A/N: Back to my little darlings Josh and Maya with this next installment of their story in the Loophole Series!

Enjoy!

Trial: noun, the hearing and judgment of a case in court; an experiment to test quality, value, or usefulness; a test of faith, patience, or strength

Part I

Friday February 9, 2018

Josh paced the Matthews den rubbing his hands together with anxious energy. He was ready to make his case to the jury; he just didn't know how they would rule. The four older adults sat on the couch and watched him curiously. Josh had called this assembly with something "important" to say.

"Josh, what is it? Why are we here?" Cory asked, breaking the awkward silence.

Josh let out a deep breath and stood as confidently as he could "I want to take Maya on a date."

The four responses were exclaimed at the same time: "No Way!"/"Finally!"/"What?!"/"Is that all?"

Of course these replies weren't exactly a surprise to Josh. In fact he mentally gave himself a 'pat on the back' for knowing them all so well. If he could predict their responses it meant he might have a chance getting them to buy into his logic.

For example, Shawn's "No Way" was completely expected. Shawn had basically been in Maya's family as a "father figure" for years now. Of course Shawn would object. Secondly, Katy's "Finally" was almost a comfort to him. As Maya grew closer to her mother of course they would talk about boys and relationships, especially with the ups and downs they had experienced the past few years. The fact that she seemed to be in support of them moving forward meant Maya had talked about him in detail, and his ego could use the boost right now.

Cory was always predictable. His brothers "What" was a typical response from him, always with a flair for the drama. And finally (and thankfully of course) Topanga was the steady, calm voice of reason. He knew Cory had told her about Maya last year, and he had seen his sister-in-law give him regular 'knowing' looks for months now. Josh was glad he had prepared for their initial responses, though he wasn't sure how the rest of the conversation would go.

As Katy and Topanga tried to sooth their overprotective partners Josh remembered that all of this had to be worth it. He was doing the right thing, wasn't he?

Earlier

"No no no. No way! That's the whole point of the loophole, Josh. We don't need permission to be together. Remember?" Maya said vehemently as she stomped around his dorm room, throwing her hands in the air.

Josh had to fight the urge to smirk at how cute she was when she was in a huff. For someone so pint-sized she was a force of nature. It only reaffirmed that he wanted to do this the right way. She…they were worth the effort. He knew grinning goofily at her outrage would not help win her over to reason though, so he tried to remain comforting and calm in his demeanor.

"Doesn't mean I don't want it, Maya. I want to do this right. Remember this summer? I'm not going to have you be some secret again. I'm doing it" he insisted.

She continued to storm around his room "Joshua Matthews you are so frustrating! Ugh! The Universe has given us this perfect opportunity once again and you're going to ruin it! If you don't want to be with me then just say so!"

Josh slowly walked to her and grabbed both of her hands with his own "Maya, stop. You know I want to be with you. I just want it to be the right way. Remember when you were younger and I came by Cory's to tell them about the NYU summer program?"

Maya rolled her eyes and nodded, continuing to stare at the ground in between them. She preferred not to think about the time in her life when he basically rejected her on a semi-consistent basis.

"What does that have to do with anything?" she asked grumpily.

"Remember who else was there? Lucas. He came to ask Cory for permission to go on a date with Riley."

"Seriously? Josh, that's a stupid, old tradition. Who does that?"

"I do! Well, at least, I want to. I want to be that kind of guy for you, Maya. I want you to know you deserve to have someone do that for you. I'm doing it" Josh said wrapped his arms around her, resting his chin on her head.

She slumped into him and mumbled "But it's stupid. Stupid stupid tradition."

Josh smiled above her "Maybe. But I'm doing it. Decision's made. I already called Cory."

"What if they say no?" she asked quietly, slight insecurity creeping into her tone.

He spoke reassuringly, stroking her blonde locks as he continued to hold her "Hey! Don't underestimate my powers of persuasion, Gorgeous. I can make a pretty good case. Besides, I'm only asking for a date. What could go wrong?"

"Famous last words, Matthews" she warned.

'Famous last words' Josh repeated to himself as he watched the adults in front of him squabble like children. He caught Cory shouting "Not Ready!" like a toddler, and he even thought he heard an "Over my dead body!" from Shawn in there…what a mess. Maybe he was in over his head here. Still though, he had to regain control of the room.

Josh let out a loud whistle that shocked the others to silence as they gaped at him.

"You have a lot of nerve, little Matthews" Shawn said "Whistling at me like a dog is not gonna help your cause."

Josh smiled sheepishly "Just needed your attention. I'm here to ask you all for permission to go on a date with Maya. One date. You're all the adults in her life so I'm asking all of you."

Crickets chirping could have been heard over the resulting silence in the room.

"Well, it's about damn time!" Katy said with a southern drawl, breaking into the quiet.

"Katy!" Shawn protested.

"Shawn Hunter, you listen to me. That little girl is my daughter, and you can't POSSIBLY understand how long she has waited for this. A mother KNOWS, Shawn. And if you don't get over your over-protective hang-ups, then I will smash a plate over your head. You know I'll do it too" Maya's mother said forcefully. Shawn visibly gulped and gave a small nod.

'Like mother, like daughter' Josh thought with a smile. He had one approval down, three to go.

"But he's three years older than her!" Shawn argued.

"Shawn, don't be ridiculous. She's 17 and he's 19. The age difference isn't an issue anymore" Topanga interrupted and said with so much lawyer-like confidence that the argument lost any standing. Josh could just imagine her bringing trial attorneys to their knees in the courtroom with that kind of persuasiveness.

"Topy?" Cory said in childish tone which made Josh roll his eyes.

"Cory, you knew this was going to happen eventually. Girls grow up. Riley's with Lucas and you haven't lost her, have you? You won't lose Maya either. Let her go on the date" Topanga said convincingly.

"Sooooo is that a yes?" Josh asked hopefully, forcing their attention back to him.

All four gave varying affirmative responses with differing levels of enthusiasm, but the unanimous yes was all he really needed.

"Great! I'll be on my way then" Josh said as he turned to leave the apartment.

"Joshie…" Cory called out, stopping him "I know you're my little brother but if you hurt that girl I will let Shawn loose on you."

Shawn nodded positively at the idea.

"Noted" Josh said assuredly with a nod. They obviously needed to feel macho so, fine, he would let them think he took their warning as anything other than ridiculous. Hurting Maya Hart was the last thing he ever wanted to do again.

To be continued…

A/N: Gawwww I have missed writing for these two. I can't believe this is the 7th (!) story in this series that was originally a "cute little one-shot"…whoops? Seriously, thanks so much for sticking with it. As long as y'all remain interested I will be able to keep going…so please review if you are!

Up Next: One reader will be VERY EXCITED for this (you know who you are) the return of ANDREW! And my sad attempts at "bro-talk"…wish me luck :)