Maya groaned in frustration, before glaring at her wrist. It hurt. After a stupid shot and two painkillers, her wrist still hurt. She shifted on her bed, a bad decision because it jarred it and caused a pulse of pain that had her groaning again, this time not out of discomfort but out of genuine pain. She closed her eyes tightly, resisting the urge to whimper pathetically. It was just a bum wrist; she had experienced worse. There was no need for tears. Finally, when the pain resided into its previous dull ache, she opened her eyes, blinking back the unshed tears. Sadly, she reached over to poke at the wrist, tightly secured in its new home for the next few weeks. She sighed, and despite her own philosophy, felt a smidgen of regret creep up within her. Maybe it really had been overkill for her to try to jump onto the railing from such a distance, but it had been almost begging her to try. But, had she known that this would have been the outcome, she would have reconsidered. A jolt of adrenaline just hadn't been worth a trip down to the the ER.
"Stupid railing," she grumbled, shifting the blame off herself before she carefully rolled over to stare at her ceiling. There wasn't anything much for her to do beside lay here. She didn't have any of her books, not that she was in the mood to do homework anyway, and her mother had only recently started dinner. And, while Maya was fairly certain it would be one of her favourite meals, she also knew that her mother wasn't quite in the mood for her company right about now, and so she was better off not trying to test her look in that respect. She supposed she could sleep; she was feeling a bit drowsy, but what was the point if her mother would wake her in a few minutes. She raised her foot and allowed it to fall heavily back onto the mattress. She supposed that it was her boredom that made the thunking sound it made seem so fascinating, but, she amused herself doing that for the next few minutes until she heard a knock on her door.
"Come in Shawn," she called, boredom clear in her tone as she flailed her legs again. She knew that it could not have been her mother; much like the Matthews, she didn't care much for knocking. She was then surprised when she turned her head, and found not her future step-father there, but instead Lucas. She sat up quickly, eyes wide, before wincing as her wrist protested the movement.
"What are you doing here?" she asked, even as he entered and closed the door behind him.
He didn't answer immediately, but she found herself swallowing nervously when she saw the glint in his eyes when he looked at her. Briefly she considered if she should play up the amount of pain she was currently in for a bit of sympathy. He was not in the least pleased with her, and it didn't take a genius to figure out why. He had been the most fervent voice protesting at her antics earlier, and had warned her sternly to stop goofing around when she had tried to see how many desks she could leap over. He hadn't been present when she had escalated into attempting the railing jump, but, she didn't doubt that he had been informed of the result of it.
"The guys elected me to deliver these to you," he said finally, his tone carefully level. She glanced at his hands and saw her book bag in one hand, and a brown paper bag in the next. "Riley put all the things you need in here," he explained as he put her bag on the ground near her table.
"I'll thank her soon," she responded, swallowing as he approached and held out the brown bag to her.
She took it hesitantly, only to smile a moment later when the smell of it assaulted her nostrils. "A chimichunga?" she asked, holding it close to her chest.
His expression flickered there, and she saw a hint of amusement in his eyes at the babyish voice she had used before he pulled a chair near to her bed. "Consider it a get well soon present," he said shortly as he sat.
"Thank you," she said sincerely, smiling slightly despite the situation. He couldn't be too cross with her if he had ensured that she had still gotten her favourite after school treat.
He didn't respond, and, after a moment, she realised that his gaze was fixed on her bandaged wrist.
"It's fractured," she offered tentatively, "and I hurt some of the ligaments when I tried to brace myself. Nothing is permanent though."
"You're lucky," he said simply. "From what I heard you could have broken your whole arm."
She nodded in acknowledgement and set the bag aside. She had heard it in his voice there, a rising anger. She didn't doubt that this was why the group had elected to send him over. She could have talked over Farkle or played up her hurt so that Riley would coo over her. Lucas wouldn't fall for her tricks, and, glancing at him, she could see that he was ready to go into full lecture mode.
"I'm sorry?" she said tentatively, hoping that that would off-set the scolding she knew was coming.
Wrong move, she realised seconds later, when he arched a brow at her and leant closer. "You're sorry?" he repeated, "sorry after you ended up in the hospital? Sorry after we repeatedly warned you to stop monkeying around and you laughed in our faces?"
"I wasn't that bad, huckleberry," she couldn't help but defend.
"The bandage on your wrist says otherwise Maya," he told her firmly. "Was not listening to us really worth the pain you're in now?"
She pouted a bit at that. "I should have been more careful," she allowed.
"You shouldn't have been acting like such a brat in the first place," he returned. "You were being reckless Maya. Unnecessarily so."
"I was just having a bit of fun," she couldn't help but snap. "You remember what that is Heehaw or are you that much of a stuck in the mud now."
"Maya..."
"I mean it's not like you listened to me when you rode that stupid bull," she pointed out, not even sure why she was growing agitated and talking to him like this, but rolling with it regardless.
"That's different Maya," he said levelly, "and you know it."
"No it wasn't," she said stubbornly. "It's just different because I was the one having fun and you have a problem with that."
"What is up with you?" he demanded, his tone entirely fed up. "Why are you so...so argumentative with me lately, huh Maya?" he asked. "I'm just trying to look out for you."
"Well maybe I don't want that," she said with a sniff, looking away.
He was silent for a moment, before he sighed, a deeply aggravated sound that had her looking at him. He met her gaze for one long moment before he nodded, as if coming to some sort of decision and standing. "I'm sorry it bothers you that I want the best for you Maya," he told her levelly, "but it's clear that you won't listen to me and think before you put yourself in danger, and I have no choice but to respect that. I can only hope that that hurt wrist of yours and the fact that you're grounded will change your mind on that. I'll see you in class Monday, Maya," he said simply before he moved the chair away.
