The next morning, Riley walked into the halls of John Quincy Adams Middle School, butterflies in her stomach causing her to walk slowly. She looked around and didn't see anybody she knew, so she just went to her locker to get her books.

"Hey, Riles."

Riley's heart raced and she looked around quickly and saw Maya standing next to her.

She sighed with relief and said, "Hey, Maya. Are you feeling better?"

Maya's smile turned to a frown and she said, "Not really. I'm really mad at him. But I don't want to talk about that right now, because I'm in a good mood."

"But you're still upset?" Riley asked.

"Yeah."

"I'm sorry, Maya. I'm mad at him too."

"Let's change the subject. What's wrong with you?" Maya asked with a half-smile.

"Nothing."

"Okay, great. Now do you want to tell me the truth?"

Riley sighed and said, "I'm nervous."

"About what?"

"I have to talk to Lucas today," Riley said.

"How come?" Maya asked.

Riley closed her locker and went over to the bench to sit, and Maya followed her.

"He hasn't asked me out in a month, and I don't know if he wants me to ask him, and I don't know if he even wants to ask me or wants me to ask him, because maybe I'm a bad kisser or I have bad breath or I'm too awkward, and I have to ask him what's going on because I can't stand not knowing anymore," Riley said quickly. She took a deep breath after her long sentence. She looked at Maya, who was raising her eyebrows and looking back at her, amused.

"Am I crazy for thinking all that, Maya?"

"No, I think that it's perfectly logical to have doubts about a relationship, especially your first one. I think you're doing the right thing, though, by talking to him. He'll understand, I'm sure."

"Really?" Riley asked.

"Yeah," Maya answered.

"So you think it's perfectly logical that I should feel like this."

"Uh, huh."

"So I do have one of those things wrong with me. Am I too awkward? Do I have bad breath?" Riley leaned forward and breathed in Maya's face.

Maya backed up and said, "Woah, Riles. You need to settle down. I meant that it's logical to irrationally doubt yourself because this is a new situation. But you just need to talk to him and figure out what's going on. It could be all in your head."

Riley nodded, seeming to understand what Maya was saying.

"So are we good?" Maya asked.

"Yeah. Thanks, Maya."

"Anytime."

"I just have one more thing, though."

"Yeah?"

"Do I have bad breath?"

Maya scowled and rolled her eyes as she stood to walk away.

xxxXXXxxx

Cory and Topanga were walking around New York City that morning, going to all of Topanga's favorite stores. It was early in the morning, but they had already filled three bags with things for her. She, of course, was leading the way, pulling Cory's hand in the direction she wanted to go. Cory was reluctantly following behind, hoping she wouldn't ask for the tenth time, "Does this look good on me?"

He didn't get his wish, as in JCPenney, Topanga held up a skirt to her waist and looked in the mirror.

"Do you think this would look good on me, Cory?"

"Yes, honey," he said.

"You've said that every time. Would it really look good on me, or are you just saying that so I'll be happy?" she asked.

"Truth?"

"Yes, please."

"Topanga, I don't know anything about this stuff. I really don't. I mean, this skirt looks the same as that skirt," he said, pointing at different racks. "But that doesn't really matter, because that's not what you're asking me. You're asking if it would look good on you, to which I have to answer yes. Because you are the most beautiful woman on the planet, and if it doesn't look good on you, there's no hope for anybody."

A smile grew on her face and she put the skirt down. She walked over to Cory and kissed him gently.

"Thank you, babe," she said quietly, still smiling.

"Love you," he said.

"Love you," she replied.

xxxXXXxxx

When Lucas walked to his locker, Riley was still sitting on the bench, waiting for him.

She walked over to him and said, "Hey, Lucas."

"Hey, Riley."

She didn't know what to say, so she just stood there, waiting for him to say something else.

He put his books into his locker and then turned to look at Riley.

"Is there something you wanted?"

"Not really. I just wanted to say hi."

"Okay," he said, smiling at her.

Riley turned to walk away and then stopped herself. She turned back around and went back to Lucas.

"I want to talk to you," Riley said.

Lucas closed his locker. "What do you want to talk about?"

She searched for words, but found none.

"Riley?" he asked after a few moments.

"I just wanted to say that Maya's still upset about Shawn."

"Oh," Lucas said. "What can we do to help her?"

"I don't know. Just try to think of something. I have to go to class now, though. I promised the teacher I'd help her pass papers back before class."

"Okay. Bye, Riley."

"Bye, Lucas," she said, smiling at him.

xxxXXXxxx

After going to many more stores, Cory looked at his watch.

"It's already 12:13," he said.

"Yeah, I'm getting pretty hungry," Topanga said.

"Do you want to get some Chinese, then?" he asked.

"Mmm, no," Topanga said, making a face.

"Well, what do you want to get?"

"I think Mexican food sounds good. I really want spicy food," she said.

"Okay," Cory said.

They went to a local Mexican restaurant known for its spicy taco sauce. Topanga ordered two tacos with the sauce, and Cory ordered a burrito.

"This is pretty good," Cory said.

"Yeah, I can't believe we've never been here before," Topanga said, taking a bite of her taco.

"I know! We'll have to bring the kids here sometime. Auggie loves this stuff. How's your spicy taco sauce?"

"Oh, it's delicious!"

"Good," he said, smiling. He took another bite and looked up to see Topanga with wide eyes.

"What's wrong?" he asked, his mouth full.

"Cory, I think I'm having a contraction," she said.

This was also a very fun chapter to write! I hope you all enjoyed it! Please leave a review and tell me what you like, what you don't like, and anything in between- I love hearing from you! Thanks for reading!