Chapter Twenty- four, Memories, Part 2
She opened her eyes, slowly, and allowed the daylight to filter through her vision. She blinked twice in slight confusion as she laid motionless on the bed and gazed at her boyfriend's face. He was still sleeping. For a peaceful moment, Maya observed his slightly open, soft, pink lips...his gentle, rhythmic breathing...in and out...in and out...his dark, brown hair which was tousled all over his pillow...they were getting long again...he had gotten a haircut just a week ago...
It was a meditative experience...watching him sleep...she felt like she could do it forever...she, on the other hand, had not intended to fall asleep in his bed. She had no idea how long she had even slept for. Judging from the bright light in his room, it was probably late in the morning already.
Crap. Has anyone been looking for me? She thought suddenly as she started searching for her phone. The slight noises she made as she sat up abruptly on the bed and started fumbling about on the mattress were enough to wake him. Josh opened his eyes and yawned as he observed her curiously.
"Morning Sleepyhead," He greeted her with an amused grin. Maya glanced at him in surprise. "Oh, dang it, I woke you up...sorry, Boing...I didn't mean to..."
"Well then, you probably shouldn't have hijacked my bed...you know I'm a light sleeper..." He murmured with a teasing grin. "Can't even get any sleep in my own bed..."
Maya giggled. "Awww...you poor thing...you'll be aight, Boing. I'm gonna leave you alone now. Just need to find where the heck my phone is and make sure no parents are looking for me. We seem to have the worst luck with that, don't we?"
Josh frowned. "Yes, unfortunately we do." He released a sigh as he thought of the eventful night he had just experienced...
Have you told her about it?
Not yet. I wasn't planning on telling her since I had already decided not to go...
He felt a deep, dreadful feeling in his gut as he contemplated his earlier conversation with Shawn in the hospital...he didn't want to think about last night anymore...he just wanted to relax and sleep...
"Oh, there it is!" Maya cried out happily as she spotted her phone lying on the floor. "You were trying to get away from me you bad girl...bad...bad..." She scolded her phone softly before checking for any missed calls or messages. "Oh, thank God. It's just Riles who's looking for me. Everyone else is still sleeping probably," She murmured as she sent a quick reply to her friend.
Peaches: Checking on Josh! Brb.
Riley responded right away.
HoneyBee: Lol. You've been gone 4 a while Peaches...be careful...
Peaches: Has anyone come looking for me? Mom...Shawn?
HoneyBee: Not yet! Come back soon! I don't want you in trouble again :(
Peaches: kk...I'll be right there hon.
"Everything ok?" Josh asked her in a worried tone.
"Yeah. It's fine. It's just...she told me to come right back so we don't get in trouble again..."
Josh nodded. "She's right. We went through a crazy night, Ferret."
Maya grinned as she sat back down on his bed. "I know...my kind of adventure though. It had a lotta drama."
Josh chuckled. "It was way too adventurous for me."
"You've sneaked out before though...right?" She asked him curiously. "You said you have a wild side."
"Yeah, I've sneaked out a few times before...I never got caught though...first time getting caught, ever, was with you last night...so you're my bad luck charm apparently. Go figure."
Maya shook her head. "You never got caught cos your father wasn't as crazy as Shawn Hunter...I'm still really mad at him...like he's not even my biological fa...oh crap, I'm so sorry Josh! I shouldn't have mentioned your...I'm really sorry..." She apologized profusely when she noticed the somber look on his face.
Josh smiled warmly at her. "It's ok, Ferret," He muttered. "You can talk about my Dad. It sounds kinda weird but I've noticed that it actually helps when I talk about him...makes me feel less sad...Mom, Cor and I were just remembering funny things he used to do last night when we were waiting in her hospital room...we were just sharing our happy memories of him...it was nice...we all felt a bit better...Mom was ready to come home soon after that..."
"That's great, Josh," Maya retorted with a wide smile.
"Yeah, it was...anyway, come closer, Ferret. Why are you sitting so far away?!" He stretched out his hand across the bed towards her.
Maya giggled as she scooted closer to him on the bed.
"I need to go and let you sleep Boing. Sorry for bothering you."
