Madeline's POV- August 2017

"So he said he loved you"

I nodded.

"And he then proceeded to hang up on you?"

"Yes" I answered.

I frowned a bit as Manny threw his head back while laughing.

"It's not funny" I told him.

He smiled and looked at me.

"Mads, you obviously feel the same way. It's why it's bothering you"

I bit my lip and slowly nodded. He was right, I was in love with Cody.

"Why didn't you say it back?"

"Because he hung up before I could react" I replied.

"And you haven't talked with him since then?"

I shook my head, he would reply to my texts but he would ignore my FaceTime and phone calls.

"He's been avoiding me" I said.

He hummed.

"Is the date still on?"

"Yes" I answered.

"He probably thinks he fucked up"

Manny was probably right. I'm pretty sure I would have reacted the same way if the roles were reversed. It's why I wasn't mad about Cody ignoring me, I'm sure I'd ignore him as well.

"Help me" I told him.

"We can fix this"

He nodded and looked at me.

"You have to take control of this situation, when we get to your dad's just drop us off and go find Cody"

I could do that.

"Tell him you love him, and proceed to make out...maybe have sex? Just a suggestion."

I punched his shoulder when he grinned.

"We don't resort to violence Madeline"

I shook my head at him and reached for my phone.

"What is taking Mady so long?" I questioned.

"Don't you worry Mads, we're still on time"

We spotted Mady making her way over, and she let out a deep breath once she was in the car.

"Sorry guys, Corey called me and would not hang up"

"How'd you get him to hang up?" I wondered.

"I told him I'd call him after Pilates"

She was dressed in workout clothes so I could see why he believed

"We still need to get coffee" I told her.

"Sounds good, I need some caffeine in me"

She smiled.

"By the way, good morning"

"Morning" I greeted as I began driving.

We quickly stopped at the closest Dunkin Donuts.

"Remember our almost daily runs to Dunkin?"

I looked at Manny and nodded.

"Good times" I said.

We got back into the car, and we were off.

"I thought you were bringing Poppy?"

"I was going to, but he's actually getting along with Nate and Noah. I'll bring him in two weeks when I come back, and he'll come with me when I drive to Toronto" I answered.

Mady nodded slowly and Manny spoke up.

"We're not talking about school because the thought of Med School makes me nauseous"

She looked at him.

"The thought of applying to Grad School makes me feel the same way"

In about a month, I would be living in Toronto and the thought made me a bit queasy. Thankfully the conversation was dropped and we started talking about the trip.

"I'm sure you two ladies will ditch me to go to dinner with your boys, so I'll probably try to convince Alexandria to do something"

"Like a date" I said.

Manny was single, the girl he was getting to know didn't like the idea of Med School coming before her.

"Sure why not, as long as I don't meet Auston because I will punch him in the face"

Manny kept true to his threats, if he were to see Auston during this trip he was going to punch him.

"I'll have her show me around since you'll be busy with Cody"

I chose to ignore the eyebrow wiggle he gave me.

"How happy will Corey be when he sees you?"

He made reservations hoping Mady would show up.

"Pretty happy, we haven't gone out on a date in a while"

She tapped my shoulder.

"We still have to go on that double date"

That was true, we had been postponing that date.

"So how long have you been dating Corey?"

I glanced up at the rear view mirror to see a goofy smile appear on her face.

"Almost six years"

He whistled.

"Do you want him to pop the big question?"

She shook her head.

"Not right now, maybe after I graduate"

He nodded.

"How long did you and Corey date before you guys said I love you to one another?"

She pursed her lips a bit.

"Like a month into our relationship"

I chose to ignore the glance Manny gave in my direction.

"Wait"

She gasped.

"Did Cody tell you he loves you?"

I looked at her from the rearview mirror and nodded.

"I'm pretty sure it slipped" I replied.

"Did you say it back? You obviously love him"

"He hung up on me before I could reply" I informed her.

"Aww, he got nervous"

That's exactly what happened.

"He can't avoid you now, you two are going on a date tonight"

I was actually a bit nervous about that. Thankfully Manny and Mady kept me distracted. We made it to Phoenix before noon, and we only got pulled over twice!

"You were not kidding when you said you get pulled over here"

"It's the California plates" I said as Manny put away my car's registration.

I unlocked the front door and led them inside.

"That's not a dog, it's a bear"

I smiled as Rocky barked from the couch. Malin stood up and made her way over.

"It's still not noon, so it's good morning"

"Morning" I greeted.

She gave all three of us a hug.

"Are the girls home?" I asked.

"Polly had practice and Ella is on a play date"

I showed them to the guest rooms, and then proceeded to make myself look a bit presentable. Mady began getting ready to surprise Corey, where as Manny decided to take a nap. My dark eye bags were concealed with makeup, and I changed into a floral romper.

"I'll be back" I called out.

"Go tell your boy you love him!"

I sent Cody a text telling him I was here, and asking if we could talk. He quickly replied with the address of the hotel, along with his room number.

"Lets go" I told Mady.

She followed me out.

"You look nice"

"Thank you, Corey is going to be so happy to see you" I replied.

Thankfully, the drive to the hotel was quick so I didn't get the chance to freak out.

"You're here!"

I watched as Corey enveloped Mady into a hug and gave her a quick kiss.

"Thanks Maddy"

And just like that I was alone in the hallway. Taking a deep breath, I made my way over to a door and knocked. The door opened and I smiled at Chris Taylor, one of Cody's teammates.

"Hey Maddy"

"Hi" I greeted.

I accepted his hug and stepped inside.

"I'll give you two some privacy"

I nodded and closed the door. When I looked up, I locked eyes with Cody who offered me a smile.

"Hey" I greeted.

He stood up when I made my way to him.

"You look tired" I noted.

"I didn't sleep well last night"

I bit the inside of my cheek as I looked at him.

"You wanted to talk?"

"Yes" I answered.

He gestured for me to sit on the bed. I took a seat and scooted closer when he sat down leaving a space between us.

"Can I start?"

"Of course" I replied.

Taking a deep breath he looked at me.

"I've been avoiding you, and I'm sorry for that"

"It's ok" I assured him.

He looked at me and bit his lip before looking down at his lap.

"If you're going to break up with me, can you do it already"

"I'm not going to break up with you" I stated.

He looked up at me.

"You're not?"

I shook my head.

"Of course not" I responded.

"Then what did you want to talk about?"

"I wanted to tell you that I love you too" I said.

It took him a bit to process what I had just said to him.

"Really?"

"Yes" I confirmed.

He looked at me and let out a sigh of relief.

"Oh thank god"

I frowned a bit when I noticed his eyes glossed up.

"I thought I scared you away"

I shook my head and scooted forward.

"You did not" I confirmed.

Pulling him into a hug, I kissed his cheek as he buried his nose against my shoulder.

"This isn't romantic at all"

He sniffled a bit as I pulled away. I pushed his hair back and smiled as he looked at me.

"I love you so much"

His voice cracked a bit as he said it.

"I love you too" I replied back.

He laughed and leaned in.

"You have no idea how happy I am"

I smiled as he cupped my face with his hands.

"The tears beg to differ" I stated.

"Happy tears"

I smiled and accepted his kiss. When we pulled away to catch our breath, I touched his cheek and smiled as he grinned at me.

"You're not getting rid of me, you do know that? "

"I'm ok with that" I confessed.