"Why do we have to sneak out of the house, if we're not doing anything wrong until we sneak onto the subway?" Riley asked for the hundredth time.
"Do you think you're ready to just walk by your parents?" I asked looking at my outfit in the mirror while Riley and Maya sat at the bay window.
"I think I'm ready!"
"Let me see your face as you walk by your parents," Maya said rolling her eyes.
Riley pulled the most ridiculous face as I sat next to Maya and said, "Why you making that face at us Riley?"
"Because, I'm sneaking on to the subway." she paused, and then decided, "Out the window."
"Let's go," Maya and I said, starting to climb out the window.
We were pushed back in when Riley's father, my godfather, Cory climbed into the room, "Here's what I'm thinking, it's not your world yet. It's still my world. Because if it was your world, Maya would have you and Violet on the subway already." I looked away from him as he came closer to me and Riley, "Thinking you put one over on me, but you didn't."
"How long do we have to live in your world?" I asked getting up from the bed.
"Until you make it yours," He put his hand on my shoulder, "Violet, do you know what I want more than anything more than anything, what your parents wanted more than anything?" I shook my head, "For you to make it your world."
"We will" Riley said, linking her arm with mine, "When we do will you still be there for us?"
"Right here." Topanga, my godmother, said from our bedroom door, I gave her a smile.

We left the apartment the three of us arm in arm and went down to the subway station; it was our first day of high school, ninth grade year. I looked around the subway, giggling at the look of awe on Riley's face.
"Weasel!" Maya and I greeted our friend who plays the drums here every morning, I had been riding the subway with Maya since the sixth grade, but Riley always rode with her dad.
"Maya, Violet, who's the new chick?" he asked gesturing to Riles.
"Chick, down here I'm a chick," Riley said in excitement.
"She's new to the underground world," I said ruffling her hair and laughing.

We got on the subway and we were standing by one of the poles as Riley put on lip gloss, I nudged Maya.
"Wow Riley you don't do lip gloss," Maya said in a teasing tone.
"Oh, What I forgot to mention is I'm completely reinventing myself," Riley said smiling at us.
"Oh really, this ought to be good," I rolled my eyes.
She continued," I ride the subway now I have kiwi lips now! And I'm just as cool as you and Vi now."
Maya smirked at something behind Riley.
I followed her glance and saw an attractive guy our age reading a book, "Show us how cool you can be Riles. Turn around"
She glanced at him and he was already looking at us, he flashed us a smile and Riley just started giggling.
"Yeah you're gonna need some lessons." Maya said looking to me, "Show her Vi."
I shook my head at her, "You show her!"
I wasn't as rebellious as Maya but I wasn't as much of a goody goody as Riley I was somewhere in the middle.
Maya marched over there and we stood watching, "Hey, I'm Maya. You're really cute. We should hang out sometime. You make me happy. You don't pay enough attention to me. This isn't working out. It's you not me. We can still be friends not really."
She walked away leaving the poor boy with a really confused look on his face.
"He's available, we just broke up."
"Are you okay? Do you need to talk about it?" Riley asked.
"She'll live" I said still glancing at the confused boy.
"You still wanna be like me?" Maya asked.
"I wanna be exactly like you," Riley said determination in her voice.
I frowned, "Riley you are you, you can't change that and honestly it isn't a bad thing."
"Vi, I think too much, she doesn't' think at all."
"See she gets me, let's not think together," Maya wiped a fake tear from her eyes.
I groaned and shook my head; this wasn't going to end well.
"I think you need to not think, Vi." Riley said smiling at me.
"Yeah, don't think" Maya pulled Riley's hands off the pole and she went flying back, landing on the cute guy's lap. I felt a pang of jealously but quickly shook the thoughts out of my head.
"Hi." Riley said, "We were just talking about you. You used to go out with my friend Maya."
The boy looked up at us, and I was biting my lip to hold in my laughter.
"At least she got words out," I muttered to Maya.
"I'm Lucas," he held out his hand for her to shake.
"I love it," Riley giggled.
A lady walked up to them, "Perhaps someone would like to give up their seat to someone older?"
Lucas was about to get up but the lady quickly denied his offer and looked at Riley.
Riley stood up, "Please don't make me move, I want to see where this goes."
"Maya, go get her" I said noticing the boy was still looking at me.
"Poor Riley looks like that boys taken," Maya teased seeing he was looking at me too. I pretended like I didn't hear her and looked at Riley, who was walking over to us.
"How ya doing?" I asked smirking at her.
Riley came back over to us, "That was great."
I laughed still feeling slightly jealous.
"Okay Vi, your turn," Maya said,
"What are you talking about?" I asked but she pushed me back and I landed on the lady next to Lucas.
"I'm sorry," I apologized cursing Maya.
"It's for you," she picked me up and put me onto Lucas' lap.
"Hi" he said smiling.
"Hi," I blushed, "I'm Violet."
"I'm Lucas."
"Welcome to New York" I smiled at him before getting up and walking back over to my friends.