"Are you kidding? You're not bothering me at all," He retorted as he sat up on the bed next to her and kissed her fondly on her forehead. "I always like to see you Lil Ferret. My apologies though. My breath probably smells real bad right now."
"No. It actually smells like mouthwash."
"Oh. Great. Listerine is the best."
Maya giggled. "Well, I didn't use any Listerine so my breath is probably kicking right now."
Josh chuckled softly. "No comment," He murmured teasingly.
"Oh wow. That's it. I'm leaving."
"Nooo," Josh whined. "Stay..."
"Nah, I'm getting the hell out," Maya retorted as she stood up from the bed. "I got crazy parents and a boyfriend who just said my breath stinks. Adios, muchacho. Bye loser."
"Wait, I'm sorryyy..." Josh cried out. "Come back! Your breath smells like roses and lilac and...I dunno...perfume! Don't leave!"
Maya chuckled. "Boing, I gotta let you sleep."
"I know. That's why I want you to stay. Just until I fall back asleep. Then you can go. Sounds good?" Josh told her.
Maya smiled. "Alright."
"You can't fall asleep though. Otherwise we're screwed. Cos they gonna find us," Josh warned her. "So set an alarm or something. As soon as it goes off, you get the hell out of my room like your life depends on it. No stalking or gazing at my handsome face. Ya got it?"
Maya rolled her eyes at him. "Give me a break. I've seen better," She murmured.
"What? My face?"
"Yep. Seen better, Boing. Try not to flatter yourself too much."
Josh chuckled. "You might have seen better, Ferret, but you're the one who still snuck in here at God knows what time this morning so you could look at me...I know that's why you came...you just couldn't stay away from my awesomeness..."
Maya shook her head at him as she grinned widely in amusement. "Whatever," She mumbled.
Josh laughed. "You set your alarm? It's 9:10 now, so you can set it for 9:30. I should be asleep by then. And then you can leave."
"Ok," Maya nodded. She set her alarm and turned around to face him on the bed.
"Want me to sing you a lullaby?"
Josh grinned. "Nah, I'm good. I just want to look at you," He told her softly. Maya smiled as she felt her heart expanding.
"Goodnight, Boing," She whispered as she moved closer to him and buried her face in his chest. She took in a deep breath and felt all her anxieties dissipating.
"Goodnight, Ferret," He whispered as he buried his face in her hair and placed his arm tenderly around her.
It wasn't long before he drifted off into a peaceful sleep.
"Pumpkins!" Auggie cried out excitedly as he ran around the pumpkin patch in glee.
"Uncle Josh! Come with me! We gotta find the biggest ones!"
"You got it buddy!" Josh retorted with an excited grin as he ran off after his nephew.
Maya gazed at the two boys with a warm smile on her face.
"You ready, partner?" She asked her best friend.
"Ready as always, Peaches," Riley retorted as she held on to her hand.
"Have fun guys! The hayride starts in an hour! You guys miss it, Cory and I are leaving you all behind!" Shawn cried out after them.
"What do you feel like doing Mom? You wanna go grab some pumpkins or eat some pumpkin pie? Choose the pie Mom...please choose the pie," Cory begged his mother.
"Cory, we can't just let the kids find the pumpkins while we sit around eating pie and drinking apple cider," Topanga argued.
"Uh...yes, we can," Cory shot back. "Look at them, Topie! They're all happy, slaving away, doing all the work! This is our chance to be lazy and relax guys! When do we ever get to relax?!" He cried out.
"Amen. I agree!" Shawn responded enthusiastically.
Katy threw her husband a disapproving look.
"Uh-oh. I do not agree!" Shawn stated.
"Shawnie!" Cory protested.
"The wife does not like me supporting you in this moment. Sorry Cor. You're on your own with this one. It sucks but it looks like we're outnumbered as usual," Shawn retorted with an amused grin.
"But there's two of them and two of us! It's a tie! They can't just win!"
"But they always do Cor! Haven't you realized how this works?! You've been married longer than I have, for goodness sakes!" Shawn shot back at him in frustration.
The ladies giggled amusedly at his comment.
