Chapter 10

Maya's POV

Well, there is no coming back from this. Art doesn't lie. I took a deep breath. Everything is about to change.

"Mom," I started.

"Yes, Maya?"

"I've never said this out loud before."

"Said what baby girl?"

"I'm in love with Riley Matthews."

She stared at me with an expression that I couldn't quite read.

"What did you say?" she asked

I pulled one of the kitchen stools over to her and helped her sit down. She looked like she needed to sit down before hearing me say this again.

"I said, I'm in love with Riley," I repeated.

"I'm sorry, I'm a little confused. Didn't you just go on a date with Lucas a couple of weeks

ago?" she asked.

"Yes, I did. But I broke up with him because I have feelings for Riley," I explained.

"So, you've only had these feelings for a couple of weeks?" she asked.

I shook my head as I flipped through the pages of my sketchbook. "I didn't draw all of these sketches in just the past few weeks," I said.

"Does Riley know?" she asked.

"I told her that I have feelings for her. I haven't told her that I'm in love with her yet."

"Do you want my advice, Maya?" she asked.

"Sure." I said.

"Don't," she said.

"Don't love her?" I asked, confused.

"Don't tell her," she explained

"But what if she feels the same way?" I asked.

"Maya, it doesn't matter. You're both much too young to be in love with anyone, let alone with each other."

"What is that supposed to mean?" I asked, defensively.

"You're too young to be in love, and you're too young to know that you're gay," she clarified.

I was suddenly getting the feeling that if I had come home to a confrontation about a sketchbook full of Lucas, that this would have been a very different conversation.

"I never said that I'm gay," I stated.

"Well, what do you think you're going to be labeled as if you start dating Riley?" she asked.

"I really don't care what anyone wants to call us or call me. I call myself lucky." I said with a smile. "I'm lucky to have her in my life. I'm lucky that when I kiss her, she kisses me back. And I'm so lucky that we get to live in a world where it's not 1969 anymore."

"So you and Riley have been kissing?" She asked, with her eyebrows raised.

I blushed and looked away. "Yes, we have," I admitted.

"Do her parents know that?" she asked.

I suddenly looked back up at her with panic. "No, and you can't tell them."

"Maya, you spend a lot of time in Riley's bedroom. They ought to know." Okay, I admit, my mom wasn't wrong about that, and honestly, I had really wanted to tell Mr. Matthews earlier, but it's not up to me.

"I know, but Riley isn't ready. You can't just out her to her parents. She needs to do it herself, when she feels comfortable enough to tell them. Promise me, you won't tell them."

She considered it for a moment and let out a sigh.

"Okay, fine. I won't say anything, for now," she agreed. "But Maya, at your age, you should be focusing on yourself, on discovering your passions and improving your grades; not getting caught up in your feelings."

I flipped through the sketchbook again. "Don't you see, Mom? My art and my music, those are my passions, and they're how I deal with my feelings. They're directly inspired by my emotions."

She nodded, "But what about your grades, Maya?"

Is she really playing the academics card? What does that have to do with anything?

"You get Straight D's, maybe a C if it's a good day," she said.

"I got an A in English once. I get straight A's in art class," I argued.

"You're about to start high school. If you continue this pattern, then that portfolio is all you're going to have. You won't be able to get into any college that isn't an art school."

"Why do you say 'art school' like it's a bad word?" I could hear my voice raising but I couldn't stop it. She had it a nerve. "Aren't you an actress? Acting is a dramatic art! You're such a hypocrite!"

"Am I Maya? Look around! We barely get by! Am I a hypocrite for wanting you to have a better life?" She yelled back at me. "If you focused your energy on applying yourself in any other class besides art, then at least you would have some options. That's what you should be doing with your time, not fooling around with Riley," she lectured.

"Okay, Mom. So when I come home with straight A's on my report card, then what will it be? Then what will you tell me is a better use of my time than Riley?" I yelled back. "Just admit it. You don't want me to date Riley because she's a girl. You had no objections to me going out with Lucas a couple weeks ago, and I had the same exact grades then." My accusation hung heavily in the air between us for a moment. Her silence spoke volumes.

"This is what I get for raising you in Greenwich Village. You turn out to be a lesbian fine arts major," she said.

"I'm not listening to this anymore." I give up. There are two wonderful things in my life: Riley and my art. She views both of them as disappointments.

I picked up my sketchbook and stormed off into my room. I shoved some clothes into my backpack, and then headed towards the front door.

"Where are you going, Maya?" she asked.

"I'm staying at Riley's tonight," I decided.

"You want to ask my permission first?" She asked.

"Oh, I think you'll let me," I scoffed.

"Oh really? You think so?" she quipped.

"Yeah you see, if I'm not around, then you won't have to be disappointed by me anymore," I said as I walked out the door.

"Maya!" She called after me, but I let the door slam and kept going.

Riley's POV

I was awakened by the sound of the bay window opening. "Peaches? Is that you?" I asked, as I sat up in bed. Maya came over and climbed into bed with me. She was crying. I wrapped my arms around her as she sobbed into my chest.

"You came out to your mom, didn't you?" I asked.

She nodded into my chest.

"And it didn't go very well, did it?"

She shook her head.

"Do you want to talk about it?"

She shook her head and sobbed even harder.

"Okay, Peaches. I'm here. I got you." I held her tighter. "It's been a tough day in Rileytown and Mayaville."

She nodded in agreement. I gently kissed her on her forehead.

"Maya, you're the bravest person I've ever known." I said.

She slid her hand down my arm, finding my hand, weaving her fingers with mine. Our friendship rings touched.

"Ring Power," Maya whispered.

"Ring Power," I whispered back.

"Thunder."

"Lightning."