Maxie Jones had a problem and she didn't know what to do about it, every time she saw Johnny Zacchara she wanted to jump his bones. That wasn't going to happen because he was with Lulu, Lulu had become Maxie's complete best friend and this couldn't happen. Maxie was afraid to be alone with Johnny because she'd do something she would regret, the last thing she wanted to do was hurt Lulu. Maybe it wouldn't hurt asking Johnny if he did have feelings for her? Johnny had just walked away from his family and had moved into the apartment that Lulu and Maxie shared, Maxie wasn't sure what to do as she opened the door to their apartment. The first thing that Maxie saw when she walked into the living room was a discarded laundry basket still full of clothes, sitting on the pristine white couch. Johnny was holding a pair of panties above Lulu's head, Lulu made a grab for it with a smirk. Johnny snaked his arms around her waist, leaning into her back pressing a kiss to the hollow of her neck.
"Wear those tonight, I can't wait to rip them off of you." Johnny smirked, softly speaking into Lulu's ear.
"You have no idea how sexy you are right now." Lulu's lips curve into a smirk, leaning up to kiss his cheek.
"You have no idea how sexy you always are, babe. I have to fight not to have sex with you every five seconds." Johnny smirked, their playful banter only irritated Maxie. How dare Lulu be happy while she was miserable! What was she saying? This time last year Johnny had been on a trial for murder and Lulu had been a patient at Shadybrooke. They deserved this! Why did her stupid heart have to want Johnny? Maxie decided not to say anything to either of them, stalking to her bedroom and shutting the door.
"What was that all about?" Johnny slightly pulled away from Lulu, giving his girlfriend a curious look.
"I don't know, Maxie's been avoiding me all day. I couldn't even get work done today because she literally wouldn't talk to me. I don't know what her problem is but I hope she figures it out." Lulu didn't really give it much thought as she went back to folding clothes, she figured Maxie just wanted to be left alone.
"Yeah, me too. You're a little eager to get back to folding clothes, I'm a little jealous." Johnny smirked, striding towards her, checking out her perfect ass.
"Johnny! You have a one track mind!" Lulu laughed, lightly hitting his chest.
"Hey, I'm just making up for lost time! I lost six months with you last year." Johnny's voice softened as he let his fingers trail through her honey blonde hair. Shadybrooke and Pentonville wasn't something they liked to mention but it did come up from time to time.
"I never thought we'd get here, Johnny. There were times that I thought we would break up. I know that walking away from your family has been hard for you, but we're going to make it." Lulu gave her boyfriend a soft smile.
"Nothing is ever going to tear us apart again, baby. Things are rough right now but, as long as I have you it's worth it. I love you." Johnny gives her a quick pick on the lips, letting her get back to the laundry. Johnny allowed himself to smile, he couldn't wait to tell his girlfriend the good news.
Before Maxie knew it, she was calling her cousin Robin's number.
"Hello?" Her cousin's cheery tone filled the line, comforting Maxie.
"Hey, it's me. I have a…situation." Maxie groaned, falling back on her bed.
"What's going on?" Robin asked, concerned.
"I have heart eyes for Johnny and…it's not going away. I need to get as far away from him as possible before I ruin my friendship with Lulu!" Maxie bursted out, she would have to move. There was no doubting that.
"Okay. Wow. When did this start? Because this is the first I'm hearing about this." Robin had to stop what she was doing at the hospital and sit on the bench in the hallway, keeping the phone pressed to her ear.
"Well, I've always had a crush on Johnny! Ever since we first met but, he always chose Lulu. You don't know how hard I tried to get him to leave Lulu when Logan was still alive. I just keep thinking about poor Spinelli, this is going to break him. I don't want to lose my friendship with either Lulu or Johnny." Words poured from Maxie's lips, Spinelli would be broken.
"I knew that you liked Johnny back when he first came to town but, I thought that after Logan died the feelings just went away. Apparently I was wrong. You need to come clean with both Johnny and Lulu, you'll never know how Johnny feels if you don't. Are you sure Johnny and Lulu can't move? You just got this apartment." Robin thought it over, before speaking to her cousin.
