Madison woke up the next morning but didn't see Joe around. She rubbed the sleep out of her eyes and moved the blanket that was on her. Aww! Joe SO did that ... how cute!
As smitten as Maddy was, she still wasn't sure where her and Joe stood. I'll have to bring that up later...
Maddy walked into the back of the bus and saw the whole clan sitting on the couches; Ellie included.
"Good morning!" Maddy greeted, hugging everyone. Joe was the last on the couch; when Maddy hugged him, he pulled her into his arms and sat her down next to him.
"How'd you sleep last night?" Joe asked, smiling at her.
"Surprisingly well! Thanks for the blanket," Maddy said.
"No problem! It gets cold in the mornings, anyways," Joe said, flipping his hair. Maddy looked up at him and felt a sudden urge to kiss him along his jawline... Damn people had to be in the room with us :[.
"So, what are we doing today?" Maddy asked.
"We don't have any shows today, so we can stop somewhere for a few hours and look around... just do some shopping," Kevin said.
"GOOD! Maddy you promised me more toys!!" Ellie whined. Before Maddy could answer, Nick beat her to it.
"Me and Frankie are gonna go toy shopping, how about you come with us?" Nick offered, smiling at her.
"YAY! Okay! OMG Frankie it's gonna be so much fun! I want those new set of LEGOs that just came out!" Ellie and Frankie started chatting excitedly. Nick gave Maddy and Joe a "I'm So Smooth" look.
"Thanks Nick," Maddy said.
"Well. Now that it's just you and me, we can --" Joe was interrupted by Kevin.
"Well what about me!?" Kevin pouted.
"Like I said. Now that it's just you and me, we can walk around and spend sometime together. Kevin, you can go with mom and dad," Joe said. Kevin glared at Joe.
"That sounds like fun," Maddy said, completely aware of the fact that Joe had wrapped his hand around hers and interlaced their fingers. Out of the corner of her eye, Maddy saw Nick and Kevin glance at each other with smirks.
"Lalalala... its time for me to go!" Kevin said [not very subtly], as he dragged Nick and the kids out of the room.
"Joe... whats gonna happen when the tour ends in a month?" Maddy asked, getting butterflies in her stomach that weren't from Joe caressing her hand. She was nervous, plain and simple. Leaving him, going back home... being alone..
"Well... maybe we can arrange for you to come with us to the Hannah Montana tour," Joe said, somewhat skeptically.
"I don't think that would work... it is HER show afterall, you know?" Maddy said.
"Even if we are separated, its okay! We can get through it," Joe said.
"Joe... I don't want to make this awkward or anything, but... where do we stand right now? Like, are we friends? More?" Maddy asked, biting her lip and realizing that she was kind of anxious to hear his answer.
"Maddy, I honestly like you. A lot. Every part of you, inside and out. The only reason I am currently not your boyfriend is because... well... I just don't know if we have time. You're busy with Ellie and trying to find her a school, and I'm on this tour... and after this, I'm going to go on the Hannah tour... I wouldn't mind, obviously, there's nothing I want more, but... it's up to you," Joe finished. Maddy could tell he was kind of nervous by the way he kept fixing his hair and fiddling with his shirt.
"I totally get that! I really like you. It's at a point where I can't just be friends with you, you know? But I do agree... we seriously don't have time for a relationship. Later perhaps," Maddy said, smiling and snuggling into his chest. He's so warm, and even though he's incredibly muscular, he's really soft... It's like his body was molded for me; everything feels so RIGHT...
*
"So where should we go?" Maddy asked as soon as Joe and her stepped off the bus.
"Hmmm! Maybe we should eat? I'm STARVING!" Joe exclaimed, rubbing his belly.
"Where? There's a cafe right there... a fast food place down the street, an Italian restaurant across from here..." Maddy looked around, trying to find more options. Joe however, was too impatient to wait.
"The cafe! It's the closest!"
"Sure! Wouldn't want you to starve to death or anything, right?" Maddy laughed.
"Well of course not! THEN who would you have to kiss?" Joe replied pompously, quickly kissing Maddy on the lips. Maddy couldn't help but feel surprised. Something about Joe... the way that he didn't make things awkward at all... This whole day she had been wondering what Joe and herself would do after the kiss, but apparently Joe knew. Maddy couldn't help but sigh dreamily. He knew what to say, what to do to make her feel comfortable. And Maddy didn't mind at all that he was so touchy feely. Who freaking would?
