She gave him a disbelieving look. “Says you. I'm totally scary.” Of course, being friends with a three-year-old kind of ruined the affect a little. “Actually, no, you're right. Your face is way scarier than I could ever dream to be.”
Fortunately for DJ, Maddie decided not to turn that into a shoving match. “It's still pink. And the room is box-shaped, so the comparison still works,” she said with a nod. “I'm not the nerd; you're the nerd.” It was both a playful insult and the closest she usually came to admitting he was smarter than she was. With a mock glare, she rubbed at the place on her arm where he poked her, then gave him another shove. “Boring's totally an insult, you know?” At least it was supposed to be.
Maddie never really learned the lesson of not using words she didn't know the meaning of. She rolled her eyes in faux annoyance when he rambled about the color she'd named. “Green. Definitely green.” Really, the only reason she gave that answer was because of her hair. She didn't know what color cerulean was. “But that's not the point! I'm threatening to paint your room, dude. React! Get all twitchy and defensive and stuff.”
DJ's question made her blink, the grin fading back into a more guarded expression. “It was funny, that's all. Maybe you just had to be there.” Some things were funnier when witnessed. That was a good explanation, even if it wasn't entirely the truth. She shrugged a shoulder, trying to maintain the lightness of the conversation while keeping her conflicted feelings out of the mix. It wasn't easy and she was probably failing at it. “I'm glad none of them did, 'cause then she would've griped at me about it. It was a cute, spontaneous idea I had – the dumping of the cats – so I went with it.”
“Except for the birds, when they get too excited and won't stop clucking and quacking all over the place,” she explained, glancing at the corner where the duck and chicken were snoozing. “So maybe I just have no patience for things that make noise.” That didn't make sense, though. “Unless it's me making noise. I like my noises.” The conversation was getting off track, but that was typical for her. “Such a mean little boy, you were. Getting the sweets taken away all because of a little bit of poop.”
The only response Maddie gave when he called her smart was to shrug. Compared to him and the rest of the family, she was the dumbest one. It bothered her, but she never said as much. “The orange one's Peaches. Brown one is Cocoa. White one's Marshmallow. Grey one's Sammich,” she said, pointing to each of them.
“True. You'd need lessons on looking cool.” Spoken with a thoughtful look, as if she were seriously considering it as a conundrum. “Oh well. Just be sure to wear something green or you'll get pinched.”
Maddie relaxed when it appeared that he wasn't angry with her for taking liberties. Smiling, she rolled her eyes up to the ceiling, wobbling her head back and forth as if DJ's appreciation wasn't needed. She shrugged. “Just figured you needed to know that even though I don't always get you, I do try.” The effort wasn't always as apparent as it needed to be. Hence the song.
Nodding, she placed the papers back on top of the keyboard and shifted so that she was more comfortable. “It still sounds a little rough in some places, but I think it works for what the song's about.” She hoped, anyway. Clearing her throat, she reached over to push the button to start up the music she'd recorded for the song. Then she began to sing.