"They never went away, God I wished they would have. I know I have to tell them but, I know it won't end well. When I came into the apartment this afternoon they were wrapped up in each other's arms telling each other how much they loved each other, they were being so damned cute." Maxie gave a sigh, knowing Robin was right.
"Johnny and Lulu are in love but Johnny could still have feelings for you. You don't know until you try. I know it's a shot in the dark but, you have to take it. If things don't work out, you can come stay with me until you get back on your feet." Robin really didn't want anyone else in her house but Maxie was her cousin.
"Johnny's never chosen me, Robin. Robin, Johnny just walked away from his family he doesn't have another option. I'm not going to ask Johnny and Lulu to move out, they need this apartment more than I do. As much as I hate it, they deserve to have a life together." Maxie knew what she needed to do.
"My offer still stands, call me and let me know how it goes." Maxie ended the call, summoning up a deep breath before opening the door to her bedroom door, steeling herself for this moment. When Maxie walked into the living room, Johnny was hanging up his cell phone while Lulu was switching the TV on.
"Are you going to tell me why you've been ignoring me? Because I thought we had gotten past this." Lulu crossed her arms, clearly wanting an explanation.
"You're right, you deserve a reason. Both of you do." Maxie pursed her lips into a thin line.
"What do I have to do with this?" Johnny quirked an eyebrow.
"I've been ignoring you because I have feelings for Johnny. I don't want to ruin my friendship with either of you but, is there even a chance you have any feelings for me?" Maxie dared to look at her friends, Lulu kept a poker face while Johnny was completely shocked.
"Maxie, I'm with Lulu. I'm sorry I really am but, it's always been Lulu." Johnny shook his head, snaking an arm around Lulu's waist.
"I figured as much." Maxie nodded.
"Where does this leave us? I mean, we live together. We work together." Lulu stole a glance at Maxie, she was trying to control her emotions.
"I don't know but, I'm not going to ask you guys to move out, that would be unfair of me. I know Johnny just walked away from his family and you don't really want to go back to the mansion. Kate approached me about working at the Paris location of Crimson, I'm going to take her up on her offer. I've always wanted to go to Paris, everyone knows that. I'm going to stay with Robin until I'm ready to move to Paris. I need to put some distance between us." Maxie knew what she had to do, Paris wouldn't be such a bad place to get over a stupid crush.
"I guess I have to thank you for being honest and not moving in on my man. The old you would have." Lulu's hazel eyes met her blue ones.
"I still want to be friends, I just need some space. Are you guys going to be okay for next month? With rent and everything? I know Johnny's not working yet." Maxie worried about how they were going to be with her gone.
"Actually, I found a job." Johnny spoke up.
"What? Why didn't you tell me?" Lulu gasped, breaking into a smile.
"Yeah, spill! You have to tell us things!" Maxie agreed, gesturing for him to go on.
"Coleman saw me after my third interview, I was getting annoyed. He offered me a job as a bartender at Jake's, I start tomorrow night. I wanted to surprise you, I was ordering a pizza while I was on the phone. When I save up enough money, I eventually want to open my own garage." Johnny says, sheepishly.
"Baby, that's so great! I'm so proud of you!" Lulu enveloped Johnny into a hug.
"Your support means everything." Johnny murmured into her blonde hair, holding her close.
"I guess you two will be alright, then." Maxie says, feeling a sadness settle in the pit of her stomach.
"You better text me every day, Maxie. You're still my best friend and I need to know if you meet a hot guy." Lulu smirked, walking over to Maxie and hugging her.
"I'll text you every five seconds, I promise." Maxie giggled, more than eagerly returning her hug. After the talk with Lulu and Johnny, Maxie began packing up her things and let Robin know what was going on.
"You really want to be with me, don't you?* Lulu gave Johnny a soft look, touching his cheek.
"Of course I do, you're the one for me." Johnny gave her a confused look, his hands settled on her waist.
"I guess there was this part of me that believed on some level you would want to be with Maxie one day, now I know that it's us. Us against the world." Lulu softly smiled, earning a chuckle from Johnny.
"You're it for me, Lulu. I love you more than life itself. It's us against everything, babe."