We walked into our class, "Maya you have to do the homework, this teacher is insane!" Riley said scolding Maya for not doing her homework again.
"Yeah like there's something seriously wrong with him" I added as I bumped into him "Hi Uncle Cory."
"Hi daddy" Riley said smiling innocently.
"You guys are late to my class," he said disapprovingly.
"Don't worry Matthews, you wrote them a note," Maya handed him a piece of paper and she winked at us.
"Riley and Violet are late, Deal with it" Cory read aloud, "You're getting better at my signature."
"You write like a girl," I said and sat down in the front row, between Maya and Riley.
"Let's get back to learning," he said, "the civil war"
"The civil bore" Maya argued.
I tuned out still thinking about the guy from the subway; damn I bet I was never going to see him again.
"Thank you future minimart employee of the month." I laughed at Cory's attempt a
"Would she be making more than you?" I countered high fiving Maya.
"The civil war" he avoided the question.
"Anyone?"
"A war we fought against ourselves," Riley said looking up from her hands.
"You studied it?" Cory asked confused.
"She's living it," I clarified.
Riley banged her head down on her desk and I poked her.
"People, people are we here to learn or not?" Farkle asked.
"What are you talking about Farkle?" Cory asked.
"I've been in love with Riley since the first grade. But I'm also equally in love with Maya and Violet." We all smiled at him as he talked.
"You don't want this," Maya said.
"Bring it on."
"I think he'll end up with back of the class Brenda," I said looking at the girl waving to Farkle.
"How can you love three women the same when they are all so different?" Cory asked.
"May I over step my bounds sir?"
"You always do. "
Farkle switched the name plate over to his side and began to rant, "Riley is the sun, she's warm and brightens up my whole day. Maya is the night, dark and mysterious. Violet is the twilight she's the perfect balance of the two; she has parts of the sun and of the moon. How could I love these three different women? How could I not? Thank you I am Farkle!"
Cory and Farkle switched places again and Cory began teaching, "History shows that bad things happen when you don't know who you are." the boy from the subway walks into the class and I sat up straighter, "who are you I don't know you you are?"
I rolled my eyes at Cory.
"Subway boy!" Riley exclaimed and I nodded and winked at her.
"I'm Lucas Friar, from Austin, Texas."
"Great you're just in time for today's assignment. Have a seat."
He sat behind me and I turned around and smiled at him, "hi again. "
"Hi," he chuckled.
Cory grabbed my head and faced it forward.
Cory continued whatever he had been saying, "on anything you believe in anything at all as long as you're willing to fight for it."
"That!" Maya got up.
"What?" Cory asked. Oh no.
"I'd fight for no homework"
"Maya no" I warned.
"Whoo" Riley joined.
"Oh god." I stared up at the sky why did my friends have to be difficult.
Cory shot Riley an angry look, "Not whoo." she decided.
The class began chanting, "No homework more freedom."
"This is your shot to be like her," I told Riley, "you don't have to take it."
"Riley what are you doing?" Cory asked as she got up, "I know who you are. You are exactly like me!"
"Would you do this?" She asked and started chanting and walked out the door.
"You going too?" Cory asked me.
I shook my head, "not really in a rebellious mood today. Besides one of the three of us has to be sane."
"Thank god."
Farkle started freaking out about education versus his women and he fainted into Cory's arms.
"Wow it's only the first day of the year, he's got it bad," I said as Cory put him in a chair.
"Having fun yet?" I asked Lucas.
"Tons," He laughed looking up at me from his textbook, he was reading.

