Chapter Twenty- Seven, Halloween Parade, Part 2
"Wow...that's Riley..." Ryan murmured as he gazed at the painting in awe. He stared at Maya for a moment before sitting down next to her and quietly contemplating the beautiful, but haunting, portrait she had created of her best friend.
"This is beautiful, Maya," He told her.
Maya smiled. "Thanks Ryan." It was the most realistic painting of her best friend that she had ever created. She could feel her heart breaking the longer she gazed into Riley Matthews' sad, hollow brown eyes and her anguished face. There was no smile. There was no sunshine. Riley was in pain and she needed to be seen. So, Maya painted her friend in the span of three days in the school art room. Whenever she couldn't bear to see her friend's heartbreak and sorrow anymore, she would escape to the art room and release her frustrations. The completed result of her work was now staring back at her and at Ryan.
"I'm so sorry Maya...I heard what happened..." Ryan murmured as he gave her a sad look. Maya sighed and stood up from her chair. She glanced at the painting one last time before she started untying her apron.
"Riley's strong..." She murmured. "She will make it through this. She's the strongest person I've ever met..." Her voice trailed off.
"I'm sure she will," Ryan agreed with a warm smile. "And how about you, Maya? How are you doing? If you need anything...I'm here...you know?"
Maya beamed at him. "I know," She muttered. "Why aren't you out celebrating Halloween? I thought I was going to be the only one here this afternoon."
Ryan shrugged. "I didn't want to go home and take my siblings trick o' treating. As you know, there's a lot of 'em. I wanted some peace and quiet. So yeah. Big family problems..."
Maya grinned. "Dodging your big brother duties, I see...that's no good, Mr. Hale...I'm very disappointed in you..."
"I'm always on big brother duties," Ryan protested with a teasing grin. "A guy needs a break once in a while, ya know. Nobody bothers me when I come in here, except my creative mind...and Maya Hunter of course..."
Maya giggled. "Well, I'm off, Picasso, so I won't be bothering you anymore. Will see you tomorrow?"
"Sure," Ryan nodded. "I'm taking you out tomorrow by the way."
"Huh?" Maya asked him in confusion.
"There's an art exhibit at the MoMA on a bunch of famous artists' self-portraits..." He explained. "I got free tickets...I think we can both use a break from our personal problems and go get some fresh air and inspiration. What do you think? If you don't have any plans, you should come with me."
Maya thought about his request for a moment. "It sounds interesting, but I'll have to get back to you," She responded. "I have to check in with Riley. I don't want her to be alone after school."
"Of course," Ryan retorted with a fond smile. "You're an awesome friend, Maya. If Riley wants to come, I can get her a ticket as well."
"Really?"
"Yeah," Ryan nodded. "I got connections, Hunter. Thought you knew this by now."
Maya laughed. "Lemme guess...your brother's friend's Mom who works at the MoMA got your brother the tickets and then he gave them to you cos he doesn't give a crap about art. Am I right?"
Ryan chuckled. "Like I said, I got connections," He simply stated.
Maya grinned. "Can't argue with you on that, Picasso...by the way...how's your girlfriend, Judy? Is she coming too?"
Ryan's smile faded instantly as he gazed down at his feet for a moment before turning his attention back to Maya.
"We broke up...just a few days ago..." He informed her.
"Oh my God...I'm so sorry, Ryan," Maya muttered as she sat back down next to him.
"It's ok," Ryan murmured. "It was a mutual break-up. She will be graduating this year and I still have a year of high-school to go...so, we both kinda figured out that even though we still really liked each other- it probably wouldn't go anywhere..."
"Oh wow, I'm so sorry," Maya responded. "You guys were really cute together. I liked her a lot. She was very sweet. Completely clueless about art, but sweet."
Ryan burst out laughing. "Love your honesty, Hunter," He stated.
Maya grinned. "Can't help myself sometimes. I should really learn to shut up and keep my opinion to myself," She mused.
