had made mistakes. Everyone in Split River knew that – or some extent of that. But after spending just one afternoon with Maddie, Wally had seen something entirely different. She worked after school. She cooked her own dinner. She’d practically raised herself, and somehow she’d still turned out kind, hardworking, and determined.

He’d only known her for a few hours, but he already knew there was a lot more to Maddie Nears than the rumours people loved to spread.

Wally leaned back against his headboard, letting out a slow breath. Then his eyes landed on the phone beside him. Right. The plan. He picked it up and opened the notes app, starting at the blank page for a moment before typing a title.

Operation: Fake Girlfriend.

He snorted to himself. “I spend way too much time with Charley.”

Deleting the title, he started again.

How to convince Split River we’re dating.

If they were going to pull this off, they couldn’t just tell people they were together and hope for the best. They needed a story. They needed rules. Most importantly, they needed to think ten steps ahead, because a town like Split River, everyone knew everyone’s business.

On the drive to the lookout, Maddie was starting to doubt the plan. It had sounded almost foolproof when Wally suggested it yesterday, but now the reality of it was beginning to sink in. She’d only really known him for a day, and somehow they were going to convince their best friends -and everyone at school - that they were dating. Before yesterday, she could barely remember a single interaction she’d ever had with him.

The plan seemed simple enough – pretend to date long enough for Chloe, Livia and the rest of the bitch pack to leave them both alone. Simple, right? Maddie wasn’t sure. It wasn’t just the lying that worried her; it was everything that came with it. Holding hands. Sitting together at lunch. Convincing everyone they were a couple. She’d never been one for public displays of affection. Even when she was with Xavier, she rarely kissed him at school or when they were out around town. But if this plan was going to work, she’d have to get used to the idea, much to her discomfort.

More than anything, she couldn’t picture herself pulling it off. How was anyone supposed to believe she and Wally Clark had suddenly fallen for each other? She pulled into the lookout parking lot and climbed out of her car. The air was finally starting to warm up now that the last remnants of winter snow were slowly melting away.

They hadn’t specifically agreed on where to meet, so Maddie made her way to an old wooden bench overlooking the town. It had been years since she’d been up here, and she’d forgotten how beautiful the view was. The tall trees, the river winding through the middle of town, and the football stadium sitting in the distance all stretched out before her.

She pulled her copy of Dead Girls Don’t Talk by Joanne Carlton from her tote bag, flipped to her bookmark, and continued reading while she waited for Wally to arrive.

A few minutes later, the sound of a truck pulling into the space behind her drew her attention away from the book. She slipped the bookmark between the pages, tucked the novel back into her bag, and stood.

“Hey, Maddie.” Wally said as he walked over.

She glanced at him to find him dressed in workout clothes, a backpack slung over one shoulder.

“Please tell me you’re not expecting me to go for a run,” Maddie said.

Wally chuckled. “Relax. It’s just what I told my mom I was doing.”

“Good. Because I wouldn’t have gone with you.”

“I figured.”

“So,” Maddie said, taking a seat again, “how’s this supposed to work?”

Wally pulled out his phone and opened the Notes app, taking a seat beside her. “I figured we should come up with a few rules before we get into the details of the plan.”

“That works.”

“Okay, he said. “Rule one?”

Maddie didn’t hesitate. “If either of us feels uncomfortable for any reason, we stop. Immediately.”

Wally nodded, typing it down. “No questions asked.”

“Exactly.”

He looked back at the screen. “Rule two. Nobody can know it's fake.”

“Not our friends. Not our families. No one,” Maddie added.

“If one person finds out, the whole town will know by lunchtime.”

She laughed. “That’s insanely accurate.”

“Rule three,” Wally continued. “We keep the lies as close to the truth as possible.”

“So we actually have a chance of remembering them?”

“Exactly.”

Maddie nodded. “I can live with that.”

Wally tapped his phone thoughtfully before grinning. “Oh, and rule four. Don’t go falling in love with me.”

Maddie stared at him for a second before letting out a laugh. “Wally, I can promise you that’s not going to happen. Ever.”

He placed a hand dramatically over his chest. “You wound me.”

She rolled her eyes, unable to hide a smile. “You’ll be fine.”

Wally slipped his phone back into his pocket and leaned against the bench. “Now we need to figure out how to make everyone believe us.”

Maddie let out a quiet sigh. “I still can’t believe I’m agreeing to this.”

“You’ll survive.”

“I’ll decide after this is all over.”

A smile tugged at the corner of Wally’s mouth before he turned serious again. “The biggest mistake we could make is announcing we’re dating on Monday. Nobody would believe it.”

Maddie nodded. “Because we’ve barely spoken to each other for the last eighteen years.”

“Right. We need to ease people into it.”

