Old Soul, Young Heart
Chapter Fourteen, Fight This Fight.
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His entire body is aching as he slowly squints his eyes open. Josh recognizes the area as the living room in the lake house, and starting to sit up on the couch only to realize that his headache still remains, but slightly less severe. He holds his hand to his forehead, squeezing his eyes shut only for a moment before opening them once more. Josh then throws the blanket off of himself, and swinging his legs over until his bare feet touch the floor. Afterwards, noticing the silhouette of someone sitting in front of him, and immediately feeling his heart plummet into the pit of his stomach. It's Maya, and she's sleeping soundly, while leaning against the coffee table with a blanket of her own wrapped around her shoulders. Josh soon tries to recall what happened last night, and it doesn't take long for the memories to come flooding back.
He might've just been sleepwalking…or possibly something more. Josh remembers going all the way to lake in the middle of the night, but not voluntarily. He remembers the faint whispering in his head, and finally falling unconscious on the dock only to have Maya rescue him the second she noticed he was gone. Maya stirred out of her sleep like she typically does, and seeing Josh's side of the bed empty. She instantly jumped up, searching the whole house from top to bottom, while shouting his name, but to no avail. Afterwards, unfortunately having to admit that he might've gone down to the lake because where else would he go at this hour? Hoping the notion to be wrong as she stepped outside into the night, Maya perfectly able to see a body on the dock near the lake right where she stood, and she didn't think twice before sprinting barefoot to Josh's aid.
She couldn't explain what he might've been doing, but also didn't care as she struggled to get him onto her back, so she could carry him back inside. Maya carefully laid his body onto the couch, heavily panting after the dreadful trek back, and soon placing a blanket on him as she knew they wouldn't make it upstairs. And for a while, Maya simply watched him sleep.
He didn't appear to be in any pain, but instead sleeping peacefully; his skin also seeming clear of any scratches or marks. Maya sighed a breath of relief, happy to have him back safe and sound. Nevertheless, eventually grabbing a blanket for herself after waiting up long enough for the chance Josh might wake up. She decided to sit on the floor, resting her head on her arms as she subsequently fell asleep. Now the sun is up, Josh is awake, and is hopelessly freaking out.
He leaps up from the couch, nearly falling over as his legs wobble, but successfully making it to the nearest bathroom, nonetheless. Josh gazes at his appearance in the mirror—still in nothing, but his boxer shorts, and his eyes wander across every part of his body, seeking anything on him that wasn't there before. Josh then spots a bruise on his elbow, which he most likely got after suddenly passing out. And just like that, Josh was worried. He doesn't understand why it took him so long to realize it, but they needed to get the hell up out of the lake house and fast. They've put themselves in danger for far too long, and Josh wasn't going to wait around anymore for something strange to happen again.
It's a swift trek up the stairs once he leaves the bathroom as he skips every other step until finally reaching the bedroom where him and Maya have been sleeping. Haunted waters, creepy stories, spirits, a Ouija board, and now sleepwalking—Josh feels absolutely foolish for constantly putting Maya through this when in reality, they could've packed their bags a long time ago and took a trip anywhere else in the world, but instead, allowing his stubbornness to keep them in harm's way as there was no chance of his friend's lake house being haunted. However, Josh finally believes it now.
He believes Eden and her crazy notion of something haunting the lake, and anyone to come near it. He believes it was a spirit to take Maya the first day they arrived, and he believes of something possessing him, and forcibly bringing his body all the way down to the lake. The admittance is most alarming, but all the more reason why they need to leave before something worse happens. And as he's busy stuffing all of his bags, he can clearly hear footsteps, and soon looking up to see Maya standing sleepily in the doorway, rubbing one of her eyes. She looks at Josh curiously. "What's going on?" she asks, and Josh slowly stands up straight.
He carefully starts to approach her. "Maya, listen to me. Pack your bags because we're leaving. Now." Josh demands without a single stutter or blink of his eyes, and Maya is speechless.
Skepticism is written all over her face as she furrows her eyebrows. "What?"
"I said, we're leaving!" Josh repeats, but more viciously. "It isn't safe here, and we shouldn't have to be told again to leave! Our presence clearly isn't welcomed, and I refuse to spend another night in this house!"
"Josh—" Maya says, but Josh isn't trying to hear it. There isn't anything anyone can say to him that will justify the situation, so Maya shouldn't even waste her breath.
Josh walks up to her, and placing his hands on either of her shoulders, while looking at her seriously. "You found me outside last night, didn't you?"
"Yeah, but—"
"I didn't go out there willingly, Maya!" Josh yells, but surprisingly, the tone of his voice doesn't seem to frighten Maya in the least. "Something was controlling me and before I knew it, I blacked out! That's never happened before, and I don't want to stay somewhere where it's bound to happen again!"
"I get that, but we can't just runaway, Josh!"
