**Chapter four
The first movie ended, and Maddie grabbed at the chance for a break from Tim, and jumped up, heading to the kitchen to make some popcorn. She paused against the bench for a moment, raking her hands through her hair. She took a few steadying breaths before reaching into the pantry and pulling out a packet. She was leaning on the counter her face close to the microwave, watching the bag inflate, when Tim's voice from the door startled her.
"Don't you know it's dangerous to be that close to a microwave when it's on?" he asked, leaning against the bench opposite, his arms folded across his chest.
"I like to live on the edge," she grinned.
"Did you want something?" she asked, brushing her fringe from her eyes. A slow smirk spread across his face, and she held her breath.
"Just wanted to know if you needed help with anything," he began, pushing off from the counter and moving to stand in front of her, "Well, Mads? Is there anything you need me to do for you?"
She was both repulsed and, to her dismay, a little giddy at his double entendre. Her willpower won out, and she rolled her eyes, crossing her arms across her chest in a defensive manner. "Does that line actually work for you, Tim?" she asked, her voice hard.
"Usually," he replied, unperturbed.
When the microwave dinged, she placed a hand against his chest, pushing him backwards softly, "Save it for your rally girls, Tim. That crap doesn't work on me."
He laughed, holding his hands up in mock surrender, and she couldn't help but grin as he left the kitchen. She poured the popcorn into a bowl, and grabbed the crisps her parents liked. She dropped the bag on her parent's laps as she passed them, before her eyes narrowed as she reached the sofa. Tim had taken his seat again, only this time he had moved a little closer to the centre, leaving a smaller space between he and Landry. His face was a picture of innocence, as she glared down at him, but she could see his lips twitch as she sat down, almost ending up in his lap.
Landry shifted to his side a little to give her more room, but it didn't help much. With the popcorn sitting on her lap, Tim had an excuse to reach across her often, and boy, did he abuse the opportunity. Hand brushing against hers, his arm rubbing her shoulder and his thigh still pressed against hers, was driving her crazy, and she shifted even closer to Landry. Again, it didn't help and she could feel Tim's body lightly shake, as he chuckled at her distress. She sighed, resigning herself to the situation. 'Not much you can do about it now, just relax and enjoy the movie'. Yeah right! Easier said than done.
The end credits had just begun to roll when she heard a light snoring coming from her left. She glanced over to see Tim's head tipped to the side, the heavy rise and fall of his chest signifying slumber. She grinned, and turned to mention it to Landry, but found him asleep as well, leaning on the arm of the sofa. She laughed softly, gaining the attention of her parents, who chuckled at the boys. Her dad rose, and offered his hand to her, pulling her up slowly, so as not to wake them. Her mom grabbed a couple of blankets from the cupboard, draping one over Landry first, then Tim, as Maddie turned the TV off, plunging the room into darkness. With one last look, they all headed off to bed.
Maddie was still giggling as she stripped off her sweatpants and slid under the covers. What an interesting night this turned out to be, she thought as she leaned over to click her lamp off. As she lay there in the darkness, she ran through the recent events, still dumbfounded at the fact that Tim wasn't what she expected, with the exception of his lame pick-up line, of course. She recalled their conversation in the supermarket, where he told her about his quest to score a scholarship, and realised that he must have been serious about it. She shook her head, annoyed at giving it so much thought. She didn't want to be attracted to Tim. He hadn't even known she existed until two nights ago. She had to fight this.
She woke to the sun shining through the cracks of her drapes, and glanced at the clock. She groaned, kicking back the covers, and climbed out of bed, before pulling her shorts on and grabbing her towel from the chair. She showered and then made her way into the kitchen, where her parent's were already making breakfast. "'Morning," she sang, as she grabbed a bowl and a box of cereal from the cupboard, grinning as her dad wrapped his arm around her neck, and dropped a kiss on her forehead.
"Morning, sweetie," they replied, as she put her stuff away, then headed for the lounge. "Wake your brother, would you?" her mom called after her.
She placed her bowl on the table, then rounded the sofa, her hand flying to her mouth to stifle her laugh. Landry was in the same position as last night, but Tim, however, had slumped to his right, his head resting on the couch near Landry's thigh, and for some reason, Landry's hand was splayed against Tim's face. She giggled, tempted to immortalise the moment on camera, but thought the better of it, crouching beside her brother. "Hey," she called, softly shaking his shoulder, "Landry, time to wake up."