"Ma!" Cory and Riley both yelled as we walked into the apartment later that day.
"Great! You guys realize it's the first day of the year." Topanga asked me as I stepped through the door.
"I'm not getting involved" I walked into mine and Riley's shared room and sat on my bed starting my homework.

The next day at lunch we sat down with our food trays at our usual table.
"Awe look at him, looking for a place to fit in," Maya said eating a fry as we all looked at Lucas. I could look at that boy for hours he was quite the view.
"Do you think he'll sit with us" Riley asked and I shrugged and moved over a seat. Just as Lucas was about to sit down Farkle swooped in.
"Ladies" he said before starting to talk about the lunch line.
"Farkle" we all responded as we had since we were seven.
Farkle left and there was an empty seat again.
Maya and Riley were arguing about how to invite him to sit down.
"Just say 'hey Lucas'" I suggested.
"Like we are on a first name basis"
"Hey" Maya suggested.
"Hey" Riley tested it.
"Hey" I agreed
"Hey back" Lucas said sliding into the seat next to me.
"Hi" I said smiling.
"You're sitting here," Riley interrupted smiling widely at him.
"Is that okay?" He looked from me to Riley and she gave him a thumbs up.
"It's cool" I said taking a drink from my water bottle.
Riley was tugging on my sleeve, "excuse me for just a sec," I turned to her "yes?"
We did a little handshake thing with Maya and when I turned around Cory was there, right next to Lucas. Great.
"How ya doing?" He asked.
"Dad, please don't overreact." Riley begged.
"You have two choices Cory, you could understand that this is completely innocent"
He didn't let me finish, "I'm gonna do whatever you say next. Honey fathers see everything as not innocent, as the opposite of innocent actually."
"Right here" Maya raised her hand.
"He's about it embarrass us Riley be prepared." I said crossing my arms.
"I'm not gonna embarrass you, I'm gonna teach Mr. Friar about geography. I've been a lot of places. But never to Texas, what part of Texas is closest to Mexico?"
"El Paso sir," Lucas answered in his cute voice.
"Great let's go there now" Cory started pulling him out of the lunch room.
'Sorry' I mouthed and gave him a small wave.
Maya caught my eye and raised her eyebrow. I did not need her to think I had a thing for Lucas because clearly I don't.

I sat down in my seat in history and smiled at Lucas, "I'm glad you're back." I winked.
"Me too" he laughed.
"Hi" Cory came up to us, "apparently you have a better sense of direction than I anticipated."
"I'm sorry about him, he's just..." I looked for a word to describe him, "Cory"
"Are you his daughter too?" Lucas asked.
"No, his goddaughter but I've lived with them since before middle school." I answered as I saw Riley glancing at us. I turned around as Cory was about to start teaching.
"Maya present your homework" Cory said.
"Can't do that sir."
"Why not"
"Didn't do it."
I tuned them out knowing this could go on for a while.
"Is it always like this?" Lucas asked
"No depends on the day," I answered as Maya went around collecting everyone's homework.
Don't do it Maya I thought to myself.
Farkle ran into the room with a hug diorama with sparklers and flags.
Maya grabbed one of Farkle's sparklers and stood on the desk about to burn the homework.
"Maya no stop!" I yelled, "Riley help me!"
"Maya I get it stop!" Cory went up to her but she just lifted the sparkler.
The sparkler set off the fire alarm and water started spewing everywhere and a loud alarm was ringing. Lucas pulled me close to him and held his jacket over us.
"Why didn't you stop your friend?" Lucas asked me and Riley.
"I tried" I said looking at Maya, who actually looked kind of nervous.
"It's not what I do anymore." Riley exclaimed.
"Your better than that Riles!" I said mad at them both, they took it too far this time; usually I was right there beside them.
"Ms. Hart you have detention" Cory said looking at her with the most disappointment I've ever seen him have, "The principal will decide any other punishment."
"Ms. Matthews leave."
"I deserve detention too" Riley said
"Wait, it wasn't all her fault," I said pulling away from Luca getting ready to defend both.
He whispered to me as he held me under the jacket, "I don't think you can help her this time."
"No you don't Riley, Violet its okay." Maya said, nodding at me.
"Violet, get her out of here!"
"No I'm like her! I want to help her!" Riley yelled over the alarms.
"You missed that chance Riley! You were so busy trying to be her that you forgot to be you! And now she's in trouble."
"Come on Riley, there's nothing we can do this time." I glanced back at Maya and she gave me a weak smile. I wish I could've helped her.
"Thanks" I said to Lucas when we got outside.
"No problem."