She folded her arms. “Okay… how?”

“Nothing dramatic,” Wally said. “I’ll start waiting for you before English, and we’ll walk to class together. One day during the week you can come sit with me, Charley and Rhonda at lunch.”

“For a little while,” Maddie corrected. “I’m not ditching Simon and Nicole.”

“Fair enough. Then after practice one afternoon, you can wait for me before we head back to your place to work on the project.”

Maddie considered it for a moment before nodding. “That actually makes sense. If anyone asks, we’re not even lying. We’re just spending time together because of the project.”

“Exactly,” Wally said. “Then if people start asking questions, we don’t confirm anything, but we don’t deny it either.”

Maddie couldn’t help but smile. “You’re really counting on this town loving gossip.”

Wally laughed. “Have you met the people in this town? It's like gossip is their middle name.”

She looked back over the lookout at Split River stretched out below them and shook her head with a quiet laugh. “Fair point.”

“By the following week,” Wally continued,” people will already think something’s going on. All we have to do is tell them we’ve started seeing each other.”

Maddie thought about it for another moment. The plan was insane, but the more they talked it through, the more believable it became. “I hate to admit that this might actually work.”

Wally grinned. “Told you I was a genius and not an idiot.”

She rolled her eyes. “That’s still debatable.”

Monday morning came faster than Maddie was prepared for. She rolled out of bed still exhausted after staying up until three am on a school night isn’t ideal. Not like she’d had much of a choice.

Sandra had come home Sunday night reeking of alcohol after a long day at work. Maddie has spent hours cleaning up every time her mother threw up, making sure she drank water and convincing her to eat something before she finally fell asleep on the couch. By then, it was already three a.m.

None of it was new to her. It was sad how she’d accepted it as her normal, being the one to look after her mom instead of the other way around. She’d been so busy cleaning that she never got around to making dinner, settling for an apple instead after Sandra finally stopped getting sick – for only a little while anyway. Her homework was still sitting untouched in her backpack, but thankfully she had study hall first period to finish it.

She padded into the living room and sure enough, Sandra was still passed out softly snoring with the cushion beneath her head stained from drool. Maddie quietly made her way back down the hall to the bathroom and took a quick shower, standing beneath the cold water for a few extra minutes in the hope it might wake her up.

A few minutes later, she was dressed and heading out the door. She grabbed her keys from the hook, sent Nicole a quick text letting her know she was driving herself to school, then quietly closed the door behind her, making sure she didn’t wake her mom. She didn’t have the energy to deal with another conversation this morning.

The drive to school was short. As she pulled into the parking lot, she gave herself one last glance in the rear-view mirror, smoothing down the flyaways around her face before applying a layer of lip balm. Satisfied that she looked at least somewhat awake, she climbed out the car and headed inside.

She weaved through the busy hallway, stepping around groups of students who had decided the middle of the corridor was the perfect place to stop and talk. When she finally reached her locker, Wally was already waiting for her, two takeaway coffee cups in one hand and his backpack slung over one shoulder.

“Morning,” Wally said, holding one of the cups out to her. “I didn’t know how you take your coffee, so I guessed.”

Maddie accepted it with a grateful smile. “I’ll drink it however its given to me. I don’t really have a preference.

She took a sip before turning to her locker and grabbing the books she needed for study hall.

“I really needed this this morning,” she admitted. “I didn’t get much sleep last night, so… thanks.”

Wally nodded. He wanted to ask why she hadn’t slept, but only knowing her for a couple of days, it didn’t feel like his place. Instead, he tucked the thought away in case it came up another time.

“Anytime,” he said. “So, what’ve you got first period?”

“Thankfully, study hall,” Maddie replied as she shut her locker. “I didn’t get around to my social studies homework last night.”

“Oh, nice. I’ve got math.”

Just then, Simon and Nicole round the corner before stopping in their tracks at the sight of Wally standing beside Maddie’s locker.

“Uh… hi,” Simon said cautiously.

“Morning,” Wally replied with an easy smile.

Maddie glanced between the three of them. “We were just talking about our English project.”

Simon nodded slowly, his eyes dropping to the takeaway coffee cup in Maddie’s hand before flicking back to Wally.

“…Right.”

Nicole nudged Simon with her elbow, silently telling him to knock it off.

“So,” she said, smiling at Maddie, “looks like you survived your first study session.”

“I did,” Maddie laughed. “We actually got a decent amount done.”

Wally nodded. “We’re making good progress.”

“Good,” Niccole said. “At least one of us is. Charley spent half our study session talking about some guy he likes instead of Mary Shelley.”

Wally laughed. “Sounds about right.”

Maddie smiled before turning back to Wally. “Ready to go?”

“Yep.”

