Title: Sooner or Later
Category: Television Shows » Girl Meets World
Author: And The Moment's Gone
Language: English, Rating: Rated: T
Words: 6,046
Warnings/Spoilers: The kids are freshmen in college, Josh is a senior, Cory still lives in denial.
Official Disclaimer: All Girl Meets World characters and plots belong to Disney Channel, Marc Jacobs, and April Kelly, I do not hold stock either the company or the people. Maya Hart, Joshua Matthews and any other character featured are NOT mine. The title comes from the Mat Kearney song Sooner or Later and I don't own that either.
Quick Author's Note: I just wanted to take a minute thank my ever patient beta reader ElleRose77. You deal with all of my crazy and the story snippets that don't make sense, and I'm working on getting you canonized for it. The next chapter will be in you inbox sooner than you think.
When his alarm blared through the room at quarter to seven, Josh knew she was already gone.
That didn't mean he didn't spend an extra minute and a half lying there wondering how his day might have been different if she'd still been curled to his side. It also didn't mean that after those ninety seconds he didn't roll over, silence the blaring and proceed to dress for his first class, surveying the damage to his room in the process.
He'd have to get that cleaned up before Austin came back to the land of the living.
He gauged the living room as he wandered to the coffee pot, thankful that other than their plates still being on the coffee table, there wasn't much that could give away that Maya was even there the night before. He dumped the trash while his coffee brewed, repacked his bag, and then poured himself a large travel mug –black because this morning needed the bitterness of dark roast- and headed out the door.
Josh only checked his phone once on the way to the station. He noted that he had nothing from Maya, and then answered a few emails before compartmentalizing his day so he could get through his first class.
"Hey man," Josh looked up from his laptop slowly, making sure that he, at least, finished his sentence. His roommate was still in the hall, arms crossed against his chest. "Maya was here last night, right?"
There were three ways that Josh could have answered Austin's question. The first would have been to tell the complete truth. He could have sat down with his roommate and told him how he thought that he might have just utterly ruined any friendship that he and Maya managed to create because he couldn't keep his hands to himself. Option number two was to strictly answer the question that was asked; Yes, Maya was there the night before. No, she wasn't still there. No discussion, no added story. Just the facts. The third, of course, was to lie.
Josh threw a glance around his room. He'd done a complete overhaul once he'd returned from his first class of the day, knowing he wouldn't want to deal with it when he got home from work that night. His sheets had been changed, the rest of the space completely spotless. He might have even gone so far as to Febreeze the mattress before putting the new sheets on. And Josh's ceiling fan was going in the middle of December to help rid the space of that damned cinnamon scent that he'd come to associate with the woman who'd spent half the night in his bed.
Yeah, he wasn't going to get away with lying.
Nodding carefully, Josh smiled. "She came over to study because she's still having roommate problems." He glanced back down at the paper he'd been working on for his Architecture in Context lecture credit. Austin should have already been aware of that much information, especially with the texts they had shared the night before.
The taller man leaned against the doorjamb. "When'd she leave?"
The beauty of that question was the he didn't actually have an answer. It was most likely after one-twenty or so because that was the last time he remembered seeing over the blonde's shoulder as he pulled the comforter over them both, exhaustion mocking his inability to actually get up to brush his teeth or wash his face. "Can't remember," he decided to say instead. Josh waited for a beat, Austin nodding carefully. "Why?"
"Just trying to figure out whether or not I need to message her that she left something here." Austin bit his lip, making sure to keep one hand hidden behind his bicep. Josh noticed the twitch but said nothing.
"It would help if I knew what she left." Josh shifted, setting his laptop to the side and turning to make it easier to slide off of his bed. "She's gonna freak if it's her sketchpad."
The grin that spread across Austin's lips seemed to encompass his entire face. "Something tells me that's the last thing on her mind today." When Josh's eyebrows rose, his roommate's entire face lit up. "You're really gonna play silent here?" Josh bit his lip, shaking his head. He'd been through the living area twice that day, and other than a broken pencil and one of her Staedtlers, there was nothing that would have given them away.