"No don't," Ryan retorted. "I value your opinion Maya. Especially, when it comes to giving me feedback on my work. So please, don't shut up. And don't let anybody tell you that you need to keep your opinions to yourself. Ok, girl?"
Maya smiled. "Ok. But it makes sense now why you've been here so much this week. I'm so sorry I didn't notice, Ryan. I was so absorbed in my own problems."
Ryan shook his head. "Don't worry about it. Just come with me tomorrow. We can let off some steam together. I'll grab a ticket for Riley too. Sounds good?"
"Yeah, sounds good," Maya nodded with a warm smile. "Screw being sad. Let's all have some fun for a change!"
Ryan grinned. "That's right! Alright. I'll see you tomorrow, Hunter. I'm gonna keep working on my piece."
"Sure. See ya," Maya retorted. She removed her apron, grabbed her bag, and headed out into the chilly, Halloween afternoon.
Boyfriend Boing: Baby...hi! Where are you?
Maya felt her heart fluttering when she read her boyfriend's text message.
Ferret: Hihihihi...I'm blushing, Boing...you keep calling me 'Baby' you're gonna kill me, Joshua Matthews...
Boyfriend Boing: hehehe...i'm in a romantic mood...where are u?
Ferret: Take a guess...
Boyfriend Boing: Riley's!
Ferret: That's right
Boyfriend Boing: kk.I'll be there in 5 mins.
Ferret: ok...thought u were going to the parade?
Boyfriend Boing: starts at 5. wanted to see u and chat for a bit before i go.
Ferret: oh. ok :)
Boyfriend Boing: see u soon. i love u baby
Maya felt her entire body warming up when she read those four words. He was usually affectionate towards her, but he rarely ever called her, "Baby." The fact that he had used the term of endearment three times in their short text message exchange proved that he was feeling a lot more "romantic" than usual. Maya was immensely amused and curious as to the cause of his current amorous mood.
"Your uncle is coming!" She yelled out at her best friend who was buried in her closet looking for her favorite pajamas. They were planning to have an early sleepover with their favorite movies, TV shows and a lot of popcorn. Farkle and Smackle would be stopping by to join them later.
"Oh, ok! He's gonna hang with us now? He's taking Auggie trick o' treating right?" Riley asked as she emerged from the closet dressed in her hooded purple, owl, pajamas and warm, striped white and red socks.
"Well, don't you look adorable!" Maya crooned as she observed her friend.
"Yeah, I'm so happy I found it!" Riley twirled around with a wide smile on her face. "It got buried in my clothes when my Mom did laundry the other day."
Maya grinned. "Come over here, Honey. Sit next to me. You're so cute."
Riley beamed and slumped down on the bed next to her best friend. Maya wrapped her arm around her and kissed her head softly.
"How are you feeling, Honeybee?"
Riley sighed as she laid her head on her best friend's shoulder. "A lil better today, actually," She murmured.
"Really?"
"Yeah," Riley nodded. "I was doing some thinking today and I suddenly realized just how blessed I am to have a best friend like you...and Mom and Dad...and the rest of the family...you guys have all been there for me...and meanwhile there are so many terrible things that teens our age are going through in so many parts of the world..."
"So, I realized I need to stop feeling so sorry for myself. Lucas and I... we'll be fine. He'll always be my friend. And maybe one day, we'll see each other again and who knows...? He broke up with me because he didn't think it would be fair to force me to be in a long distance relationship with him...he said I deserved better than that...he was looking out for me...even with everything his friend was going through, he was looking out for me like he always have..."
Maya sighed as she rubbed her best friend's back soothingly.
"Just take it easy, Sweetheart," Maya murmured. "One day at a time...don't force yourself to feel better if you're not ready to..."
"I know," Riley retorted. "But I am ready to stop feeling sorry for myself. You know what I think we should do, Maya?"
"What?"
"I think we should start helping others. I think that's what I want to spend my time doing instead of moping around and being sad," Riley announced with a wide smile.
Maya beamed at her best friend. She was her angel. Only Riley Matthews would think about helping others in the middle of her pain.
"Ok. What do you have in mind, Honey?"