"You have a nice jaw," Maddy said simply.
"Why thank you. Is that the only thing you like about me?" Joe said, faking a frown.
"One of the few, yeah," Maddy replied, smiling mischievously at him. Joe let out a loud gasp.
"How dare you insult my manly confidence! You shall pay, woman!" Joe said, starting to tickle Maddy like crazy. Maddy shrieked and tried jumping away from Joe, but his amazingly ripped muscles and fit body was no match for her. He was just too damn amazing.
"Joe! No! Stop! It tickles! AHHH IT HURTSS!" Maddy shrieked, trying to snake her way around the innocent bystanders who were standing there, looking at her strangely. Joe caught her [surprise -_-] and pulled her back into his chest, wrapping his arms around her. Maddy could feel Joe's hard chest pushing up against her back.
"Oh my God, Maddy. You don't know how happy I am that I can finally kiss you know. I swear, I was about to explode," Joe murmured in her hear.
"Trust me sweetcheeks, the pleasure's all mine," Maddy replied smartly. With that, Joe spun her around and kissed her hard on the lips. It just feels SO damn GOOD to be me, ey?
*
Maddy wasn't sure how one month passed. It was surprisngly fast, and Maddy was dreading late October with every fiber of her being. Joe and her had spent every possible moment together, and although they both accepted the fact that she couldn't go on the Hannah tour with them, they were still equally sad. So that's how Joe and Maddy ended up back in L.A., hugging each other tightly and promising to never let each other go. In a few hours, the Jonas family would be heading to St. Louis to start their new tour, and Maddy was horribly depressed.
"Joe, I'm going to miss you like crazy," Maddy complained.
"Maddy, we're going to keep in touch, okay?" Joe said, his hand smoothing the back of her head soothingly.
"Don't forget me!"
"Maddy... how could I forget you?" Joe said.
"Well, you know. Find another girl on tour and suddenly it would be like "maddy who?"" Maddy said.
"Maddy, you mean more to me then you'll ever know," Joe said.
"You mean a lot to me too! It's just that... I gave you my heart and you didn't completely butcher it, unlike every other boy," Maddy remarked, wrapping her arms even tighter around his waist. Joe kissed her on her forehead, her chin, her nose, both her cheeks and her eyes... then on her lips, long and hard.
"I'll be back early January," Joe said. Maddy kissed him one more time, savoring every moment of his plush lips. Then, they had to pull away and Joe had to leave for another three months. She waved to him as they drove away, smiling from ear to ear although inside she knew it was as fake as Miley's teeth.
*
Maddy got home a little later, and she was surprised to find out that she wasn't completely bawling. Even Ellie was doing okay after a few tears. Maddy was bittersweet at the realization that she was getting used to this. Walking into her house that suddenly seemed strange and alien to her, Maddy didn't know what to do. Was she tired? Hungry? Bored?
Maddy decided to go to the kitchen and make Ellie and her some Mac N Cheese. Walking into the cold tiled kitchen, Madison gasped. A loud, lung-consuming gasp. At the little kitchen table, there was a whole dinner set up, complete with candles AND a cardboard cutout of Joe, which was placed in one of the seats. Maddy walked up to the table, not aware of anything else. She realized there was a folded paper on her plate, so she opened. Inside, it read:
100 Reasons Why I Think You're Amazing
1. Your loyalty to me and everyone or everything that matters to you 2. Your compassion for everyone around you 3. Your selflessness 4. Your integrity 5. Your strength 6. Your devotion 7. How you are always 100% honest no matter what 8. Your kindness 9. The way you always try to help others 10. How you always stand up for what you believe in 11. Your generosity 12. Your confidence 13. The way that you always look for and find the positive in everything 14. Your optimism 15. The fact that you know exactly where you are going in life and will do whatever it takes to get there 16. Your courage even in the face of adversity 17. Your boldness 18. Your gentleness with me 19. How you are always understanding with me even when I don’t deserve it 20. How much you and I share in common together about everything 21. How you always can make me laugh or smile even at times when I don’t want to 22. Your spirit 23. The fact that you refuse to ever completely grow up or act older than your true age 24. Your crazy voices, sounds, and imitations that you're not afraid to do with me 25. How you are always kind to animals 26. The fact that you aren’t afraid to cry or show signs of vulnerability 27. How you always help me when I need or ask you to and sometimes even when I don’t ask 28. How you are always concerned about me and my well-being 29. The way you hold me 30. The way you liven up a room just by being in it 31. How