Unless Austin had come back to the apartment some time before Maya had woken up and made a run for it. Josh shook his head again. No, if Austin had been conscious enough of the apartment when he'd come home from his 'coffee' date he would have made his discovery known. While he wouldn't come barging in on them, Josh would have at least had a text about the state of the living room.
"I have no idea what you're talking about, man."
Saying nothing else, Austin's hand finally made an appearance, an oyster pink lace and silk camisole dangling from one finger.
Shit.
"You want to try that one again?" He really didn't; his face must have shown that. Austin's grin didn't diminish, but he nodded, tossing Maya's camisole towards the bed. "Do you know what you're doing there?"
It took a minute for the question to catch up to him, his attention caught on the piece of fabric in his hand. "Ya know," a breath, and he shook his head. "I'm not entirely sure I do."
His roommate's head bobbed one more time before he turned to leave. "You know where to find me if you need me. You're gonna be late for your lecture." Austin took half a dozen steps across the room before he called back over his shoulder, "And put the couch back!"
Josh was pretty sure this is the most bored he'd ever been at work with a full load on his plate. In the three hours that he'd been in the office, he'd already sat through one team meeting, started on the data sheets that would be needed for the next team meeting about the proposed location of the next New York City zero energy school, and trying his damnedest not to get in the middle of the latest argument between his brother, mother, and sister-in-law about whether Christmas should be held in Philadelphia or there in the city.
Topanga was winning, in case there was any doubt whatsoever.
Josh had taken a short break to email one of the TAs from a lecture to make sure he'd gotten statistics correct so exam prep wouldn't be in vain, while he wandered down to the vending machines at the end of the office to pretend there was something that could combat his exhaustion the way the five-hour energy that he'd declined or the coffee he refused to drink would. On the way back his mother had actually called him.
He wasn't sure what had possessed him to answer the phone and initiate the inane conversation with his mother over whether or not his brother and sister-in-law were bogarting Christmas; they weren't, and he probably lost points with Amy for pointing out that it was Riley's first Christmas after starting college, and if Topanga didn't want to add to the teen's travels and just host it in the city, it was all right with him. After all, she had three kids, two grandkids, and Shawn already in one general location. Since Morgan and her husband were going to London to Christmas with his family, it was definitely easier for Amy and Allen to travel for the week than it was to get eight people to Philly for three days.
And no, it didn't escape his notice that he unconsciously included Maya in his calculations.
There was a perverse satisfaction to be had when Josh realized that whether or not Maya decided to ever talk to him of her own volition again, there was no way she could possibly avoid him.
He'd just finished his last spreadsheet of the day –or rather the last spreadsheet he would be able to complete without the structural analysis that was supposed to be compiled by one of his fellow interns– when his phone buzzed in his hand. Josh had to resist the urge to drop it for many reasons. The first was because he'd grabbed it in order to call three floors below him to ask Riker where his numbers were. The second was the fact that if his mother didn't give up on Christmas in Philly this year, he was going to just flat out tell her that he wasn't showing, and she knew where to ship his presents. And then there was the name that finally flashed across his screen was the last person that Josh had ever thought he'd hear from that particular morning.
Curiosity got the best of him, and Josh flicked the lock screen and thumbed open his messages.
Don't let her run.
Just like with the girl that had fled his bed in the early hours of the day, there was a three-year difference between Josh Matthews and Lucas Friar. Unlike Maya though, he'd known Friar for a little under six years now. And it was really starting to unnerve him how the Texan seemed to know exactly what to say at which time.
It's a little late for that one.
If Lucas could be sagely cryptic, so could he. Josh dropped his phone to his desk and reached for the multiline next to his computer screen. It would probably be better if his call to Riker could be documented on the company line anyway. He'd tapped in William's office code and sat back when his phone buzzed again.
He told himself not to look. To finish his call and get his work done so he could go home and drink and pretend to study with the rest of he and Austin's sordid group of friends. Tonight was pizza night, and there was already Sixpoint in the fridge waiting for him to wash the last week from his mind.
