Northern Constellations

Summary: Explore a year in the life of Joshua Matthews and Maya Hart as they discover the wonders and woes of young parenthood.

Chapter Fourteen

As soon as they arrived at the mall, Josh realized that it had been quite some time since he spent any one-on-one time with his niece. It was strange because when they were much younger, they had been as thick as thieves and Josh liked to fancy himself as the closest thing she would ever have to a big brother. They grew apart as they got older—it was only natural—but he knew that his niece would always occupy a small place in his heart. Riley was such a bright light, a beautiful ray of sunshine on a cloudy day, and Josh wondered if his own daughter would exude the same luminous spirit as the young brunette beside him.

"Uncle Josh," Riley began, looking up at her uncle with her big, brown doe eyes. They were filled with so much curiosity and wonder, and her innocence was truly a sight to behold. "Why don't we hang out anymore?"

Josh thought to himself for a moment, then opened his mouth to speak and closed it again. It was a good question, and he mentally applauded his niece for having the guts to bring it up in the first place. He just didn't know what to say. At this point, they had been living together for over a month and saw each other every single day. They ate dinners as a family and routinely watched an hour of television with Auggie before bedtime. It wasn't as though they never spent time together, it was just always in the presence of others.

"I never really thought about it," Josh shrugged, draping an arm over his niece's shoulders. Often, he wondered what it would be like to have younger siblings of his own. If it came down to it, Josh wouldn't trade his siblings for the world. He loved Eric, Cory and Morgan, but there was something about being the older one that just felt right. "We see each other all the time."

"We do," Riley agreed, reflecting on the past year that he had spent in New York City. Even when they didn't live together, Josh came over at least once a week. It was a family tradition now. "But I also kinda feel like we've been in a custody battle over Maya since she found out that she was pregnant."

Josh laughed. It was silly. The words that came out of his niece's mouth were ridiculous but part of him understood. They tried to split their time with Maya evenly, and for the most part, Josh didn't mind. He respected the sanctity of their friendship. After all, without Riley, he wouldn't have met Maya, but their lives were changing with each passing day.

"I wouldn't go that far," Josh chuckled, ruffling Riley's hair before letting her go. Riley's hands immediately went up to flatten her hair. "But yeah, I get what you're saying. Sometimes it feels like you get Maya on the weekdays and I get her on the weekends. That's a little weird because she's my girlfriend."

"She was my best friend first," Riley argued playfully, momentarily distracted by a spread of cute trinkets on a kiosk. "I'm sorry if I've been weird about Maya. I'm still getting used to you guys being, you know, in love."

Riley dramatically pretended to gag after mentioning that they were in love, and in response, Josh nudged her with his shoulder. In all honesty, Riley was happy for them. It took a while to get her head wrapped around their new relationship and the fact that they were bringing a child into the world, her very own cousin.

"Imagine how we feel about you and the cowboy," Josh offered, raising an eyebrow suggestively. Riley Matthews and Lucas Friar were sickeningly sweet, and Maya always said that their gooey sap was contagious.

"Lucas isn't an actual cowboy," Riley giggled, shaking her head at his nonsense. She picked up a cute plush toy from the kiosk and held it to her chest. It was a small, fuzzy purple cat with large eyes. She pulled out a crisp ten dollar bill from her wallet and handed it to the cashier. "He's from Austin."

"I don't know about that," Josh teased. His eyes flickered to the stuffed animal she held, and he briefly wondered just how many she had in her collection. "The pictures from your Texas trip tell me otherwise."

"We came prepared for a rodeo," Riley defended herself. Sometimes she thought back on how strange their trip had been, but it was still full of memories that she would never forget. Her favorite part has been the time they spent downtown in the heart of the city. They walked around fifth street at night, chatting animatedly while eating greasy pizza. During the day, they dodged homeless people and scammers alike while mural hunting and munching on vegan tacos. Each day, they dawned their country themed rodeo attire and earned confused looks from people passing by. It was ridiculous, but she cherished those moments with all she had. "I think Maya enjoyed dressing up a little too much though. The whole southern look suits her."

"Yeah, it does," Josh agreed, thinking back on the photos that were posted from their trip. He could remember how his heart raced when he saw them for the first time, and he could equally recall his heart sinking when his brother informed him of the problematic triangle that had formed afterward. Josh was sure that the triangle never would have happened in the first place if he stuck around, but there was no use dwelling in the past. "To be fair, she looks good in anything, and even nothing at all."

"Uncle Josh!" Riley snapped, lightly smacking him in the arm with the purple cat plush. She groaned at the mental image. Naturally, she had seen her best friend naked before, and it wasn't weird, but she didn't want to hear it from her own flesh and blood. "Control yourself please, and to think I bought this pretty little cat for your child."

"That's sweet, Riles," Josh said, completely ignoring her little outburst. Joking around was their thing, but it was all out of love. "I'm sure it'll be her favorite. A purple cat from the purple cat herself. You can tell her all about it."

"I will," Riley nodded as they continued to walk through the mall. It took some time, but she stopped in her tracks once she realized she had no idea what they were looking for. "What are we even here for, Josh? Don't get me wrong. I'm happy to be here, but you said you needed help, and I still don't know what you need help with."

"A ring," Josh said, noticing the way the young woman's eyes lit up in surprise. In that moment, he knew that he should have worded everything differently, but it was too late to go back now. Riley Matthews was a romantic through and through, and so many different thoughts were bouncing around in her head.

