"Katy, are you sure you're ok? Maybe I can bring some cookies or brownies or-"

"Topanga, really. There's nothing you can do. My only daughter hates me. And I can never win her back."

"Katy I-"

"Please, just… I just need some alone time. Please." The last word was barely above a whisper as the woman sat there, almost catatonic on the couch, a blanket wrapped around her. Topanga sighed, heartbroken for the woman. She couldn't imagine how it must feel, to have your flesh and blood treat you in such a careless way. She knew Katy had made mistakes in her past, but she was a good person at heart.

"I'll close the door then, alright? I'll check on you later." There was no response from the woman and Topanga sighed before closing the door and heading back to her own apartment. Around 5 minutes later Katy heard a knock on her door. She ignored it, expecting it was Topanga with some baked good. Then the knocking louder and louder until someone was literally banging on the door. Finally she stood and shuffled to the door, opening it after a deep breath.

"Topanga, I told you, I'm-" she stopped dead in her sentence. Because it was not Topanga standing in her doorway. It was not Cory. Or Shawn. Or even Riley. It was the last person she expected to see. It was her daughter. Maya had come home.

########

"Let's make something clear. I'm not moving back in just yet. And I'm not apologising for telling you the truth. But… I'm here to talk."

"Talk? Yeah, we can talk all you want." Katy said hurriedly, terrified that her daughter would walk away and never come back. She opened the door wider and let Maya walk in at her own pace. She shut the door and followed Maya to the couch where she had previously been crying on.

"Mom," Katy felt herself tear up at the word. It felt so good to hear daughter say mom again. Like all the troubles in the world had melted away. Like everything would forever be alright, "Mom, I have spent my whole life pretending I'm ok. Living for everyone else, but me. And I'm tired of that. I'm just tired." She began, her voice catching on the last sentence, and she furiously wiped at her eyes and their betraying tears.

"It's ok baby, just let it out."

"Whew. Ok, um… you've made mistakes. And I blamed you for them for a long, long time. But I realised today, that you are a human being. That doesn't excuse you, but… I love you so much. You're my mother. Despite all your flaws and issues, you are my mother and that is what matters." She finished, her voice wobbly and tears lining her eyes. Katy felt her heart stop as she watched her daughter. Her beautiful, strong daughter. Her broken, and flawed daughter. Her daughter.

"Well, are you going to say anything?" Maya asked with a watery laugh. Katy said nothing, but enveloped her daughter in a tight embrace, not wanting to ever let go. She cried, oh did she cry, but there were tears of joy mixed into the tears of heartbreak. Finally, after what felt like an hour they pulled apart, each wiping at their eyes and trying their best to get themselves under control. Katy cleared her throat and looked her daughter dead in the eye before continuing.

"Maya. I've made a lot of my problems your problems. I wasn't always there for you. I should have been there for you. And you were lucky enough to find a family downstairs that could be for you when I couldn't. I'll never forgive myself, but I hope one day, you'll find it in your heart to forgive me. Yes, Shawn's a great guy, and yes I fell for him, but I'm your mom first and foremost. I want to be a better person for you." Maya nodded and smiled at her mother.

"It's going to take a little time. A little time to think things over. But I'll be back. I've got to find myself a little bit. It'll a take a little while, but I'll come back home." Her mother grinned a stroked her daughter's hair as she pulled her back into a big hug.


Riley sighed as she stared at her wall from the comfort of her bed. She was so lost in her thoughts she barely heard the tentative knock on her bay window. She turned to see a flash of blonde hair and was immediately up and running. She swung the window up to see Maya, the last person she had expected to see.

"Hey Lightning." Maya said gently as she entered into the room. Riley stared at her, eyes brimming with tears, and smiled.

"Hey Thunder." She then enveloped Maya in a tight hug, and neither side wanted to let go.

######################

"So what made you decide to come back?"

"...I never really left Riley. Not really. I thought about all of you everyday, I was just so caught up in my emotions, and bottled up pain, that I let it cloud my judgement."

"What, you mean getting involved with the bad boy?" Maya sighed and ran a hand through her hair.

"Ethan isn't the 'bad boy' Riley. He's a good guy who genuinely cares about me. Sure, he wears leather, but he's a really special person."

"But he smokes, and drink, and-"

"Riley. This is New York. Half of the population smokes and drinks. It's not such a bad evil thing. I mean in moderation, there's nothing wrong with it."

"You mean apart from the yellow teeth, ruined lungs, injured liver-" Maya groaned loudly breaking off Riley's rant about the health ramifications.

"Ok fine. It's kinda bad for you." Riley let out a chuckle at her friend's agreement, before sobering up.

"So… what are you going to do now?" Maya ran a hand through her wavy blonde hair and let out a sigh.

"I don't know yet. Ethan and I are looking at options once we leave school. I'm going to repair my relationship with my mother. And I'll figure out my living situation soon. But Riley, you and Matthew's were right. I can't keep bottling everything up. I've got to have my walls pushed down. And I can't do that alone. I'm going to need your guy's help." Riley let out a watery smile at her friend's answer, going to engulf her once more in a hug. However, Maya grasped her arms and looked her right in the eyes.

"I hope you know I'm not going to be the old Maya again. Because Riley, she never really existed. She was just a figment of everyone's imagination. The real me smokes, and drinks, and goes to clubs. But that doesn't make me a bad person. I like the new friends I made, and I'm not going to give them up. I love you Riely, and I love our friends, but I love Ethan, and my other friends too. I like being able to live freely. I'm going to need you to accept that. I need you to be able to care about the person I really am. Not who I was pretending to be." She waited with baited breath while Riley sat staring at her. And then she was once more in a bear hug.

"Maya, of course I'll accept you. I may not like it, but I love you and that matters more. Peaches, we're all here for you. We'll always be here. Forever and always." Maya smiled brightly, snuggling more into the warmth of the hug. She had been lost. And now she'd been found. She was with her home once more. And this time, she felt real.

A/N: And so our story comes to a close. Just the epilogue left to go. Whew, drama, angst, but a happy ending. I'm about to cry. ALSO IT'S MY NINETEENTH BIRTHDAY SO YAY!