Before they headed down the hallway, Maddie looked back over her shoulder. “I’ll catch up with you guys later.”

“See you.” Nicole called.

Simon simply watched the pair disappear into the crowd before finally speaking. “…That was really fucking weird.” Nicole closed her locker. “They’re doing a project together, Simon. They probably just want to get to know each other.”

“I know they’re doing a project together,” he replied. “I just don’t remember you telling me the assignment including coffee before school.”

Nicole couldn’t help but laugh. “Maybe he was just being nice.”

Simon folded his arms. “He’s the captain of the football team. Nice isn’t exactly the reputation they have.”

“Teo’s on the football team.”

Simon sighed. “Okay, Teo gets a pass. The rest of them don’t.”

Nicole shook her head. “We don’t know if Wally’s like that. Besides, it’s only for two weeks.”

Simon wasn’t convinced. “I’ve just got a bad feeling about him.”

The pair made their way through the crowded hallway, talking about nothing in particular as they headed toward study hall.

When they reached the door, Wally slowed to a stop. “Well, this is you.”

“Thank you, captain obvious,” Maddie said sarcastically.

Wally laughed. “See you later, Nears.”

“Bye.”

Wally disappeared down the hall as Maddie turned into the room. She weaved her way through the desks to the back of the room, taking a seat at one of the desks, then she noticed Chloe and Livia glancing at her.

Maddie looked up. “What?”

“Since when do you talk to Wally Clark?” Chole asked.”

“Since I got partnered with him for English,” Maddie replied simply. “You know, the class you’re in?”

Chloe folded her arms. “Then why is he walking you to class?”

“It’s called being nice. Ever heard of it?” Maddie deadpanned.

Livia glanced down at the coffee on her desk with Wally spelt on the side of the cup. “Nice enough to buy you coffee, apparently.”

Maddie rolled her eyes. “Didn’t know buying someone a coffee came with an interrogation.”

Chloe raised a brow. “Whatever. Just don’t get the wrong idea.”

“Trust me,” Maddie replied dryly. “I’m not.”

The rest of the school day passed quickly, and before Maddie knew it, it was English – the last lesson of the day. One by one, students filtered into Mr. Anderson’s classroom, dragging their desks together with their project partners before he arrived.

Maddie slid the desk beside hers into place for Wally while Nicole did the same for Charley.

“I swear, if Charley talks about his crush one more time,” Nicole muttered, as she sat down, “I’m actually going to hit him.”

Maddie laughed. “I don’t know Charley all that well, but even I can tell he’s a rambler.

As if on cue, Wally and Charley walked over, dropping their backpacks beneath their desks.

“Who’s a rambler?” Charley asked.

“You are,” Maddie and Nicole said in unison.

Charley placed a hand over his chest dramatically. “I would normally be offended… but you’re not wrong.” He turned to Nicole with a grin. “Anyway, I have to tell you what happened with Yuri in gym today.”

Wally set his books on the desk and pulled out his laptop. “I have to tell you something about gym too.”

Before Maddie could ask, Mr. Anderson walked into the classroom carrying a coffee in one hand and a stack of papers in the other.

“Ah, thank you all for sitting with your partners,” he said, setting everything down on his desk. “Makes my job a whole lot easier.”

He glanced around the room before continuing. “Keep working through your projects. I want a rough draft by Wednesday.”

A chorus of groans echoed around the classroom.

“You can complain all you want,” he said with a grin. “I’m still not extending the deadline.”

A few students laughed.

“Now quit whining and get to work. I can’t enjoy my coffee if all I hear is you lot complaining.”

More laughter spread across the room as everyone opened their laptops.

Maddie pulled up the document they’d started on Friday before glancing at Wally.

“So,” she said, “what happened in gym?”

“Chloe came up to me after gym,” Wally said as he typed a few sentences on the document.

“About this morning, I’m assuming?”

He nodded. “She wanted to know why I brought you coffee.”

“What’d you tell her?”

Wally shrugged. “I just said I didn’t see why it was such a big deal and that I could buy coffee for whoever I wanted.”

Maddie smiled faintly. “That would’ve annoyed her.”

“It definitely did.”

She laughed quietly before scrolling through another website. “They stopped me in study hall too. Chloe asked why you walked me to class, then Livia noticed your name written on the coffee cup.”

Wally let out a quiet groan. “I forgot they write names on the cups.”

“Honestly,” Maddie said, keeping her voice low, “I don’t think that helped your case.”

“Probably not.”

Before either of them could say anything else, Mr. Anderson stopped beside their desks, coffee mug in hand. “Are you two actually working, or are you solving the many mysteries of the universe?”

Wally laughed. “Working. I save solving the mysteries of the universe for the weekend.”