"We can volunteer at a soup kitchen!" Riley announced excitedly. "I looked up some soup kitchens near us. They serve food to the homeless every weekend. So I wanna start volunteering. And then maybe, before Thanksgiving, we can start a donation drive at school and get people to donate canned food. What do you think?"
"I think that's a great idea, Riles," Maya retorted. "Two shoes Louie will be proud."
Riley grinned. "Yeah. He will be," She muttered as she thought fondly of the homeless man she used to give money to every time she saw him around the neighborhood.
"I'm excited, Maya. I really think it's so important for us to start giving back," She stated passionately.
"I couldn't agree more," Maya muttered as she hugged her best friend tightly. "You are an angel, Riley Matthews. And you deserve all the happiness in the world."
"Aww, thank you, Peaches," Riley retorted as she wiped away a few lingering tears from her eyes. "You deserve happiness too. I'm so happy for you and Uncle Josh... that everything is going well so far."
Maya grinned teasingly at her best friend. "Well, he hasn't messed things up yet...so let's just hope it stays that way and he keeps behaving."
Riley giggled. "I know right? We'll see," She readily agreed.
"Ladies! Hi!" Joshua Matthews greeted them enthusiastically as he emerged through the bay window. They both glanced at him in surprise and Maya couldn't suppress the shock on her face as she studied her boyfriend's Halloween costume.
He was dressed as Harry Potter with a red scar plastered on his forehead, round, thin glasses perched on his nose, and a black cape tied around his neck.
"TA-DAAAA! 'You're a wizard, Harry!' Wadja think, ladies? Do I look great or what?!" He asked them excitedly. Riley giggled in immense amusement as Maya burst out laughing.
"Heyy! I didn't expect that reaction! Why are you guys laughing at me?!" Josh protested.
Maya laughed even harder as she gazed at him.
"You guys are so mean," Josh whined as he shook his head at them. "That's it. I'm outta here."
"No wait! Uncle Josh, sorry!" Riley apologized as she tried to stifle her laughter. "We just weren't expecting you to be in a costume, that's all. You surprised us!"
"No, that's not it," Maya chimed in. "Hold on. You're supposed to be Harry Potter?" She questioned him.
"Yeah," Josh nodded.
She chuckled. "Boing...sorry, you...you don't look right..."
"What?! What do you mean?"
"I just don't think this is the right costume for you..." Maya explained. "You look exactly the same except you have some plastic scar falling off your head, and weird, goofy glasses...did you put any effort into this costume at all?" Maya asked him.
"Nope," Josh shook his head. "I actually wasn't gonna wear a costume, but Andrew suggested this. He already had the scar and everything, so he gave them to me. Wait, my scar is falling off?"
"Uh...yeah...that's why we were laughing," Maya chuckled. "If you wanted to wear a costume, Boing, you should have told me. I would have helped you to actually look like Harry Potter. This is not really doing it. Sorry, Bro."
"Maya...give Uncle Josh some credit. He tried," Riley retorted. "Don't listen to her, Uncle Josh. I think you look great!"
"Why thank you, Niece!" Josh responded as he removed the scar from his forehead and approached Riley with his arms wide open. "I like you a lot better than her! Now bring it in!"
Riley grinned before embracing her uncle.
"How are you doing, Riles?" He asked her softly.
"Better today. I was just telling Maya. I'm focusing on my life now. Especially, on helping others," She informed him brightly.
"Oh wow, that's great," Josh retorted as he glanced at Maya for confirmation of Riley's statement. Maya nodded her head and smiled.
"I'm really proud of you Riles...that even as you're going through a hard time, you're thinking about helping others. Cory and Topanga will be so happy to hear that. What do you have in mind to do exactly?" Josh asked her curiously.
"I wanna start volunteering. Maybe at like a soup kitchen?"
"That's awesome! When do you plan to start? I'd love to join."
"Maybe next weekend? I'll let you know," Riley answered.
"Ok, yeah definitely," Josh retorted. "Please let me know. We can all go as a family. I'm sure your parents would love to go too."