It was officially a proven fact that Josh had no will power.
"Hey Will, it's Josh from Power's office." He'd already had his messages open by the time he flipped his phone screen back to him. "I need the updated structure numbers before you leave so I can finish my presentation notes for Monday." There was a definite effort made in order to keep professional while avoiding actually reading Lucas's text. "Email me when you get the chance."
You & I both know that's not true.
"Thank you, Yoda." Josh's eyes bugged and he glanced down at where his hand held the plunger down. He didn't actually remember ending the call. Then he dropped the receiver down into its cradle with a little more force than necessary.
Because, heaven help him, Lucas was right. Josh had known the second he laid Maya back on his comforter that she wouldn't be in bed with him come morning. Not only because he knew the kind of person Maya was, but he knew that the moment that she realized what she'd done and who she'd done it with, her brain would kick into overdrive, and fight or flight would motivate her faster than anything else would.
It didn't mean that what they shared didn't mean anything. It didn't mean that either one of them had done anything wrong.
Maya had proven time and time again over the years that she just didn't know how to process certain things. And no, he wasn't just referring to steamy kisses in kitchens and nights in his bed. It was in the way that Maya had turned a drunken night with Lucas into an almost two year long friends with benefits situation. It was in the way that she'd completely blanked on Homecoming even though she knew that there were people that were willing to help her out, and then she stormed out of Riley's living room in confused rage over the fact that Topanga stepped in to help. It was her ignoring him for almost three months because he refused to admit that he actually liked the sweet half kiss she'd given him for New Years, and shutting down on Friar when everyone had been accepted to college but her, and she realized that the carefully curated world she'd built was changing.
As much as she denied it, Maya held on to her perceived normalcy with both hands. Emotions were messy, complicated, and she would need time to regroup and stick everything back in their little box in order to make sure that her world remained the same and no one got hurt over it.
And Josh didn't need Lucas reminding him of the fact that he already knew this.
Don't let her run.
He considered texting her. Josh had made it through five different faux-nonchalant sentences, and nothing seemed casual enough for him, so they never got sent. He'd also thought about calling her. Not that she would actually pick up the phone. Then what was he supposed to do? If he could come up with the proper words, his tone would definitely give him away.
Last night hadn't been a mistake to Josh, and it sure as hell hadn't been casual.
He chuckled down at his phone. If Maya was there, that was probably the one sentence that she would agree with. Because as far as Maya Hart was aware, it was physically impossible for a Matthews to have a casual sexual relationship with anyone. After all, they were the family that was built for true, epic love. His brother and sister-in-law's love and marriage were the basis for which all other True Loves were compiled –which he had to admit were a standard all on its own- and there wasn't anyone who had heard their story who didn't want a Cory or Topanga of their own.
Or, at least, that's the myth that Cory and Topanga had been unable to stop their family from perpetuating.
And while Josh had grown up in the world where you married your high school sweetheart, and love meant sacrificing your dream for someone else's, he was also Eric Matthews' younger brother. So he understood fully that sometimes, no matter how hard you try, or how much you change, you don't get the girl. He watched the aftermath of ruined friendships, loneliness, and the need to do something for yourself just so you feel alive.
Josh lost his virginity at seventeen to his Homecoming date because that's what you do when you're seventeen and in lust, you've been dating the same girl for three months, and neither one of you can keep your hands off the other. When they broke up before Christmas, there was no shouting match or professed devotion. She was with someone new before the start of the new semester, and Josh slept with two more girls before graduation.
Amazingly enough, he still spoke to all of them.
But maybe he was moving a little off course.
The point that Josh was attempting to get across to himself was that he wasn't the starry-eyed boy wonder that Maya took him for. He knew how her world worked.
And that was why he'd just let her go.
His laptop was already in his bag when he reached for his phone one more time. Josh shut his computer down with three clicks –after making sure to forward his emails to his personal account so he could finish that spreadsheet- and locked up his desk before dropping his keys into the pocket of his leather jacket and scribbling a quick note that he had to leave early and would email his portion of the presentation to all parties involved as soon as humanly possible.