"Why don't you decide Mom? You can be our tiebreaker!" Cory gave his mother an innocent, sweet smile. "Do you wanna do what I want? I, your beloved son...or you wanna do what they want...these strangers in our family," He pointed to Katy and Topanga.
Topanga raised her eyebrows in immense amusement at her husband's comments.
"D'you wanna have a nice, relaxing afternoon or d'you want to go slaving for pumpkins?! It's a no-brainer Mommy. Let us know your thoughts."
Amy grinned widely as she thought about Cory's question. "You all had a long night because of me...and you barely slept...I think Cory's right. The kids are happy to grab the pumpkins. Let's all relax and have a nice afternoon."
"Yay! Take that Topanga!" Cory cried out excitedly. "Thanks Mom! You're the best! Now, let's go eat some pie!" He grabbed his mother's hand and quickly led her towards the dining shack.
"So, had fun with Uncle Josh this morning?" Riley teased her best friend as she surveyed the pumpkins.
Maya smiled. "We just talked. He went back to sleep pretty quick, actually. He was very tired."
"Of course. What time did you say they got back home? Like at 7 this morning?"
Maya nodded.
Riley sighed softly. "I'm just glad Grandma is ok..." Her voice trailed off.
"Yeah me too," Maya retorted as she glanced up at the bright, afternoon sun. It was a warm afternoon. There were a lot of families gathered at the patch- all determined to find the perfect pumpkins to decorate their houses for the Fall season.
"Farkle texted me..." She told her best friend.
"Oh...about what?" Riley asked curiously.
"The group chat yesterday...Smackle's messages..."
"Oh...so what did he say?"
"He was very sweet," Maya smiled as she recalled the message. "He actually apologized for what Smackle said. I told him he didn't need to- that she was just expressing her opinion...he said we would always be his girls and he would always be there for us..."
Riley smiled. "That's so sweet...I'm not surprised...sounds like Farkle..."
"I know," Maya nodded. "When has he ever not been there for us?"
"I can't remember. He's always been there. Popping through my window," Riley remarked.
"Ladies," They both said simultaneously as they mimicked how Farkle greeted them every time he appeared through Riley's bay window. They both giggled in amusement at the memory.
"He doesn't do that anymore..." Maya pointed out. "I actually just realized that..."
"Well yeah. Of course not," Riley responded with a wide grin. "He has a girlfriend now, Peaches. How do you think Smackle will feel if he still kept doing that?"
"True, good point," Maya nodded.
"You don't ha-hurr Lucas anymore," Riley stated.
Maya grinned. "Nope. I do not."
"How come?" Riley asked her. "Lemme guess...cos you got a boyfriend...am I right?"
Maya shrugged. "That probably has something to do with it...and also maybe, I finally grew up...who knows?"
Riley smiled. "Yeah...Farkle grew up too...life changes...relationships change..." She muttered softly as she stared off into space, looking deep in thought.
Maya observed her best friend for a moment with an anxious sensation bubbling deep within her. She thought about the dream she had...Josh moving on with someone else...she thought about the current divisions and tension in her friendship group...was Riley foreshadowing their future?
"Honey, we...we're never going to change...right?" She asked her softly.
Riley beamed at her best friend. "Of course not, Peaches." She reached out and gave her a tight hug. "We're sisters...we're family...what's that saying? Blood is thicker than water? We're never changing, Peaches. You're stuck with me for life."
Maya grinned. "Good. I wouldn't mind that at all..." She rested her head affectionately on her best friend's shoulder for a moment.
"What about with our boyfriends, Honey? You think that's gonna change...someday?" Maya asked her.
Riley glanced at her in surprise. "What do you mean, Peaches? Did something happen between you and Uncle Josh?"
"No," Maya murmured. "I just...I had this stupid dream last night and I can't get it out of my head..."
"Oh...what was the dream about?" Riley asked.
"It was weird..." Maya told her. "We were going somewhere- me and Josh...I can't remember where...but we were at the airport and then I lost him for a few minutes...but then when I found him again, he was with this other girl...she looked like a girl that we met last night at the club...she's from Spain. She is one of his high-school best-friend's girlfriend...she was very pretty..."
"Well, was he just talking to her or they were doing other stuff?" Riley asked.
