Myrtle will be back from work soon. I've agreed to hear her out. To hear Maddox's side of the story. I don't understand it. I don't know what to expect. What if he takes advantage of the moment?

"Honey?"

I look up as Andrea pokes her head into my room. She offers a smile, but it's tired. She's not been herself for days.

"I'm the messenger," she says, opening the door a tad wider. "Myrtle and Maddox are back. They'll meet you in my room, in about ten minutes."

"Your room?" I ask, confused. "Should I be concerned?"

"I'll be present," Andrea replies, motioning for me to come. "I promise everything will be alright, and all confusion will be made clear."

I sigh, but I do trust Andrea. I tug on my fluffy, light pink socks and follow Andrea across the hall. I sit in her bed, staring at the door. Waiting. A few minutes later, Myrtle walks in. Maddox is behind her. He hesitates when he meets my gaze. It's as if he's afraid of me. Good. The boy should be afraid.

"This is now a safe zone," Myrtle says, gently pushing Maddox to sit on her bed. "Whatever is said here, stays here. But it's also a barrier-free zone. Which means, Honey, if Maddox says something you feel you don't like, let him finish. Don't cut him off until he's said his piece. He doesn't have that chance anywhere else."

She sits next to the boy. Their legs touching. And the way Maddox hand rests behind Myrtle's back. Just hidden enough that I don't know if he's touching her or not. But her expression is unchanged. Hopeful. Frightened.

"When I first came here," Myrtle begins, her voice small and soft. "I had no one. I was under constant supervision, because of who my dad was and they wanted to be sure I wouldn't lash out the way he would. For the first several weeks, I was a loner. I wouldn't talk to anyone. I held it all in. And then Maddox was there. He was always there, but suddenly he was there. And he helped me through the worst year of my life."

She looks at the boy, and nods.

"It was selfish, really," he says as he looks me in the eye. And it feels like it's the first time. "I just didn't like seeing her in pain. So, I tried making her laugh. Sometimes, it worked. Other times, all she needed was someone to hold her. And we grew close. Close enough that we shared secrets, or our fears. Everything you've had with her until now, that was what we were. And when you showed up, there was something about the way you made Myrtle feel like she couldn't be around me anymore. I hated it. I didn't know how to express it, so I took it out through teasing. But my teasing wasn't always that way. Before the separation, my teasing was taken differently."

Maddox starts to ramble and tail off. The last thing he mumbles is something along these lines: "She was my best friend first." And then he sighs, stuffing his fingers into his dark hair and lowering his head. He's frustrated?

"Who threw the first stone at who?" Myrtle asks gently; she reaching her arm around the boy's shoulders and rubbing them. "I know it sounds dumb, but I am caught in the middle here. And until a couple weeks ago, I didn't know how to act. I tend to say what people want to hear, a lot. And that's not good. Because it creates barriers between me and what I truly want to say, or what I want in general. I'm tired of having to pick a side."

Maddox drops one of his hands, turning just enough to look up at her. She smiles at him, earning a small one in return. Huh, that's definitely new.

"Are you expecting me to change my entire belief of the male sex?" I ask, rising to my feet and crossing my arms.

"Just of Maddox," she replies, standing to meet my height. "Because he didn't and will never do those things to me, you or anyone else. In fact-" she glances down at him for a moment, but he stops her by shaking his head and looking at me.

"You don't have to change," he says in a low voice. "But dialing down the constant battle stance would be appreciated. If I make a better attempt to not make you hate me, can you do the same?"

I stare at him for a good, long moment. And then at Myrtle.

"I'll have to think about it," I relent, walking towards the door. "If there's more you're holding back, I'd like to know it."

"And you will," Myrtle replies, sighing. "Just not right now. Too much at once might make things more complicated."

"Whatever."

I leave without looking back.

***

I've been sulking all afternoon. The talk with Myrtle killed my already-whack mood. But it has me thinking and I'm actually considering her request to 'meet in the middle'. As I sit in the living room, not necessarily watching whatever's on TV, Myrtle enters the room. Followed by Maddox. I watch them in my peripherals. Maddox looks totally distressed. It's the first time I've ever seen him look so upset. I then realized the direction they've just come from. The office.

"Now he decides I'm worth the time?" the boy is saying, clenching his fists at his sides. "I'm basically out of the system."

"You don't want to, at least, give him five minutes and find out what he wants?" Myrtle asks, crossing her arms and watching him with concern.

"He's the one who didn't want anything to do with me, Turtle. My guess is great uncle Pedro died and left us each something in his will."

"You have a great uncle Pedro?"

There's an air of joking in Myrtle's voice. And suddenly, the two of them are laughing. Laughing. Together. Then, as if finally realizing I'm here, they turn those smiles my way. They don't fade, just soften.

"Don't stop on my account," I mumble, getting up to leave.

"Actually," Myrtle says gently. "They want you in the office."

I nod and move to get up.