He stuck the sticky note to the computer screen of his next computer neighbor in the cubicle farm and then headed to the elevator.
As much as he hated the fact that Lucas was giving him advice, it didn't make the man wrong.
Do you know where she is?
He may or may not have rehearsed what he was going to say to her on his trip north on the 1 train. He also may or may not have texted his roommate that he was seeing to something and wouldn't be home to do the store run for the study session that they had had planned.
Josh didn't understand the reality of the situation until he'd made it up to Shawn's front door and tried to keep his momentum going by knocking on the door. Music was blaring through Shawn's surround sound, which told him that Maya was painting, which wasn't unheard of on a Friday afternoon. Melanie Martinez popped out and there was a pause, so he tapped again, hoping that this time it caught her attention.
When the door swung open, Josh understood that he was truly unprepared for this moment.
Maya was barefoot, something that Josh had to admit that he didn't get the privilege of seeing often. He was struck at just how short she truly was before she blinked dumbly, and he shifted his glance in order to not have to admit that he was just as lost as she was.
Which brought him to the fact that he couldn't remember actually seeing her in leggings.
"Josh?" Maya found her voice before he did, one hand on the door frame, the other on the handle.
"Hey."
In the back of his mind, his oldest brother was screaming at him that he was supposed to be well versed in smooth.
The Cab started up overhead, and Josh appreciated the irony that his thoughts were now being drowned out by a song about temporary bliss. Would there ever be a time when there wasn't a soundtrack to his life? He had half a second to wonder what would have been playing last night before he realized that Maya was still staring at him doing her very best 'fish out of water' impersonation.
"I know that decorum states that I'm supposed to give you space, but..." Strangely enough, he had absolutely no interest in lying to her. Maybe he was more Cory than Eric after all. Josh stood there dumbly for a handful of seconds before he realized Maya was going to make him earn any yardage that he managed to gain. He gestured to the door with his chin in lieu of finishing his sentence. Maya's eyes darted to the left, choosing to stare at something above his shoulder than making eye contact. "May I come in?"
A jolt of electricity shot through her, and Maya swallowed and nodded with the same breath, taking a step backward. "Yeah," she didn't look at sure as her voice sounded, but that didn't stop Josh from taking a step forward.
He toed the door behind him closed as Maya darted to the other side of the room. Josh bit his cheek to force himself not to point out that her easel was probably the farthest away from him that she could get without climbing out onto the fire escape. Candor –while the go to with the two of them- probably wouldn't be of any help in this situation.
Instead, he dropped his messenger bag by the door and shrugged off his jacket, sliding it onto the chair back closest to him. "New piece?"
Maya's eyes bugged when she realized that he was taking a step closer to her, and then flitted around the room before she settled. If Josh were to guess, he would say that it was because she realized that the easel was turned toward the window. "Yeah," another deep breath. Josh took a step back. "Started it today."
He wasn't dumb enough to ask to see it, but that didn't mean he wasn't tempted.
"Austin said he saw you today." It was a lame segue, but Josh couldn't think of anything else. He also left out the part where his roommate telling him that he ran into Maya was less of an informative text and more of a 'dude, you fucked up'. "Did he invite you to-"
"Why are you here, Josh?"
Maya still hadn't looked at him. He could only hope that it was one of her many defense mechanisms. Although what it would be protecting her from was a mystery to him. Josh shoved both hands in his pockets to keep himself from fidgeting and nodded slowly. The only sentence that came to mind was, "I wanted to see you."
There was a tsking noise from the other side of the room, and Maya took a step backward, closer to her canvas. Their eyes connected for half a second before she pulled her arms up towards her chest. She didn't have to voice her next question. The word 'why' was written all over her face.
