Love Me Back

By

Michelle Lynn

Copyright ©2013 by Michelle Lynn

All Rights Reserved, including the right to reproduce, distribute, or transmit in whole or in part by any means.

This book is a work of fiction.  Names, characters, places, and events portrayed in this book are the product of the author’s imagination or are either fictitious or used in a fictitious manner.  Any resemblance to actual events, locales, or real persons, living or dead, is coincidental and not intended by the author.

Cover photo © Shutterstock.com

Cover Design by Kerri Reaves

kerrireaves@gmail.com

The author acknowledges the copyrighted or trademarked status and trademark owners of the following wordmarks mentioned in this work of fiction:  Better Homes and Gardens Magazine, Ford Mustang, FJ Cruiser, Jeep Wrangler, Chevy Silverado, Mercedes, Adidas, Velcro, Skype, Brides Magazine

Chapter 1 – 11 years old

“Madeline Dolores Jennings” Bryan yells up teasing me from the bottom of the hill.

“What do you want Bryan Otto Edwards?”

“Hey, I’m just joking, Maddy.”  Bryan runs up the hill throwing his arm around me.  “You knew it had to be coming, I have been holding it in all day since Kenna slipped at lunch.”

I hate the days my mom ‘worked late’.  It entails me having to walk up the grassy hill from my grade school to my brother Jack’s, football practice with the other latchkey brothers and sisters of the football heroes of our small town.  There were half dozen of us that made the trek every day, all boys except for Mackenna Ross and myself.

Mackenna Ross is my best friend and our polar opposite personalities only enhance our different qualities.  She is free spirited where I am more conservative.  She speaks her mind and I keep my thoughts to myself.   We share a love for tennis, swimming and the game MASH (mansion, apartment, shack or house), where we try to map out our perfect lives.

Our brothers are teammates but not the best of friends.  In fact they have been known to fight with each other on several occasions.  Currently over a girl named Cindy Rydel.  I don’t see what is so intriguing about her but I am not a seventeen year old hormone induced boy either.  It doesn’t matter to Kenna and myself that they don’t get along as long as it doesn’t keep us away from each other.

Jack glances up to the bleachers on his way to the field giving me a wave checking to make sure I made it safely across the hill from our schools.  I wave back and take my seat next to MacKenna.  She already has her notebook out wanting to go first.  We keep all our MASH’s in a binder marking stars next to the lives we want.  I grab her notebook, flipping to the next blank page.

“Alright Kenna, four boys?”  I ask.

“Let’s do five today, I can’t decide who to leave out, Jackson or Tyler.”  She puts her finger tapping her lips.

“Fine, five.”  I reply.   Mackenna never changes her cars she desires or where she wants to live but the boy’s list is forever rotating between the boys in our school.

“Ok, well my usual four boys and…” she pauses glancing over to the field next to us where the younger latchkey boys are tossing a football around.  “Bryan” she spits it out so fast I barely catch it.

“What?”  I scream at her.  Bryan just told her that her butt is big two days ago and now she is picking him to be her future husband.

“Maddy!  Shhh…it’s my choice.  Write it down.”  She points to the paper with her neon green painted nail.

“Alright but I don’t understand you at all.”  I shake my head back and forth writing it down hoping the rotation eliminates him.  I love Mackenna but Bryan is a jerk, I would not let her marry him.

Luckily after I am done Mackenna is married to Tyler, living in a shack in California with her eight kids driving her Range Rover.  I am happy Bryan lost out on the third elimination round.

“Not my best life but I’ll take it.  I got my Range Rover.”  Mackenna shrugs her shoulders slowly moving her eyes towards the grass area again but quickly turns them back towards me.  “Your turn, hand it over.”  She puts her hand out.

I dig through my bag and pull out my purple binder handing it over to her.

“Maddy, you cannot put Trent down four times this time, you have to choose other boys.”  She starts writing MASH across the white sheet of paper.

“I only did that once Kenna.”  I look over at Trent throwing the ball to Bryan.  “I don’t like him anymore.”  I say trying to convince myself as much as Mackenna.

“I’ve heard that before” she taps the pen to the paper.

I have known Trent my whole life.  His brother Doug is Jack’s best friend.  We have been thrown together during cub scouts, t-ball and football our whole life.  We would play together when we were little but as we get older, we learn to ignore each other, doing our own thing when forced to be around each other.   Mackenna is right though if I am honest with myself, I have had a crush on him my whole life.  I have written Mrs. Trent Basso millions of times and scribbled over it a zillion more. Regardless of where my mind is with Trent he is always on my MASH for future husband.

I hate Trent today because during recess Evan Graham said Trent asked him to ask me if Mackenna liked him.  I tried to act as though it didn’t bother me but I think Evan could tell due to the sorrowful look on his face.  I told him I would ask and get back to him tomorrow.  I already knew her answer without having to ask her, she would never do that to me.    I am so mad at Trent Basso today that I knock him down from his number one spot to my fourth option for future husband.  Baby steps.

After we finish my MASH I am married to Jimmy Schmidt, the class clown with one child in Alaska driving a minivan.  Not even close to my best life.  I throw my binder on the bench in front of me leaning back letting the vitamin D soak through my skin.

“Let’s do it again.”  Mackenna says eagerly.

“No, I’m tired.  Let’s just relax.”  I don’t open my eyes.  I want my mind to empty and enjoy the peace knowing it will end when Jack and I go home.

“You go ahead, I am going to play some football.”  Mackenna walks down the bleachers over to Bryan, Trent and the other boys.

I open one eye peering down at her.  I am jealous of her confidence.  She just walks right up to the guys, grabs the football from Trent and throws it to Bryan.  The boys seem annoyed that she is interrupting their game but they let her join in.  I see Trent trying to show her how to throw a football but she just pushes him away taking the ball again.  I love that girl.

About fifteen minutes later Mackenna comes running up the stairs grabbing her bag.  Practice is over and the football team is making their ways to the gates that enclose the field.

“Move your asses little’s” Doug, Trent’s brother yells over to us.  All the latchkey younger siblings are called the Little’s.  We are Madeline Jennings (aka Little Jennings), Trent Basso (aka Little Basso), Mackenna Ross (aka Little Ross) and Bryan Edwards (aka Little Edwards).

None of us say anything as we venture down to the end of the gates to meet our older siblings.

“Let’s go Mad, we’re going over to The Basso’s for dinner.”  Jack motions for me to hurry up.

“I will be right there.”  I hold up my finger and give Mackenna a hug even though I will probably talk to her in a couple hours.  I walk over to Jack climbing into his Mustang.  Doug and Trent are already there waiting for me.  I guess we are taking them along.  Doug pushes the front seat forward so I can climb in the back next to Trent.

“Hey Maddy” Trent says turning his head to stare out the window.

“Hi Trent.”  I stare out my window.  That sums up our friendship lately.  I have tried to figure out what happened to us but came up with nothing.