His eyes opened, blinking a few times against the sunlight through the window, and focused his eyes on hers. "'Mornin'," he smiled, before sitting up, and taking stock of his position.
His neck was sore from having been pushed at an awkward angle, and he frowned down at his hand, which was still lying across Tim's face. Maddie laughed as she stood up, and moved back to the table. "Well, better than waking up in a spoon with him!" he chuckled, sitting up, and shaking Tim awake.
Tim groaned, and opened his eyes, wondering why the TV was lying on its side. He felt movement beside him, and looked around to see Landry climb off the couch, and head out of the room. It was then that he realised that it was he who was lying on the side, and as he moved to sit up, the ache in his back confirmed it. He stood, reaching his arms high above his head in a long, slow stretch, completely unaware of the gaping look from behind him.
Maddie had grinned at the sound of Tim groaning, as Landry headed for the kitchen. Her hand came to an abrupt stop, her spoon halfway to her mouth, and she couldn't help but stare at Tim stretched, still facing the TV. His t-shirt rose about four inches above his waist, and his jeans dropped lower on his hips, the brown, muscled flesh of his lower back just begging for her touch. It was her own soft moan that broke her from her trance, and she looked back down at her spoon with a shake of her head.
"G'mornin'," he greeted her, his voice husky with sleep, and she couldn't suppress the slight shudder that racked her body.
"Morning," she replied, keeping her eyes riveted to her bowl, not trusting herself to look at him yet.
She waited until he had left the room before smacking her palm against her head. 'Be smart, Maddie!' She resumed her breakfast as Landry sat down with his own, followed closely by Tim. They ate in silence, the boys trying to wake up, Maddie still struggling with bad thoughts, until being interrupted by her mom.
"C'mon kids, don't dawdle, we've got to get to church," she admonished, tidying up the lounge. As her children nodded, she glanced over at Tim. "Are you a Christian, Tim?"
He swallowed hard, before turning his head to look at her. "Uh...not a very good one, ma'am," he replied, causing Landry and Maddie to laugh softly, and she couldn't help but chuckle herself.
"I remember how it was at your age," she smiled, "you should come to church with us, see how you like it," she looked at him, her puppy dog eyes boring into his.
He cleared his throat as Landry snorted. "Uh, well, I..."
"I'll cook you lunch if you come, just this once," she sang, trying to entice him.
And, by god, it worked. "Ok, Mrs. Clarke, you win. But you're not playin' fair, you know..."
She clapped her hands with delight, as Landry and Maddie stared at each other, mouths agape. Wait. Tim Riggins had just been suckered into going to church. Was he ill?! They turned to stare at him as their mother left the room, and he looked up from his bowl, laughing at the shock on their faces.
"What?" he asked, "you're mom's an awesome cook." He left them there as he disappeared into the kitchen, before heading home to get changed.
"St. Brendan's Catholic, on Parkes' street," their mom called out, before turning to hurry her children on.
As Maddie pulled on skirt and a clean tank, she still couldn't believe that Tim was going to church. Seriously, this was Tim Riggins, Tim Riggins, we were taking about! He probably wasn't going to show, and her mom would be so disappointed. At least if he bailed, then most likely he wouldn't come around here any more, so that was a bonus. But her mom really would be crushed. Sighing, she pulled her hair up into a ponytail before heading into the kitchen.
Her dad looked up from his place at the counter and frowned. "Baby, are you really going to wear that singlet-thing to church?"
She laughed at his expression before grabbing a glass of water. "Daddy, it's early and it's already 97 degrees out there, so yeah, I'm wearing this singlet-thing to church."
Billy burst into laughter when Tim mentioned that he was going to church, as he grabbed a juice from the fridge. "Yeah, nice one, little brother, you heading to the moon after your through there?" he chuckled, throwing himself on the sofa.
Tim grinned and shrugged his shoulders before moving towards his room. "I'm gettin' an awesome meal because of it. You should come- couldn't do you any harm to get in contact with the lord again," he laughed, grabbing a towel and heading for the shower.
Billy frowned at him, before climbing off the couch. "You're not really going to church are you? Tim? Timmy?"
"I'm goin'. Got suckered into it by Mrs. Clarke," he heard through the thick door.
Billy scratched his head, a bewildered look on his face. "I'll be damned," he muttered, " Tim really is tryin' to change..." He frowned, walking around the living room. "Well, hell, if he can do it, so can I!"
.