"You ran out on me this morning," he managed, understanding all too well that he was announcing to a woman who was terrified of any sort of commitment that he wanted something more. "I wanted to make sure that," Josh took a breath then. "I'm not sure what I needed to make sure of." There was that damned honesty again. "I just know that you and I seemed to have taken two steps forward last night, and it sucked waking up alone."
Why, oh why, was he still talking?
A faint pink tinged the apples of Maya's cheeks. "It sucked waking up alone?" He couldn't tell if her voice was amused of anxious.
"I don't need you to rehash the 'there are a million and one ways that this could go wrong' speech." Josh threw out quickly, taking another step in her direction. The heel of his hand smacked his thigh as he flipped his class ring around his finger in his pocket, and Josh took a moment to panic that she might notice. "I may not have made it to the advanced class, but I took Maya Hart 101, and I know that last night was something whether you want to admit it or not, and I'm not going to let you take that back." The confidence in Josh's voice lasted longer than his voice did.
She swallowed harshly, her eyes flitting around the room. If he wasn't trying to pretend to be absolutely sure about what just came out of his mouth, Josh would be terrified that he'd played his trump card too soon.
Maya Hart was many things, but most of them were all for show. The joke may have been that she'd successfully dated a third of her graduating class, but that's all it was. Josh knew for a fact that she'd only slept with one other person since she'd lost her virginity her junior year of high school. Not that he was going to admit that. Any knowledge acquired while being responsible enough to keep an eye on his brother's children when Cory and his wife would take the odd long weekend was safely locked away for his own edification. Josh had learned many many years ago how to pretend to be ignorant until told otherwise.
Which was just a really long way of him reminding himself that Maya didn't do one night stands. She didn't sleep around, and she damn sure didn't hop into bed with someone without being 100% sure that that was what she wanted to do.
"Josh-"
The hand in his pocket came out quickly, holding two fingers up cautiously. "You don't want a relationship," another step forward. "I get it. I don't need one either." And he didn't, at least not in the traditional sense. Even if he did, he wasn't about to ask Maya for it. At that very moment, the only thing that Josh needed was for Maya to allow him to keep his foot in the proverbial door.
"I've got my thesis due next semester, graduation's coming up, and I've already started submitting postgrad applications." He schooled his tone to sound nonchalant about that last part. Mainly because he didn't want to tell her that every application he'd put in was for New York-based companies. He'd also begun apartment hunting in the event that S.O.M. accepted his bid to stay on after graduation. There was a single bedroom, industrial loft in SoHo that was coming up for rent in the next few months that Josh was seriously considering putting a bid in for.
None of these things would be beneficial to getting Maya to give him a shot.
So instead he just shrugged. "I'm asking for absolutely nothing."
"Doesn't that go against your programming?" Maya had one hand in her hair now, scratching the base of her skull. She had taken a step forward, and Josh smiled at the fact that she hadn't seemed to notice yet.
"I won't tell if you don't." It wasn't what he wanted to say, but at least it sounded good.
The blonde's head bobbed, and Maya seemed to consider it for a minute. "I don't think you know what you're asking for."
How in the hell had Friar managed to get her to agree to their arrangement?
Josh ran a hand over his head while he contemplated that. "Why do you say that?"
"Because you're forgetting I know you too." Maya moved around the easel, stepping up to the counter from the living area side. "In the back of your head, you think if I agree to this then a few weeks down the line you can get me to agree that it isn't casual. And that we should tell everyone about us." Josh nodded along with her, knowing that when she made her point he was going to have to find a way to refute it. "Then it's 'Josh and Maya are dating' and -in the unlikely event that Cory doesn't flip his shit- things get serious after a while. Then one day, not too far into the future, something's gonna happen. I'm going to get restless, or you're gonna get tired of me, and things are gonna go south. Fast."
Maya's breath was haggard now. This was probably the most honest he had ever seen her about relationships before. "And because I refuse to make Riley chose between you and me, I'm gonna have to back off. And backing off from Riley means losing the Matthews, and losing them means losing Shawn." She was no longer looking at him, the nail of one thumb buried in the flesh of her palm. "And in the end I lose out on the only family I've ever really had because I got greedy and couldn't make it last."