"They were together. Like they were going to the trip together. He ditched me. He ditched me to go with her...that was the dream..."
"Peaches, it's just a dream...that's never gonna happen. Uncle Josh would never do that," Riley immediately reassured her.
"I know. It's stupid," Maya muttered. "I just...I just need to calm down..."
"Have you talked to him? About the dream?" Riley asked her.
Maya shook her head. "No. It's stupid. I don't think I'm going to."
"Well, you should," Riley encouraged her. "You'll probably feel much better if you do...I'm sure he's gonna say the same thing I did."
"Yeah, he probably will," Maya murmured as she glanced over at Josh and Auggie. They were a few yards away from them, busy searching for pumpkins.
"Riles?"
"Yeah?"
"This thing...with me and Zay...I really don't want it to come between you and Lucas...like if you ever want to eat lunch with him, I wouldn't mind...I just don't want it to come between you two..."
"Oh Peaches," Riley murmured as she rubbed Maya's back soothingly. "Don't worry about me and Lucas...we're fine...ok? He understands that we're a team...just like he and Zay...they're a team...so he's trying to be there for him...so it's fine...really...we'll figure it out..."
Maya sighed. "I just wish things hadn't changed between me and Zay...I really liked him..."
"Me too," Riley muttered. "Do you think you would change your mind one day? Decide to be friends with him again?"
Maya thought about the question for a moment. "I dunno," She stated honestly. "I'll have to be able to trust him again...I don't know if that's ever going to happen...it's hard for me to trust people when they really hurt me...it's hard for me to let them back in...you know?"
Riley nodded. "Your Dad...have you heard from him?" She asked Maya.
Maya shook her head slowly. "Not for a while," She murmured. "He's like disappeared again...I texted him twice but...he didn't respond..." She let out a heavy sigh.
"I'm worried about him," Her eyes slowly filled with tears. "He said he was sick...I mean, I don't know if he's okay...I just wanna know..." Her voice trailed off as she wiped away her tears.
"Maybe he's getting some life-saving treatment for his sickness...you know?" Riley suggested in a hopeful tone. "So, he's been too busy to reach out...like he's waiting until he feels better...that's probably it...I'm sure you will hear from him again soon...hopefully..."
Maya shook her head. "I don't know...I just have a bad feeling about everything...Josh said he doesn't trust him...he said it's just weird how he's been communicating this whole time...he keeps saying I should tell Mom and Shawn...but I don't know how to tell them...I feel like they're going to freak out...especially, Mom..."
Riley sighed. "Yeah, I don't know either...maybe wait to see if you hear from him again? And then, maybe, you should tell your Mom, so she knows what's going on...? What do you think?"
"Maybe..." Maya murmured. "I just hope he's not messing with me..."
"What do you mean?" Riley asked her in a worried tone.
"I don't know..."Maya retorted. "I just have a weird feeling...I just hope I can trust him...I hope that maybe one day, I can trust Zay...and everything will be back to normal...I hope that that dream was just a stupid dream...ignore me Riles...I'm just being super moody today..."
Riley grinned. "Isn't that you like everyday?"
"Hey!"
Riley giggled. "Just kidding...maybe..."
Maya shook her head at her. "Ok, let's find some pumpkins, take some pics and go eat some pie. Wadja think?"
"Sounds good to me!" Riley retorted.
"Oh! I almost forgot. Farkle wants a pumpkin. We need to get him one."
"Oh really?"
"Yeah, he told me."
Riley smiled. "Alright, we'll get him one. I'll grab one for Lucas too."
"AWWWWWWWWWW so cute...Riley loves Lucas, everybody!" Maya cried out teasingly.
Riley blushed. "Oh my God. You're so loud, Peaches. Stop!"
Maya giggled. "Ri-ley and Lu-cas sitting in a tree-" She started singing softly.
"Any more Instagram posts lately, Ms. 'I love you joshgmatthews'," Riley teased her.
Maya rolled her eyes and immediately stopped singing as she blushed profusely.
Riley burst out laughing. "Thought that might shut you up."
Maya stuck her tongue out at her before focusing her attention on the pumpkins. Once they had selected the four pumpkins they wanted, they started taking selfies.