much you’ve taught me about life and myself 32. Your intelligence 33. The fact that you are good at fixing things or putting things together by hand 34. Your zest for life 35. Your appreciation of the blessings in your life, with or without all the other hardships 36. Your excellent people skills 37. Your amazing laugh 38. Your beautiful hair 39. Your craziness 40. Your incredible green eyes 41. Your soft hands 42. Your love of life 43. Your uncompromising belief in God and family 44. The fact that you make the bestest friend anyone could ever ask for or hope to have 45. The way you walk 46. The way you talk 47. Your wackiness 48. The fact that there is nobody else in the world like you and nobody will ever come close 49. Your vast knowledge about everything 50. How you are always good at everything 51. The fact that you are right 90 % of the time, and that I'm not afraid to admit that 52. The amazing new experiences that I’ve shared for the first time with you and only you 53. The way you make me feel about myself 54. How you always tell me and show me everyday how much you love me 55. How you don’t mind holding my hand or showing me affection even in public 56. How you sometimes give up things you’ve wanted just for my benefit 57. The way you kiss me and touch me 58. The fact that you were willing to take a chance on me 59. The way you always encourage and believe in me 60. Your faithfulness 61. Your true sense of honor 62. The fact that you know how to be a real man 63. The sweet gifts you’ve given to me... and no, not the material things 64. The heart-touching things you’ve written for me 65. The way you’ve opened up your heart and life to me 66. The fact that I learn new amazing things about you everyday 67. The way you look at me that makes me melt inside 68. The love you’ve always shown me 69. The way you always say awesome things about me to other people 70. How much excitement you bring into my life everyday 71. How you always bring out the best in me 72. How you never take life for granted 73. The way you always inspire me 74. The fact that you are as much of a dreamer as me 75. The fact that you are without a doubt my true soul mate 76. The way that you know how to not take life too seriously and live for the moment 77. The fact that you are the first and only person I’ve ever opened up to and you're the first person who has ever truly opened up to me 78. How forgiving you are 79. How you’re not afraid to be a risk-taker 80. Your incredibly big heart 81. How you always know what to say and how to say it in any situation 82. How you always listen to me, help me with my problems, and aren't afraid to do something crazy to cheer me up 83. How you always try to make us laugh when we most need it 84. The fact that I know you will be one of the most successful women in the world someday because no one deserves it more than you 85. The amazing way you always seem to be able to read my mind 86. How we always still say or do the exact same thing at the same time 87. Your extreme patience with me even when I push it to the limit sometimes 88. Your charm and charisma 89. Yo90. Your wit and wisdom 91. How you always comfort me or give me a shoulder to cry on when I need it 92. How I know you’ll always be here for me through good times and bad no matter what 93. The extraordinary amazing things that always happen to us that never happen to anyone else 94. The fact that I know we were destined to be together 95. How awesome you have been with all this craziness 96. How cute and adorable you can be 97. Your determination and conviction and how once you set your mind on something that nobody can change it 98. Your incredible dreams and visions for our future that will come true 99. How much you know about me now and that you’ve seen both my good sides and bad and that you still love me anyway 100. How much I know you've sacrificed for Ellie, and how much more that makes me respect you everyday 101. Every little single detail about you that makes you who you are 102.We can talk about everything or nothing--it's always okay with you. 103. You're the light in my life, you're the inspiration. Bonus Reason 104. The fact that this list was so easy to write, but also so hard because I had to limit it to just 103 reasons when I can think of at least a million plus reasons why you're amazing and why I am the luckiest guy in the world to have met you.
Madison was vaguely aware that she was tearing. She set down the paper and looked at the table set before her. A full three course dinner with salad, dinner, and desert. Another note was set on his plate, saying "Aunt Jen helped me out!"
Madison made a mental note to call both of them and thank them. However, at the time being, Maddy sat down at the table and ate her lonely dinner with Cardboard Joe. To think, that only a few hours ago, she was holding the real thing in her arms...
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