Maya stared at him in disbelief as he neared her bedroom door. Wait, this was not suppose to happen. At the very least Lucas should have started matching her barb for barb, but no. Instead, he was walking away. "Wait!" she called, voice sharp. "You're leaving? Just like that."
He paused, hand on the doorknob. "It's obvious that you don't want me here Maya," he answered, glancing at her over his shoulder. "And since you don't care about what I have to say I'll stop wasting both of our time and just go. Goodbye."
Maya's breath hitched as he turned again. He didn't like how he had said that. That goodbye felt a bit too final for her taste, and a swell of panic started to rise within her.
"No, please, don't go," she blurted up as she scrambled up from the bed, uncaring of the pain it caused. She hurried to him and grasped onto the back of his shirt, as if that alone could stop him from leaving. "I'm sorry," she told his back, voice wavering a bit. "Please...stay."
He twisted, and, thinking that he meant to shake her off, she rested her forehead against his shoulder. "No-"
"Hey," he said quickly, and faster than she could realise, he turned around and put his hands on her arms. "Relax Maya," he bid. "I'm here. Breathe for me, okay?"
It was only then, with his request, that she realised that her breathing had indeed increased and was clearly audible in the otherwise quiet room. She nodded, and made a valiant effort to calm her breathing, and her beating heart. He hadn't gone, hadn't left her. He was still here.
"That's it," he cooed, as he lifted a hand to press her head against his chest. "Breath for me. Deeply now. There's a good girl," he praised.
Maya couldn't help herself. She relaxed gradually and closed her eyes as she focused on her breathing until she was much more in control. At some point his other hand had moved and was moving in soothing circles along her back. She made a contented hum at that, and cuddled closer into him for a long moment before pulling her head back enough so that she could look up at him.
"Please don't leave me," she whispered raspily. "I'll behave. I swear."
His eyes, already worried softened at the vulnerable tone she used and he carefully cupped her cheek. "Don't worry about that Maya," he answered. "I'm not going to leave you."
She nodded, one quick, jerky movement before she pressed her head against him for a few seconds more, before, with a shuddering sigh, looked up at him again. "I deserve the scolding," she admitted. "You're right. I was being a brat."
"I'm curious as to why," he said, before walking her back to her bed, sitting next to her. "You usually have a reason, even if you don't share it at first."
She shrugged but, after he lifted a brow at her, responded. "Josh has a girlfriend," she said softly. "He told me yesterday. Her name's Crystal, and she's great. Much better than me."
Lucas hissed, and looking up, she saw a different kind of fury blaze in his eyes for a moment before he tempered it. "What about your agreement?" he asked, tersely. "I thought you two agreed to wait for each other."
She shrugged. "I suppose waiting means different things," she answered, willing her eyes not to water. "For him it means that we can go on dates and do stuff with other people until I'm old enough. I just thought it meant us...you know...waiting." She laughed then, a bit of a self-depreciating sound before she added, "I never realised that I'd be his second choice."
"You don't deserve that," Lucas declared. "You're more than a convenient option Maya. Surely you see that."
"I'm everyone's second choice," she answered softly. "I shouldn't be hurt by this."
"You deserve better," he reiterated, before, more gently saying, "it makes sense why you were acting out so much today. You were just trying to deal with the pain in the only way you knew how."
"You make it sound like I was throwing a tantrum Lucas," she said wryly.
"Jumping on tables, refusing to see reason and sassing is not a tantrum?" he asked, before chuckling when she shot a mild glare at him. "You should have told us Maya," he added, a bit more seriously.
"I don't need anyone's pity," she said defiantly.
"We wouldn't have pitied you."
"Well you wouldn't have," she shot back. "You would have wanted to go after him."
"I'm working on my temper still," he allowed. "But my primary concern would have been you. I want you happy Maya. You know that. I want you to make decisions that will bring you happiness, and, I don't think this long game is giving you that."
"It's all I have," she said sadly.
"It's not what you deserve though. You deserve happiness Maya. I just wish you'd reach out for it a bit more often."
"It's good enough if everyone else is," she told him softly. Because what was the alternative? Hurting Riley in trying to make herself feel good?
"That's who you are," he said, a hint of pride in his tone alongside consternation. "You sacrifice all the time to make things better for the ones around you. You would sacrifice your happiness for others. It's admirable," he said, raising a hand to touch her cheek, "but I wish you would be selfish sometimes."
Her eyes drifted close briefly, and she couldn't help but lean into the caress, smiling despite herself when he cupped her cheek entirely, and his thumb moved against her skin. She sighed, and reopened her eyes, only to find him looking at her tenderly, leaving her feeling cared for. She reached up and covered his hand with hers.
"I'll be more careful Lucas," she promised softly.
"In all aspects?" he pressed.
"Yes," she agreed. "I will be more careful."
"Good," he said, smiling at her. "Because you Maya Hart are a precious soul who I want around safe and whole for a good long while okay? So please, talk to us, talk to me without the brat-attack? We'll help you when we can. You don't have to go through any of this alone."
"Yes sir!" she quipped.
He laughed, his eyes reflecting his merriment. He leaned over, and Maya felt her cheeks heat up as he pressed a soft, lingering kiss to her forehead, a gesture that would, for a long time to come, continue to bring a smile to her lips.