"And mine!" Maya stated enthusiastically.
"Yep," Josh nodded. "I'm impressed, Riles. You are growing up. You've learned to turn a really big negative in your life into a positive. That's a true sign of growth."
Riley smiled. "Thanks Uncle Josh. I appreciate you saying that."
"Always welcome, Niece. I'm looking forward to volunteering with you," Josh responded. "Now, I have to head to the Halloween parade soon and then I'm gonna pick up Augs for trick o' treating. I'll join you guys afterwards for your sleepover. Sounds good?"
"Yep. Are you gonna sleep here, Uncle Josh?" Riley asked him excitedly.
"Well, Cory and Topanga do have a spare bedroom last time I checked..." Josh retorted with a sly grin.
"I'm so excited right now!" Maya exclaimed.
Josh chuckled. "I thought you would be. Anyway, Riles, do you mind giving Maya and I the room for just a few minutes? I wanna catch up with her a bit. Sorry for the inconvenience."
"No, it's fine," Riley responded. "I'll go check in on Auggie and see which costume he decided to wear. Just let me know when you guys are done."
"Ok, thanks so much."
Maya immediately turned her attention to her boyfriend after her friend's departure. "Sorry Boing, I wasn't trying to be mean...it's just...I call it as I see it. This ain't your best costume."
"Shut up Muggle and give Mr. Potter a kiss," Josh whispered in a British accent as he leaned in towards her.
Maya giggled before meeting his lips with hers. They kissed each other for a few seconds before Josh grudgingly pulled away.
"Ugh. I need more," He groaned as he gazed longingly at her. Maya chuckled as she raised her eyebrows at him in immense surprise.
"Woah. Whatever do you mean by that Mr. Potter, you naughty, naughty wizard?" She teased him.
Josh laughed at her accent. "I mean, I need more kissy-kissy time with you...we need to go on a date, Ferret...just us...alone...it's been too long..."
Maya sighed. "I know, Boing," She murmured as she moved closer to him. "These last few weeks...they have just been so crazy..."
"Yeah," Josh whispered as he leaned in and kissed her again. "I'm just glad everything is finally calming down a bit. And Riley seems happier finally...so I thank God for that."
"Today is a good day," Maya stated. "She's doing much better, so, that makes my heart happy."
Josh beamed at her. "You're an amazing friend, Lil Ferret," He commended her as he ran his fingers gently through her long blonde locks. "Thanks for being there for her."
Maya smiled. "She would have done the same for me," She told him. "She would never leave me alone if I was going through something like this..."
Josh rested his chin on her head for a moment before he gazed down at her.
"Wanna do something tomorrow? Just you and me? I can pick you up after school. And I'll make sure to ask Shawn permission today, so he doesn't freak out on me," He grinned.
Maya shook her head. "I can't tomorrow, Boing. Sorry. Already got a date with your bff."
"Huh? Who?"
"Remember Ryan?" Maya retorted with a teasing grin.
"You've gotta be kidding me," Josh murmured in a frustrated tone. "Why the hell are you going on a date with Ryan?"
"I'm joking, silly," Maya responded in an amused tone. "Obviously, I'm not going on a date with him. He knows that we're together, duh. No, he just invited me to this art exhibit at the MoMA. Riley is gonna come. I'm gonna ask her to tag along- so it won't just be me and him. So, no need to freak out like my Daddy, Mr. Potter."
Josh frowned at her. "I don't like this at all. I don't like this one bit," He stated in an accented tone.
Maya giggled. "You really should stop trying to speak in a British accent. You're terrible at it."
Josh chuckled. "Sorry, can't help it. Ryan Voldemort is trying to steal my girl apparently, like he steals everything."
Maya burst out laughing. "Ok, first of, Ryan is not Voldemort...Ryan is cute. Voldemort is not. Ryan is more like...hmm...lemme see...maybe Malfoy...now Malfoy was hot in the movies...just saying."
