This waitin' 'round's killin' me

 Boone finally thought it was over. A done deal with Lily. He hadn't meant for it to be a bomb in a Facetime with his soon-to-be ex, but he knew it was the right thing to do.

She was cold too and in a blip. Nothing on his phone.

True, he felt a bit numb. Wondering what could he do now. Being in his room all alone. Not even Madonna the black cat to nudge him back to reality. Damn, if he didn't miss that feline. He stood up from his bed and shot out to the kitchen, certain something needed to be cleaned. Only the kitchen counter was spotless. Not a dish to put away. It must have been Maddie's doing, to his surprise, she was on the couch all cozy with her phone, but she looked a bit grim too.

Boone went and plopped himself down on the other end of the couch. It wasn't often that she came out of her room. Perhaps it was just as much a cave as his room, even if the interior of hers was much brighter than his.

"Don't you do this only on Sundays?" He picked at the fabric on the arm of his mother's old couch.

She only nodded with a sigh. 

"Are you still with that guy who moved to Kansas?" Boone found himself asking.

She shook her head, no. It was as if she'd been mute from the start. He hadn't realized it until now.

"But, you put yourself through this?" He looked at her as if she only wanted this pain in her life.

"We did break up," she broke the silence even lipped. "But, but I promised, I'd be here for him on Sunday nights."

"Well, it's only Wednesday. He's breaking the rules," Boone hugged himself, thinking Maddie needed to free herself. "What do you text about?"

"Nothing much," she shrugged.

"I think he might think you two are still together," Boone told her.

"Aren't you still with Lily?" She looked at him as if they weren't much different.

"Nope." Boone could barely say as he swelled a frown.

"Sorry."

"Don't be. I knew it was coming, maybe even months ago." Boone felt teary-eyed but swore he wouldn't cry.

"I hate when things are like that," she shut off her phone. 

"Yeah, life is short, there are so many better things to do." Maddie finally added.

Boone agreed. 

"Well, family, is like that, you just wait and see." Maddie sounded as if she'd played the waiting game all her life.

She told him she was hoping her mom would come around, but she was in Japan now and her dad had a new family, stationed in Germany. Neither came to her graduation. Boone could see she was hurt about it, with that uneven smile of hers.

"Yeah, I got a bio mom who won't see me," he nodded as a lump of emotion lodged in his throat. "Don't know why I let it get to me. And then, Lily, I mean, I didn't think it would last as long as it did."

"Oh, but you were so good to her," Maddie told him.

"Really?" Boone didn't understand.

"I think she was happy," Maddie said she remembered. "I think she felt grownup with you." 

She recalled those high school moments. "I'm not like that all."

Maddie said she knew she was timid. She didn't like dressing up. She felt as if she never knew what to wear or how to be. "I'm just a wallflower."

"Oh, really?" He saw her quite differently. "I bet you have a thousand lonely boyfriends."

She shook her head, no as she tried to keep from smiling, but he thought maybe she did. That was when he asked if she was hungry. Maddie shook her head, no, but her stomach grumbled.

It was their first real meal together, even if it was just tomato soup (with a little dried basil from his mother's kitchen crop) and grilled cheese sandwiches.