"Yes, the hell we can!" Josh removes his hands from Maya's shoulders to her cheeks, wanting to be certain she understands him, and how serious all of this is. "Did you already forget about that scar under your eye? It's never going away, and I have to live with knowing I let this happen to you!" Josh's eyes resemble glass as they slowly fill with tears, and Maya desperately tries to control herself from doing the same by blinking her eyes repeatedly.
She thinks about that day more often than she'd like to, although wishing Josh didn't blame himself since there's nothing he could've done differently to prevent the incident from happening. "Josh…" She moans, and Josh intervenes.
"We're not safe here, Maya. Nobody is." He says, desperate to get his point across. "I need your support on this because I'm done with putting ourselves in danger all for a stupid trip. It isn't worth it." Maya's heart breaks the instant the words leave Josh's mouth, and it takes him a minute to realize how that must've sounded. He looks at the blonde remorsefully. "Awe, Maya I'm sorry. You know I didn't mean it like that. I'm just saying, we don't have to be here to have a good time…and it's about time we realize that."
Maya takes Josh's hands off of her face before walking over to the bed to sit down. Josh moves to sit beside her, and seeing as she takes a deep breath. "I get that you're scared, Josh…but after growing up with a girl like Riley as my best friend and having a teacher like Mr. Matthews, I've learned not to run away from problems, and this to me is no exception. I know I was scared before, but I want us to be brave, and to leave this place with no worries and no regrets and if that means staying here until the time you originally planned for us to go, then so be it. We will get through this and when we do, I promise you'll feel a whole lot stronger. You just have to trust me."
There goes that word again—trust—and Josh wouldn't dare let Maya think that he doesn't trust her. She's practically all he has, which is why he's so afraid of losing her, especially to something as foolish as paranormal activity. Regardless, if she stays by his side, then albeit, Josh is prepared to tackle any challenge, no matter how difficult. And when Maya grabs his hand, he can sense the warmness not only in her palm, but in her heart too. He suddenly believes that everything will be okay, and it's all because of her. She smiles. "Besides, we still have some business here, and it's winning that two hundred dollars. Are you with me?"
Josh leans forward to peck her lips. "Yeah. I'm with you." He assures her, and Maya is ecstatic. Needless to say, Josh isn't sure how he's going to tell his friend that his lake house is haunted. Then again, he might just keep it to himself.
[…]
He looks at himself in the mirror, admiring how dapper he appears. Josh had been waiting for Maya to finish getting ready, and deciding to pass the time by modeling around the vintage store in his outfit. He's currently wearing a pair of tan slacks with suspenders, a short-sleeved dress shirt, black leather wingtip shoes, and a matching fedora hat. Josh smirks, while pointing at his reflection and clicking his tongue. After his brief meltdown this morning, ultimately agreeing to the idea of finding outfits to wear to the diner's upcoming fourth of July bash as it'll be the last fun thing the couple do together before returning home.
Josh has been waiting for at least twenty minutes now, wondering why it's taking the blonde longer to change than he originally anticipated. Nevertheless, Josh doesn't want to complain simply because any amount of time spent away from the lake house is pleasurable. He's not sure where they'll end up going next, so the more time they spend in the store, the better. He then goes to sit down on a chair near the fitting rooms, continuing to wait for Maya to finally reveal herself to him and when someone comes around the corner five minutes later, Josh is eager as he presumes it to be her. Ergo, imagine his disappointment when it's not.
He grimaces at the female employee to walk out instead. "Oh, hey…" He grumbles, and falling back into his chair.
"Sorry to get your hopes up," she teases with sarcasm dripping from her lips, acknowledging Josh's sour attitude. "but no need to wait any longer." She hints, and Josh's eyes start to widen. He immediately perks up at the mention of Maya; his lips ample, and heart racing as he waits for her to round the corner. And when she does, boy is he speechless.
Maya looks absolutely enchanting in a vintage poodle skirt just like the ones worn in the fifties, a white blouse, and an ascot around her neck. Meanwhile, wearing black and white oxford saddle shoes, and her shimmering blonde hair styled neatly into a high ponytail. Josh's eyes then dropping down to her lips, noticing the pop of red lipstick to match her skirt, and he swallows. It's taking every ounce of strength he has not to move over and kiss her, and soon he just can't take it anymore.
Josh launches up from his chair, aware of the employee's eyes following his every move, and walking right up to Maya. She's smiling at him, attempting to say something, but isn't given the chance when Josh holds both sides of her face before planting an intense kiss to her lips without a single act of hesitation or care of whom may be watching.
Maya, slightly taken aback, holds her breath the second their mouths are touching before finally closing her eyes, and settling into the passion. Albeit, she didn't care about the employee watching them either as she's shamelessly leering at the pair like they're a couple from her favorite romance movie, and she just can't look away. Obviously a hopeless romantic.
Josh tugs on Maya's bottom lip as he starts to break away from the kiss, rendering her placid and disoriented. She blushes, feeling coy, and noticing the smear of lipstick on Josh's mouth. "I hate you." She murmurs bashfully, and Josh winks.
"I know, but I just couldn't help myself. You look hot." The compliment causes Maya to punch his arm, and Josh chuckles, clearly used to the blonde's way of affection when she's too embarrassed to use actual words.