"Wow..." Josh shook his head in disbelief as he got up and started walking away from her. "Ok, I'm out! My heart is officially broken."
"I'm kidding!" Maya cried out as she jumped off the bed and wrapped her arms tightly around him. "Stay, Boing..." She urged him. "You know which Harry Potter character you are?"
Josh shook his head. "No, who?"
"You're Cedric Diggory," Maya responded. "He was like the cute, hot guy at Hogwarts. Robert Pattinson played him in the movies...you know, Edward from Twilight? Anyway...you've never watched Twilight so you have no idea what I'm talking about, obviously...All the girls liked him...Cedric Diggory...Harry was pretty jealous of him cos he was dating his crush, Cho Chang. This was before Harry realized he liked Ginny. Anyway, that's you. You're Cedric. Smart, athletic, hot, brave, popular, all-around nice guy..."
"Didn't he die at some point? Voldemort killed him, right?" Josh pointed out as he tried to remember the details of the book.
"Yes, he did in Goblet of Fire during the Triwizard Tournament," Maya retorted.
"Wow...I see how it is. Freakin' Ryan gets to be hot, bad boy Malfoy, and I get to be pretty boy Cedric who gets killed by Voldemort. Nice," Josh stated sarcastically.
Maya giggled. "At least, you died looking pretty," She poked his nose playfully.
"So, when are guys going to see this exhibit? Tomorrow after school?" Josh asked her.
"Yeah. Would you like to come? I can ask him if he has more tickets...maybe he can get one for you?" Maya asked him.
"Nah, it's fine," Josh responded. "I have a feeling he didn't plan on me being there...and I don't really feel like spending my afternoon hanging out with freaking Ryan..."
"He's a nice guy, Josh... really," Maya retorted. "He just broke up with his girlfriend, actually...so I kinda feel bad for him."
"Well, hooray for me," Josh muttered sarcastically. "That's all I need...for him to be broken up so he can hang out more with you."
"Josh... it's not like that. He and I... we're just friends. Ok? Nothing's going on..."
Josh sighed. "He's just way too good looking...like how's the way he looks even possible?" He whined.
Maya burst out laughing. "So that's why you're still so jealous?! Because of his looks? You've gotta let it go, Boing. I mean, you're good looking too! I don't know why you're feeling so insecure about this, Honey."
"I'm not insecure...I just...I just don't like him..." Josh mumbled.
Maya giggled. "Oh Boing. You'll be ok," She moved closer to him and wrapped her arms around his neck as she gazed up at him affectionately. "I have zero feelings for Ryan...and a hundred percent feelings for you...ok, Baby? You like that Math?"
Josh grinned as he gazed down at her. "I do like that Math."
"Well then, what's the problem Baby? We're good," Maya whispered before she reached up and kissed him lightly. "We're really good. Aint no problemas aqui," She stated in broken Spanish.
Josh chuckled in amusement before checking his time. He needed to leave soon for the parade, but he still hadn't informed her of his messages with Anna. It was time for him to do that. She had told him about Ryan...so, he needed to do the same and be completely honest with her about his conversations with his ex-girlfriend...
He took in a deep breath before he spoke. "Um, I wanted to tell you something Maya before I leave..."
Maya raised her eyebrows at him. "Uh-oh. You sound serious, Boing...what's going on?" She asked him in a worried tone.
"It's about Anna..." Josh murmured in a nervous tone.
Maya felt her stomach drop. "What about Anna?" She asked him warily.
"She...uh...she reached out to me, yesterday," Josh explained. "She wanted to say hi."
"Can I see the messages?" Maya asked in a suspicious tone.
"Uh...sure," Josh replied as he handed her his phone. His heart racing, he waited a few minutes as Maya read through the messages.
"Hold on...you're meeting Anna at the parade?" Maya asked him.
"Well, that's what I wanted to talk to you about," Josh replied. "She mentioned that she was going to be there and if we could meet up for just a few minutes and say hi. But I'm not going to do it Maya, if you don't want me to...so, that's what I wanted to tell you..."