"A promise ring," Josh corrected, and Riley let out a long awaited breath. That made much more sense considering that they were both still incredibly young. Their relationship was growing and maturing with each passing day, and as they prepared for their first born, Josh knew that she deserved something really special. "I know that she wears your ring, but I figured that she can wear rings from the both of us..."

"The people that love her the most," Riley said, completing his sentence. The sentiment was beautiful, and Riley was beaming on the inside at the thought of helping her uncle pick out the ring that her best friend will probably treasure for the rest of her life. Promise rings had become a bit of a trend these days. They were a tangible sign of commitment even early on in relationships. Even though Riley and Lucas have been dating longer than Josh and Maya, they weren't at that part in their relationship. "I'm excited, Uncle Josh."

"Yeah," Josh sighed, deep in thought. "I'm excited too. I just don't really know what of ring to get. I want her to really like it."

"It's Maya we're talking about," Riley said as if it were self-explanatory. "She would love it if you got her a ring pop, but trust me, I know exactly what you should get."

"Thanks, Riles," Josh chuckled to himself, allowing himself to be pulled in the direction of the closest department store. It was definitely gonna be a long shopping trip.

When Riley and Josh made it to the Hunter household, they rang the doorbell hoping that someone would be there to open the door. Josh realized that he had left his key at his brother's brownstone earlier that day and mentally facepalmed as he fingered through his light keyring. Maya texted that she would be out with Farkle and Zay, so they knew that she wouldn't be home for some time. After a few moments of waiting, the door unlocked and swung open revealing a natural faced, blonde woman. Katy Hunter smiled as if to greet them and motioned for the two to come inside. Her hair was damp and it looked as though she had just got out of the shower.

"Hey guys," Katy formally greeted, walking toward the kitchen. Riley and Josh followed closely behind, Riley clutching onto the bag of baby related items she purchased during their little shopping spree. "I think Maya's out with the boys. Farkle came to pick her up about an hour ago and said that they were meeting with Zay. What brings you here?"

Riley, being the most comfortable of the two, spoke up first. She lifted her shopping bags for emphasis and began to speak: "I just wanted to stop by and drop off a few things that I bought for Aurora. Me and Josh went to the mall, and there were so many good deals. You know I had to get something for her."

Katy laughed, her heart swelling at the sweet gesture. She loved that her daughter had such an amazing support system. She was glad that Maya had a best friend like Riley Matthews. Riley brought a lot of change into Maya's life, Josh included, but Katy had come to realize it was good change. For the first time, Katy could truly see hope in her daughter's eyes. Katy knew that Josh played an important role in Maya's happiness and growth into an exceptional young woman.

"It looks like you bought an entire store," Katy joked, running a hand through her damp blonde hair.

"Aurora deserves the entire mall," Riley exaggerated. It seemed as though they were all waiting eagerly for the birth of Aurora Matthews. Maya was due in a little over a month, toward the end of October, and the entire family had started stockpiling on goods. It was a bit excessive, but Aurora was the first baby since Auggie. All of the women in the family loved shopping around for her, and as expected, there was enough pink clothing to last a lifetime. If it were up to Maya, she would dress her baby only in neutral colors, but pink would surely have to do now. "You're gonna love everything, Mrs. Hunter. Do you mind if I put everything in the nursery? There's a little pile for Maya to go through."

"Sure. You don't even have to ask, Riley," Katy responded without a second thought. She had known Riley ever since she was a little girl and earned her place as an honorary family member even without her connection to Shawn. Riley grinned from ear to ear.

"Will do, Mrs. Hunter," Riley chirped before turning on her heels and skipping toward the nursery, leaving Katy and Josh by themselves in the kitchen. The smell of coffee lingered. It always smelled like coffee in the apartment. It was like they ran on caffeine.

"How have you been, Josh?" Katy asked, breaking the silence in an attempt to make small talk with the young man. "I haven't seen you around much."

"I've been alright," Josh said politely with a shrug. He was stressed and rightfully so, but for the most part, he felt pretty damn good. "Been staying with my brother for a while. I know I practically lived here this summer, and I wanted to give you guys some space."

Katy gulped, feeling a bit of guilt settle in her stomach. Josh never overstayed his welcome. Katy could not stress that enough, but she could also admit to not making him feel the most comfortable while she was around. Josh fit in quite well with Shawn and Maya. He had known Shawn his entire life, and Maya loved to have him around, but Katy had been wary at first. She was a mother and worrying came natural especially since she knew what it was like to be a young mother herself.

"I appreciate that thought," Katy nodded. "But you don't have to worry about us. I promise you that we don't mind having you around."

"That means a lot," Josh said simply, sitting on a barstool across from Katy. "How have you been?"

"Relaxed," Katy answered, letting out an airy laugh. "I'm in between filming as you can tell, so I've really just been at home. I never really got to enjoy time like this before. I was always working."

The Nighthawk Diner was still very much a sensitive topic, but Katy grew from her hardships as a young, single mother. Now, in her thirties, she had everything she could ever dream of when she was younger: a happy family, a nice place to call home and a promising acting career outside of the occasional improv session.

"I'm making dinner tonight," Katy continued before he could reply. "Lasagna. A family recipe. You should come back for dinner, maybe even stay the night if you want.

She hoped deep down that her offer could mend some of the tension that she unintentionally caused. It was obvious that they still had a long way to go, but Katy could see the good in him as clear as day. He stuck around and worked hard. That was something Kermit failed to do for Maya, and Josh had already proven himself ten times over with Aurora.

"Of course, Mrs. Hunter," Josh smiled. "I would love that."