January 13th 2021

Chapter 13
Our Move Toward Achievement

Maya had to hand it to Riley, she was getting much better at keeping her cool. She had once known her best friend as being so very in tune with her emotions that it was impossible for her not to wear her heart in her eyes. If she was happy, sad, afraid, confused, anything at all, it would be there for people to see. She might be able to pull it down until only the properly initiated could spot any of those feelings in her, but on the whole Maya felt like nothing could get by her, not for long. Today though, standing in her bathroom, it really felt like she'd known nothing until the exact moment when Riley decided to turn off her mask of secrecy. Once she did, there was something like frenzy in her, and that was brand new.

"Sure, yeah, what do you need?" Maya asked, touching her arm with friendly concern.

"I was going to wait, you know, I wasn't going to say anything today. It's your baby shower, it's not…" Riley shook her head. "But the waiting, I couldn't…"

"Couldn't what?" Maya started to ask, then after a pause, an idea… She gasped, looking into her friend's eyes now like she needed to see if she'd find what she thought… "Riley?" the corners of her lips lifted in a tentative smile. "Are you?" By the way she looked back at her, Maya was just about certain that she'd aimed in the right direction, except for…

"I don't know, not for sure, I just… I'm pretty sure," she whispered, her face a burst of quiet hope. "And if I am, I wanted to be with you when I found out, you know?"

"Yeah," Maya nodded, with that same covert quietness. "Well, you're going to need a…" she started to ask, but Riley was ahead of her there, dropping her bag on the bathroom counter and digging to the bottom, where she'd hidden the test box well out of view. She pulled it out now, and Maya knew exactly what that look on her face would feel like on the inside, how surreal it would be to take that test and to have it tell her that she was having a baby. "I'll go get my things from my room while you start, I'll be right back, okay?"

So, Maya hurried from the bathroom and to her room, grabbing a dress, and shoes, and any other accessories she might need, before returning. By the time she'd changed, the stick was sitting there on the counter, on top of the box, and Riley was pacing the short floorspace available to her for this nervous exercise. The timer had been set on her phone, kept on silent, and Maya was keeping track of it for her, sensing her friend was just off in another world and would let it run out, unaware.

"How long have you guys… I mean, you were trying for this, yeah?" Maya asked, the better to instill some calm in her. Just now, Riley's natural temperament was flaring out, and if she didn't give her something to focus on, she'd spin herself right out.

"Yeah, yeah," she paused, looking at her. "We just… We started talking about it, when summer started, when you guys took off. It felt like the right time, so we went for it, we just… we didn't want to say anything, until there was something to tell, you know?" She did. She wasn't the only one who'd been rattled with Nadine's struggles.

"You know what this means, right?" Maya asked her, but Riley shook her head. She didn't. "Well, Marianne will be born next month, in November, yours should be coming, what, May?" she counted. "So, they'd be in the same year in school, I think." Riley reflected on the notion, and yeah… She really liked the sound of that, and she smiled, to herself, to her best friend. Then she blinked, shook her head.

"I can't think about that yet, if I'm not…" she insisted. Maya let out a breath, smiling.

"Riley, the time ran out half a minute ago," she revealed, and Riley blinked as she tipped her head to the stick on the counter. She got what Maya was telling her, but still she moved up to see for herself. That crisp plus sign lit up her eyes like she'd never seen anything so wonderful. She stalled her gasp with her hand as Maya moved up to hug her, and soon she was hugging her back.

"Okay… Okay!" she laughed, crying. When Maya pulled back, she was about sure that she was crying, too.

"I'm telling you right now, this is my favorite present today," she told Riley, making them both laugh together. "What happens now?"

"Now…" Riley asked, then, "Oh, Dylan… A-and everyone's here, I… No, no, it's your shower, I couldn't…" she shook her head.

"I don't mind, are you kidding? Anyway, it's you and me, how much more perfect could it get? You've got my blessing if you need it," Maya assured her, submitting a new swell of emotion on to Riley, who again paused and looked hesitant.

"Isn't it a thing that you're supposed to wait? It's early, I…"

"That's up to you to decide, okay? We do what you want to do. If you want to tell them all today, you do that. If you want to wait, I will keep my mouth shut and it'll be our secret."

"I… I don't know, I… oh! Okay, we'll have a code word, and if I decide to tell them today, I'll say… uh…" Riley searched for a code. "Hobbit…" she said it like it had just barely skidded into her mind before being sent off into sound. Maya snorted.

"Are we locking that in?" she asked. Riley thought for a moment, then nodded.

"Hobbit."

"Okay, then. Let's go."