"It's not greedy to want something for yourself." He said without thinking, taking a step to the island. Josh rested his forearms on the granite and studied her face. "And while I think you're wrong about that whole 'me getting tired of you' thing, your logic on the rest of it isn't the craziest thing I've ever heard come out of your mouth."
Her smile was blue but thankful. He didn't hear what came out of her mouth next, but it only took a second before Maya's eyes caught his. "Did you have a Plan B?"
"Plan A hasn't been completely shot down yet," he didn't need her smirk to tell him that his was cocky now. "Look, Maya, you don't want to use labels, then we won't use labels. If you want to keep it casual, we can do that." It was her turn to sigh. "I couldn't care less if my family knows, or who approves." He silenced her with a finger to her lips. There was a quarter of a second before she licked him and he tapped that same finger against her nose. "Because you see, last night I managed to get an incredible woman in my bed," Maya's head tilted to the left, and Josh matched it with the same maneuver to the right. "I can't speak for her, but I didn't think it sucked." Another chuckle. "And I'm prepared to do whatever she wants in order for that to happen again."
He didn't catch the exact moment when Maya's eyes lit up. That didn't mean that Josh didn't smile when he noticed it. "So you're just in it for the sex?"
"I'm also open to buying you dinner at some point." His shrug was noncommittal.
"No dates." Maya cut off his glee with a wave of her hand. "Casual means we don't attempt anything that we wouldn't do as friends."
With a healthy swallow of his pride, Josh held up a finger. "I've paid for your dinner twice in the last week." He pointed out. "It's already a 'friends' thing. But I'll let you have the 'no dates' rule." The words 'for now' hung unspoken in the air. "In the spirit of further clarifying this:" Josh gestured vaguely around the room. "What else?"
"No discussing this with anyone else." Maya's hand swiped through the air as it to signal people that weren't there. "As previously mentioned, I'm not going to put Riley in any position that I can avoid."
For half a second, Josh wished that he could shake her. Maya Hart's happiness should not be conditional to Riley's comfort. But he knew what kind of argument he would be facing if he pointed that out. It may have to be something that he mentions to Friar at a later date. Not that he would tell Maya that. A single finger in the air got her attention. "Exception," he physically pointed. "Austin." When Maya's eyes bugged, he smiled. "He already knows and he pouts when I try to lie."
Maya's mouth quirked. "He already knows?"
As much as it physically pained him, Josh let go of Maya and pulled himself across the room. Her eyes followed him to the spot that he left his messenger bag. Josh had absolutely no idea what possessed him to take her tank top with him when he left the apartment earlier, but he was kind of glad that he had. "You don't remember forgetting anything when you fled from my place this morning, did you?" He flipped the flap on his messenger bag and hooked a finger around the lace.
Josh hadn't realized that Maya actually knew how to blush.
"Sorry," she murmured behind her hand. Then it seemed to hit her. "He found that before I saw him in the quad earlier, didn't he?"
Tossing the camisole on the counter, Josh didn't hesitate to reach for her. "That he did." Maya's body melted against his. "Upside to him knowing is that we don't have to worry about sneaking you in and out."
It seemed to trigger something, and Maya's hand came up between them. "Exception: Lucas."
There was absolutely no surprise to be had. If the text messages that he had gotten earlier hadn't tipped him to that one, Josh probably could have guessed it. "How much does he know?" He asked instead.
"Just a little bit of everything." Maya's shrug was careful, her eyes studying his face.
Josh seemed to consider it for a moment. "He's not going to try to 'big brother' me, is he?"
"I make no promises." Maya's grin grew.
"Rule number three," Josh held up the appropriate number of fingers. "No lying."
"We're not telling anyone, remember?"
Leave it to Maya to only connect those dots. "I never said we were, gorgeous." Josh took a step back, making sure their eyes caught. Josh knew for a fact that they wouldn't be able to keep them a secret forever, especially if he managed to convince Maya to make things last. The last thing he needed was someone going crazy over catching them in a lie. Even his niece would be able to get over a secret relationship as long as that was all it was. "You can talk circles around any three people I've ever met, you can't figure out how to skip over the important bits?"