Maya, Riley and I were standing in front of our lockers waiting for Cory to come out of the principal's office.
He walked out with Farkle on his back.
"Down Farkle," Cory said.
"You're looking at us pretty hard there" I said looking down at the floor.
"I just want to stand by my girl!" Riley said and I shook my head.
"You missed your chance to stand by your girl Riley," Cory said again.
"For as long as I can remember, it's always been Maya, Riley, and Violet," Cory started, "Now I always believed a friend helps another friend out of trouble, not into it.'
"I'm sorry," Maya said tears in her eyes.
"I am too Maya. Because you go too far! Do you understand me?"
"I have nobody at home, who helps me with my homework" Maya ran out of the hallway.

We were all on the subway, standing at the same pole as in the morning.
"Riles? Vi?" Maya said.
"Yeah?" we said together.
"If we can't hang out with eachother as much anymore, don't worry about it." She said faking a smile.
"Wait," Riley said.
"Why wouldn't we hang out anymore?" I asked her.
"He's going to make you guys end our friendship," Maya said sadly.
"He said that?" I asked.
"He's really upset with me."
"He loves you Maya," I said grabbing her hand.
"I don't think so anymore," Maya said.
"I just wanted you to know that I get that it wouldn't be your guys' fault."
"Maya..." Riley started.
"No not now."
"I haven't been a very good friend," Maya told us.
"You're our best friend," Riley said.
"I go too far and I don't think that's gonna stop. I'm bad for you," Maya let a tear fall from her eye.
"Did he say that Maya?" I asked frowning.
"He will, this is your stop." Maya gave us a little wave, "Don't be me, and don't go as far as me."
"No." Riley said.
"Maya stop."
She pushed us out of the subway car.
I walked back to the car and opened the door.
Riley said, "I'm not you. I'm not Violet. I'm me."
"You aren't allowed to abandon our friendship!" I said
"I would never do that," Riley added.
"I'm pushing you guys away because I'm not good for you anymore." Maya said frustrated.
"Only we can decide that, you know why?" I asked.
"Why?"
"Because it's my world now and the first person I want in it is you," I smiled at her.
"You're gonna save me aren't you?" Maya asked us.
"Yeah" we said together.

At home Maya and Riley and I barged into the living room.
"Where is he?" Riley asked.
Topanga and Auggie immediately pointed at Cory.
"There is no way we will let you break-up our friendship with Maya!" I said letting out a huge breath.
"Is that what you think I want, Violet?"
"No what you said you really want is for us to make the world our own, and you want us to do our homework, well we are doing it now." Riley said linking her arms with me and Maya.
"Here's what I think is worth fighting for: these are my best friends, we will get in trouble and we will find our way out of it and we just did because here we are" I said looking at Cory.
"Look at us dad, we are right here, my civil war is over, I won, what happens now?" Riley said.
"We are all different. We have to be. Because if we were all the same we wouldn't function. We compliment each other. Our differences bring out our strengths" I said smiling at Maya and Riley.