Maya sighed in frustration as she read through the messages again. She scrolled up and noticed previous messages that Anna had sent him more than a month ago. It was the same thing. She had wanted to meet up with Josh. But that time, he had refused. And that time, Josh hadn't told her anything about his ex-girlfriend's messages and special request.
For how long was Anna going to keep reaching out to him and requesting to meet up? Maya sensed that this was going to keep happening as long as Anna was in New York. She wasn't exactly sure what her motives were, but it was becoming increasingly obvious that Anna hadn't completely moved on like Josh wanted to believe. She still wanted to be in his life. Otherwise, why would she keep reaching out to him at random times "just to say hi" or to "meet up for a sec and catch up?"
Unbelievable, Maya thought frustratedly as she handed the phone back to Josh and sat down on the bed. She needed to calm down. She didn't want to act like a "crazy, jealous girlfriend..." She had acted like that the last time she discovered Anna's texts on his phone, and ever since that embarrassing moment, she had promised herself that she would act more maturely next time. Well now was the moment that she needed to show him that she too had also grown...just like Riley...she was no longer the little girl who acted like a buffoon every time he was around.
Calm down, Maya. It's going to be ok...She kept telling herself. He loves you...he doesn't love her...he never did...you know that...
"Sweetheart, if you don't want me to meet up with her, I'm not going to, ok?" Josh stated as he sat down next to her.
"No, it's ok, actually," Maya found herself muttering. She was shocked at the words that were coming from her mouth. "It's fine. I know nothing is going to happen. She wants to see you and say hi...and that's it, right? You guys aren't gonna be hanging with each other all through the parade?" She asked him.
"No. That's not my plan," Josh responded. "I'm gonna be with Drew and Jas. And she's gonna be with her friends. So, we won't be hanging out with each other during the parade. We'll just see each other, say hi, and that's it."
"Ok. So, like a quick, five-minute meetup?" Maya asked him.
"Yeah. That's the plan," Josh retorted.
Maya inhaled a deep breath. Her heart was pounding.
"Ok. That's fine..." She muttered as she slowly released her breath.
"Are you sure, Maya?" Josh asked as he studied her body language carefully. "If you don't want me to do this, Baby, please be honest with me. I won't do it..."
"No, it's ok," Maya mumbled as she stared at her lap and fidgeted with her fingers. "You are ok with me hanging out with Ryan even though you aren't too happy about it. So...um...I have to trust you, Josh... I have to show you that I trust you..." She gazed at him. "It's not like you're hanging out with Anna...you're just meeting her and saying a quick hi...I can deal with that...I'm ok, Josh... really..."
Josh smiled warmly at her. "Thanks for trusting me, Maya," He whispered. "Because I would never do anything to hurt you. I love you."
"I know. I love you too, Josh," Maya muttered as she reached out to embrace him.
They held on to each other for a few seconds before Maya broke the embrace. "Um...you should go. It's almost 5."
"Right," Josh retorted as he leaned in and gave her one last kiss. "I'll see you soon?"
"Yep. Have fun, Boing."
"Thanks. You guys have fun too. I'll stop by and check on you when I come back at 7 before taking Auggie out, ok?"
"Ok, sounds good," Maya beamed at him.
"Bye Ferret."
"Bye Boing."
Maya watched him as he climbed through the bay window, spun back around to give her a warm smile and a wave, before he headed off. Without thinking much about the possible consequences of her actions, she immediately grabbed her jacket, threw it on, and climbed out the window after him.
A part of her was screaming for her to stop as she caught sight of her boyfriend crossing the road. What are you doing, Maya?! I thought you said you trusted him! Her conscience screamed at her. But she ignored it, and continued to follow him, secretly.
She just wanted to see what would happen...She needed to see how the encounter between them would go. It's not that she didn't trust him...It was that she didn't trust her...at all...So exactly what was so wrong with seeing for herself how the meeting between them would go? What could possibly go wrong?
She would just look and then that was it...She would leave right after so he wouldn't see her...Having fully convinced herself to keep going, she ultimately followed him into the subway.