It's been so long...

This chapter is more of a lead up so it's rather shorter than usual. Enjoy!

"Hey, Maya. Sorry, I'm stuck in a traffic jam that I think will last for at least fifteen minutes. You okay waiting there?"

"I'm good, take your time. I'm with Lucas. He just went to get snacks." I tell him, falling into my old habit of ducking my head while pressing my phone to my ear. He hangs up.

"Was that Shawn?" asks Lucas, coming out with a tray. We sit at the basketball court, our legs sprawled out.

"Yeah. He's stuck in a jam." He offers me a sandwich and I take it. We chew silently. Lucas is the first to speak.

"Any semi-formal news concerning yourself?" he asks.

"You sound like Shawn." I laugh. "No, no news." Is it just me, or does he look a little doubtful?

"Have you changed your mind about coming?" I shake my head. "Well, if you change your mind, you're welcome to hang out with us." I smile.

"Thanks, but I wouldn't want to third wheel." We fall into silence again. "Hey, can you show me how you do that spin shot?" I ask. He grins. We wipe our hands on our shorts and he grabs the ball.

"Okay, watch," he demonstrates, spinning his body away from me before going in for the shot. "Now watch my feet." He does it again. "Now you try."

I tried and tried but I couldn't get it. Lucas refused to stop attacking me. I would go through the movement, then he would intercept, stealing the ball and saying something like "When I'm here, turn away to the right." or "Watch your feet.". It has
only been ten minutes, but I already feel like throwing the ball in despair. I groan in frustration. Lucas grabs my shoulders from behind.

"Okay, look. All you have to do is turn like this, and-" My legs aren't ready, and I trip over myself. Lucas grabs my arm quickly before my face can meet the ground. The momentum of him grabbing my arm made me turn again, and I ended up spinning on
the spot. When I finally come to a stop, Lucas and I laugh till our stomachs hurt.

"Maya!" We turn to see Shawn walking up the walkway.

"Hey Shawn." I call.

"Ready?" I nod and grab my bag. Shawn and Lucas nods at each other in acknowledgement. Lucas looks awkward doing it.

"See you, Lucas."

"Bye, Maya."

"Hey, baby girl. Did you have fun?" Mom calls from the kitchen.

"Yeah, had loads of fun. They invited me out for pizza tomorrow, can I go?" I say, coming into the kitchen and grabbing some water to take to my room.

"Sure, Maya."

"Thanks, Mom." I run to my room and pull out my sketchbook and pencils. Closing my eyes, I bring the image of Lucas facing me to mind, him walking backwards down the walkway of his charming house with that Huckleberry smile of his on his face. I smile
to myself, ready to bring the image to paper.

"Get out! You've been in your room for almost three hours!" I grin at Mom. I intended to just do a rough sketch but ended up doing sketches of other things; my Mom standing with Shawn in the doorway to surprise me with his visit, Lucas and I competing
in a can knockdown competition, Jackie and Jonas and I laughing about the joke she told us about the goose, Shawn and I at Topanga's. They were all little sketches drawn in black and white.

"Okay, okay! I'll go to the park," I tell her. And add, "and draw the scenery."

"That's it, I'm banning you from your art for the rest of the day." She ignores my protests.

"Okay, okay," I concede, "I'll go ride around the city." I feel inside my bag for my wallet. "My wallet's gone." I turn my bag upside down and search through the contents. I let out an exasperated sigh. "I must have left it at Lucas's house. I'll
go get it."