They picked up everything, the test and its box relegated into hiding where no one would hopefully come upon it as the party carried on, before heading down the hall, arm in arm and smiling. Maya stopped her friend at the top of the stairs, giving her a look that she'd understand: mask on, act normal. Riley nodded, though she struggled for a few seconds more to pull herself together. Finally, they were good to go.

With any luck, all their guests would write off their matching smiling faces as just a couple of old friends who might have shared some touching words while they were on their own. It would be less likely for someone to look at them and happen on the idea of their having learned that they would soon be moms together. Then again, if Maya didn't stop thinking about it, and about how happy it made her, then someone was definitely going to get suspicious. Maybe she needed to keep away from Gracie for a little while…

"Maya, there's all these presents, did you see?" MJ came dashing up to her now, Haley on his heel, the two of them pointing to the load of boxes and bags of various sizes, all the colorful wrappings, currently eating up a good section of the living room, under the stairs and beyond. Going by their faces, and by the twins' own inspection, Maya had a feeling they'd be hovering about the whole time. Maybe she'd see about letting them help her with that part.

"I saw them, yes," she smiled, even as Lucas came up to her with the phone.

"Speaking of presents, I think you've got another one coming," he told her, passing the receiver. "Someone wants to talk to you." As her siblings continued their curious onlooking, with the twins keeping their little sister from ripping at any of the paper, Maya took the phone. She figured it might have been Farkle and Isadora in New York, or Abigail and James in Tucson, any of the family in Arkansas…

"Hello?"

"Do you know, Lucas told me this was today before, and I completely forgot until just now. Happy shower!" Ree's laughing voice made her smile. They had kept in touch primarily via texts and e-mails since the tour, between the Sutcliffes' vacation and then other obligations keeping the singer away, and to hear her voice now, Maya realized how much she'd been missing her. After spending the whole summer with her, was it any wonder?

"Thank you," Maya laughed. Thinking back to what she'd said before, she had to guess now that the shower was not the reason for her call, and before she had the chance to ask it, Ree carried on.

"So then, it turns out it wasn't nearly as bad timing as I'd been complaining about," she declared, and Maya frowned, not following.

"What is?" she asked. Ree laughed.

"You'll find a few physical presents from myself and the family, there at your house today, now I've got one coming to you digital. You should have the video in your e-mail already. Teeny put it all together as quick as she could. I'd recommend sharing it with whoever you have out there with you today. I'm sure they'd love to see it, too. That is all I will say. Have a wonderful day, darling, and call me later, alright?"

"Uh, sure, okay… Thank you," Maya laughed, forever puzzled.

After they hung up, she stared at the phone for a moment before turning to search out Lucas, or anyone…

"Cara, can you go and find my laptop?" she asked her sister, who nodded at once and hurried up the stairs, leaving Sam, Dora, Cecilia, Raina, Lainey, Shae, and Missy.

"What's up?" Lucas came up to her.

"Oh, uh, Ree wanted to say happy shower, and that she sent presents…"

"Yeah, had her ship those to my parents' house and I brought them over the other day," he smiled. Maya pointed at him as though to say, 'you will tell me more about this later.'

"Then she said something about a video she sent me, that I should watch it with everybody here," she went on to explain. She hadn't even registered that Nadine was nearby until her friend and bandmate gave a sudden surprised gasp, drawing her and Lucas to look over. "What?" Maya asked.

"I know what it is, or…" Nadine stated, before something went and compelled her to press her lips shut, like she didn't want to spoil the surprise. At this, Maya turned back to Lucas, who was ahead of her and already calling the room to attention.

As soon as Cara returned with the computer, Maya was able to open Ree's message. Along with the attachment came a note to say that these were late, something about issues with the announcement, which made it so that nothing came out until now, on a Sunday of all days. Ree ended with a warning that she might be getting some calls, and she might see about getting someone to handle these contacts, going forward, and also, again, that she should call her later on, after the shower. It was all very sort of mysterious, but not so much that some part of her wasn't able to look at all the pieces she was already aware of and start to think she knew.

It all became very clear, as soon as the video started, to Maya and to just about everyone else in the room as they looked on, huddled in some way to allow as many of them to see and at least hear what was being said. She quickly looked to Lucas, who had a similar sort of baffled expression on his face, something very akin to a rollercoaster, as it made a slow but continuous rise. Even if you hadn't dropped yet, the tension was enough to get your heart racing.

Christina Sutcliffe had spliced together the parts of the nominations that involved her mother. They would figure out as much as the next few minutes would go by. There were four sections, and each one was a drop of that rollercoaster, one after the other. If it wasn't enough to hear Ree's name, to get the room cheering, then they only had to wait until Maya's own name was spoken, too, when the credits would be mentioned, too. Then, it would be even louder. Ree was nominated for one of the songs, for the whole album, for the tour, and for female artist.

TO BE CONTINUED

See you tomorrow! - mooners