Mr. Anderson chuckled. “Good. Carry on.”

The rest of class passed in a blur before the final bell rang.

“Alright everyone,” Mr. Anderson called. “Please send me through a rough draft by Wednesday morning so I have time to go over them before class on Friday.”

The sound of chairs scraping against the linoleum filled the room as students packed up and headed for the door. Maddie turned to Wally before he left for football practice.

“I’ve got a shift at the bookstore tonight, so I can’t work on the project. Does tomorrow after school work for you?”

Wally nodded. “Works for me. See you tomorrow, Nears.”

Maddie grinned. “Bye, Clark.”

Maddie and Nicole walked together to their lockers, where Simon was waiting for them.

“I hope you both are ready for movie night tonight,” Simon said. “I picked a good one.”

“I can’t,” Maddie replied. “I have a shift tonight.”

“It’s Monday. Since when do you work on Mondays?”

“I told you I swapped my Saturday morning shift with Dawn.” Maddie said as she opened her locker.

Simon frowned. “No, you didn’t.”

“Yes I did,” Maddie said, sorting through her books before closing the locker. “Remember? My mom and I went to see my grandma.”

“I don’t remember you saying it either,” Nicole admitted as she zipped up her backpack. “But that’s okay. We can watch the movie tomorrow night.”

“I can’t tomorrow either. I have to work on my project with Wally.”

Simon raised an eyebrow. “So you’re blowing off your best friends to be with Wally?”

“I’m not blowing you off, Si,” Maddie replied. “I have a project to finish, and we have to submit a rough draft by Wednesday. We need to work on it.”

She slipped her phone out of her pocket and glanced at the time. “I’ve got to go. My shift starts in ten minutes. I’ll see you tomorrow.”

Without waiting for a response, Maddie waved goodbye and disappeared down the hallway.

Simon watched her go. “There’s something going on with her.”

Nicole rolled her eyes as she closed her locker. “Give her a break Si. She literally just got cheated on, her ex-boyfriend is now dating the girl he cheated with, and everything going on with her mom… I don’t blame her for forgetting things from time to time. She’s got a lot on her plate.”

Simon shoved his hands into his pockets as he and Nicole walked to the exit. “I just… don’t want her getting close to Wally and having him hurt her.”

Nicole stopped walking and turned to face him. “Si, we can’t stop that from happening if it does. All we can do is support her. Right now, they’re just getting to know each other because of this project. Who knows? Maybe once it’s over, they’ll end up being friends. Maybe not. She’s still our Maddie no matter who she’s friends with.”

Simon let out a long sigh. “I hate when you're right.”

Nicole grinned. “Well, you must hate it a lot, because I am always right.”

The bell jingled above the door as Maddie entered The Split River Books & Brew. She made her way to the register at the front of the store before slipping behind the counter.

“Hello, dear,” Jennifer, the bookstore owner, greeted as Maddie stepped behind the desk.

“Sorry, I’m a bit late, Jen,” Maddie said, clipping on her name tag. “Two jocks thought the parking lot was the perfect place to have an argument before practice.”

“Oh my,” the elderly woman replied. “That’s quite alright, dear. Could you finish reorganising the books in the kids section? A kindergarten class came in earlier, and they left it looking like a tornado went through.”

“Sure thing, Jen.”

Maddie left the counter and made her way through the bookshelves toward the children’s section, carefully stepping around the few customers browsing the store. Books were scattered across the floor. She knelt down to begin placing them back on the shelves when her phone vibrated in her pocket.

She pulled it out, smiling when Wally’s name appeared on the screen.

Wally: Day one of How to convince Split River We’re Dating is complete.

A quiet laugh escaped her before she replied.

Maddie: You really gave our plan a title?

Wally: Yeah.

Wally: I spend way too much time with Charley.

Maddie: You do.

Wally: Anyway, I’ve got to get back to practice. Text later.

Maddie slipped her phone back into her pocket, a smile lingering on her face.

The more she spent with Wally, the more she realized he wasn’t the stereotypical jock she’d always assumed he was. He was kind, funny, and surprisingly thoughtful. He had the sort of golden retriever energy that lit up every room he walked into.

She’d always known who Wally was. It was impossible not to in a town as small as Split River. By the time they got to high school, she’d quietly admitted to herself that he was cute, but that was as far as it ever went. They ran in completely different social circles, so she’d never bothered to look beyond the football captain everyone else saw.

Now, she was beginning to realise there was so much more to him. No, she thought. This is just a fake relationship. Nothing more. They’d even made it a rule not to let it become anything real.

…But a small part of her couldn’t help wondering if maybe that wouldn’t be such a bad thing.

Chapter 1 Chapter 3

Tags: @lover1409 @kellykeyser85 @popcorn-and-lipstick