"Ladies, please, allow me to be your photographer," Josh commented as he approached them with Auggie. They were carrying three huge pumpkins. "All those pics you took are crap. Delete them. Hand me those phones," He ordered them.
Maya rolled her eyes as Riley giggled in amusement. "Here you go, Uncle Josh. Don't disappoint us! Maya is planning to update her Instagram today with a love-ly post. Right Maya?"
"Stop it," Maya hissed under her breath as she glared at her best friend. Riley grinned. She was having way too much fun teasing her best friend for a change.
"Alright, ladies. Ya ready?!" Josh asked them.
"Sure!" They yelled out excitedly.
Josh snapped a few pictures of them as they stood at different angles with their pumpkins.
"Awww...we look great, Uncle Josh! Thanks!" Riley beamed as she scrolled through the pictures.
"You're welcome, Ms. Matthews," Josh responded. "You know, me and my assistant here," He pointed to Auggie, "we take tips. Nothing is free here in Philly. Just wanted to make that clear."
"That's right!" Auggie yelled out. "Pay up ladies!"
"Oh please. Get outta here. Anybody can take these pictures," Maya retorted with a dismissive handwave.
"Ha. Ok. I see how it is. Let's go, Auggie. The blonde one is a meanie," Josh stated.
"We're not taking your pictures anymore. You're on your own, losers!" Auggie cried out. "Let's go, Uncle Josh."
"Right behind you, partner! Oh, by the way, our pumpkins are way bigger than yours! So take that!" Josh echoed as he stomped off in a dramatic fashion with his nephew.
Maya grinned widely in amusement as she watched him walk off. She felt her heart stop for a second when he suddenly turned around and winked at her playfully before continuing his march with Auggie.
"In-sta-gram...joshgmatthews...i love you...muah muah..." Riley murmured teasingly in her ear.
"STOP IT!" Maya yelled out.
Riley burst out laughing.
"So, Baby Matthews...what's up?"
Josh glanced at Shawn warily.
"Well if it isn't my favorite Dad in the world..." He joked.
Shawn chuckled. "The feeling is mutual, Baby Matthews. I love you too."
Josh laughed.
They were both standing on the bathroom line.
"I know we just spoke last night, but any update on Barcelona?" Shawn asked him curiously.
Josh sighed. "I told Mom and Cory about it last night. They both think I should go."
"Oh good," Shawn responded excitedly. "I thought they would! You don't look that excited about it though. Still worried about how Maya would react? You haven't told her yet, have you?"
Josh shook his head. "Not yet," He muttered.
"Well, you want my advice?" Shawn stated.
"Not really," Josh responded with a teasing grin.
Shawn chuckled softly. "You got a great sense of humor, Baby Matthews...just like your Dad..."
Josh smiled.
"I'm gonna give you my advice anyway. I think you already saw that coming," Shawn retorted. "The sooner you tell her, the better. It's September. You guys still got a few months. She needs to prepare herself for a separation like that. Do not wait until the last minute to tell her for goodness sakes. If you do that, then you'll really be stupid...and you really can't blame me anymore for ruining your relationship..."
"I don't blame you-"
"She does," Shawn muttered with a weary sigh. "She didn't talk to me at all our entire drive back home last night. Complete silence. It was the first time she had treated me like that...and I have a feeling it's not going to be the last...obviously, this whole Barcelona thing is not going to help my relationship with her...anyway, that's what I wanted to tell you. If it makes you feel any better, she will probably be more mad at me than at you when you tell her you're going, because I'm the one, obviously, who encouraged you to go in order to save your relationship...I'd much rather you tell her soon though so she and I can work through this rough patch and eventually come to an understanding, than you dillying and dallying on it, and she gets really pissed off, and we never work things out...you get what I'm saying?"
Josh nodded solemnly.
"Good. So, don't be afraid to tell her. Feel free to make me the bad guy. Yay for fatherhood," Shawn stated sarcastically before turning to walk away.
"Wait. Don't you need to use the bathroom?" Josh asked him.
"Nope. Just wanted more bonding time with my favorite boy in the world. Now if you'll excuse me, I need to go eat more pie. See ya, Baby Matthews," He stated with a somber smile.