The employee, Payton, then steps forward; unable to stay silent any longer. "I told her so, but she had trouble believing me. I can tell she doesn't wear skirts often, which is why she was skeptical to show you at first. However, what finally convinced her is my comment about you and your feelings for her."
"And what was that?" Josh asks suspiciously, and Payton's smirk is smug.
"That if he really likes you, then he'll like you no matter what you're wearing. Clearly I was right."
"Well, obviously." Josh groans, and turning his head toward Maya. "She's my girlfriend but even more than that, she's always been beautiful. That I've always known."
Maya smiles at the ground, while Payton happily squeals. Both Josh and Maya look at her questionably. "I'm sorry, but you two are just so cute. Well anyways, will you be paying for these outfits, or do you want to keep looking?"
"Uh, I think we're fine with these. Thanks." Josh responds, and looking down when Maya moves closer to hold his hand.
"Great. Just come up to the counter when you're ready, and I'll get you checked out." Payton replies and the second she turns her back, Josh quickly lifts Maya into his arms to carry her back to the dressing rooms.
"We should only be a minute," he whispers deviously before disappearing behind a curtain—a minute easily turning into many.
Maya and Josh eventually change out of their clothes to purchase them, and walking hand in hand as they exit the store. Josh puts the bags into the backseat of his car, and in a few minutes, are they driving down the street to nowhere in particular. It's a casual silence between him and her, but it doesn't last long when Josh notices Maya staring at him from the corner of his eye. He looks at her with a smile. "What?"
"Nothing. Just thinking about something."
"About me?" Josh says, and Maya skittishly turns her head to look out of the window. "I'll take that as a yes."
"I just can't stop thinking about what you said in there."
"It's the truth, and I would still think so even if we weren't together."
Maya doesn't respond, continuing to blush like she's a teenage girl again getting a chance to talk to her crush for the first time. She's truthfully using the excuse of wanting to participate in the dance competition solely for the money, but it's more than that. Maya could care less if they actually win or not. Instead, merely wanting to check off her bucket list the moment of being in Josh's arms as she stares dreamily into his eyes, and dancing to nineteen-fifties music like they're really back in that time.
She's anxious for that instant of Josh moving in to kiss her like it'd be their first, while metaphoric fireworks explode in the background. He's nervous, she's nervous, but soon none of it will matter. It's why she doesn't want to leave as it truly does feel like they're living a life separate from their real one—a dream she doesn't want to wake up from as once the dance is over, the realization of having to go back to New York will immediately dampen the mood.
Maya then flinches when Josh shouts her name, too busy wandering through her thoughts to hear a single word he said. "Yeah?" she says awkwardly, and Josh sneers.
He shakes his head. "Man, I can only imagine what goes on in your head when you get like that," he says, and Maya sheepishly sinks into her seat.
"Yeah, it's probably best you don't know." Maya says, and Josh decides to take her advice; opting not to press the issue. Besides, if he's right with believing Maya's thoughts to be about him, then knowing that much is honestly satisfying enough. And with nowhere else to go, eventually taking the route back to the lake house.
It's the middle of the day with plenty of broad daylight left until sunset, and there's no hiding the fact that Josh isn't happy to be coming back, especially so early. Nevertheless, all of his nerves flying out of the window when he pulls up to the house to see someone sitting alone on the steps. Both him and Maya are perplexed as they look at the silhouette, and the closer they get, the more they can distinguish who it is.
"What is she doing here?"
"Your guess is as good as mine," Josh says, and turning the car off as he parks. Neither of them are in a rush to get out, wondering what the problem is.
"I wonder what she wants to talk about."
"We'll have to get out in order to find out."
"Thank you, Captain Obvious." Maya grumbles, and Josh smirks innocently at her. She's the first to step out of the car, and beginning to approach Eden with caution, while Josh closely follows behind her. They haven't seen Eden since their trip to the cemetery, while her brother seems to be everywhere they are when they least expect it.
Eden slowly looks up at them the second they're standing in front of her, and she can tell they're confused to be seeing her. She then rises to her feet, quietly looking back and forth between them. And when Maya opens her mouth to speak, Eden promptly cuts her off. "I've decided to go to the police, but before I do…I want you to give me a damn good reason why I shouldn't." She says, and Maya and Josh don't know what to say as usual in times like this; even more confused now than they were upon showing up. They sigh, while shaking their heads.
If it's not one thing, it's another.
PLEASE REVIEW, I love reading your feedback!
Once again, I will be posting two chapters today, so just be aware of that. And as always, I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter. I especially thought it was cute—even creating a character to gush about Joshaya just like us, lol. There's also the scene with Eden at the very end, so get ready because it's about to get emotional.
Recap:
1. Josh wakes up the next day after passing out on the dock, ready to leave the lake house.
2. Maya convinces Josh that they shouldn't leave yet.
3. Eden appears at the lake house with news of going to the police.
Thanks to everyone that read, reviewed, and followed. Much appreciation!