"A lie by omission is still a lie." Maya pointed out as she stepped up to him.
Josh dropped a slow kiss to her lips, not bothering to hide how much he'd wanted to do that since the door opened. "Only to the Catholic Church. So we have a deal?"
"It's been a long day," Maya's arms twinned behind his neck and she popped up on her tip toes. "You do remember that you're still a Matthews, right?"
Josh didn't think twice before hooking his hands on her hips and hoisting her up, taking the three steps needed for him to deposit her on the counter. "One of these days I'm going to get you to believe that Cory and Topanga are the exceptions, not the rule."
Then Maya's hand slid down his back, untucking his v-neck sweater and starting to pull it over his head. "I look forward to that."
He allowed the shirt to be tossed in the general direction of the couch, sucking her bottom lip into his mouth when her triumphant smile lit up her face. While he would love nothing more than to put one hundred percent of his focus on reminding himself just how good the night before had been, Josh allowed himself a moment of responsibility. "Where's Shawn?"
"Assignment in Montauk," Maya divested him of his t-shirt next, her eyes fluttering shut when he nipped her collarbone. "Shouldn't be back until late."
Filing that bit of information in the back of his mind, Josh pulled Maya to the edge of the counter, swiping her tank top up over her shoulders. "Next round at my place then." He used that as a poor excuse of a warning before lifting her again, walking them to the couch and settling her on her back.
When clothes had been appended, and Shawn's living room had been returned to its original condition, Josh followed Maya back into her bedroom so she could grab her school bag –and a change of clothes- so they could join the others at Austin's study party. "Is there a specific reason why you have a matted and framed book covers on your wall?"
Maya didn't even have to turn around to know that Josh was looking at the redesigned covers of books that she'd done for her installment in the Madison High School Senior Art Festival. Sense and Sensibility and Hop on Pop were the most prominently displayed, with War and Peace and Rebecca rounding out the wall. Originally there were eight pieces in that series, something that had taken Maya a full two and a half months to create. Riley had taken Pride and Prejudice with her to New Haven when they'd helped her move, and Lucas had taken possession of The Longest Ride after she'd practically put his face on it. She'd created the Frankenstein cover specifically for Farkle - a mad scientist joke that probably would never ever go away - and sent it to Stanford with him when he'd left for the early Freshman program after graduation.
"Inside joke that went too far?" Maya offered casually. Riley had gotten Shawn's aid in stealing the portfolio that she had kept them in after the show, and Farkle had gotten them framed as a graduation present for Maya before she'd distributed them. "They were part of my senior art project," she supplied as she grabbed her purse from her desk chair and slid into a pair of ballet flats.
Josh glanced at his watch as she handed him the tote that contained her school supplies. He'd have to text Austin to make sure that there was enough food for the two of them when they arrived. There was almost a groan when he realized that he'd owe his roommate some details before the weekend was through, but he'd cross that bridge when he came to it.
The blonde in front of him shrugged on her own leather jacket as she took her tote back, offering him a quick shove and another kiss before she sauntered out of the room to grab her keys off the counter.
It would be worth it.
Okay readers, I have decided to share a little piece of myself here with you guys. In order to help me envision the various situations I put out characters into, and to set the mood, I have created a Polyvore and a few playlists that match up with my vision of who the characters are.
The Polyvore can be found at and-the-moments-gone [period] Polyvore [period] com [slash] ?filter=collections
It currently houses the clothing worn by Maya and Riley in this story (more to come). I also update it every few chapters, in case you're interested.
I am still working on the 8tracks for this (a large part of that is creating the album covers). If anyone is interested in the songs that will be appearing there - or has a better understanding of Photoshop than I do and can lend me a hand - leave it in your review!
Coming Soon:
"You asked for a date." Maya's voice was amused, and no longer strained. "How bad do you want it?"