Josh takes a sip of the hot tea he just brewed for himself as he tries to relax and ease the week's stress out of his body. He shakes his head. He knows it's not his work that's stressing him out. He loves his job. He'd just received a promotion to Junior Partner in his firm and the senior members have told him time and time again that they are very pleased with his work. He enjoys working with his fellow employees and is gratified that his work is actually helping businesses and individuals realize their financial goals. It'd been a little over a month since the run-in he'd had with Maya at the bar she worked in, and he hadn't heard for her since. And neither had anyone else. He finally realized that the cause of his stress was Maya, or his worrying about her. He had talked to Cory and Topanga about this and to Riley as well. Riley had also been stressed out about it. The four of them have been to counseling along with Shawn and Katy, who have been the most stressed. The therapists they've spoken with had told them that while it's natural to have worries about someone they care about who is an addict, they can't let the addict, in this case Maya, drag them down with her. They all hated hearing that, but understood what she told them about not being drug down with her. They still held out hope that Maya would realize she has a problem and ask for help. They also knew that the longer she didn't, the less likely she ever would. And that fear was causing them their greatest stress.
Even though it was Friday, Josh decided not to go out. He was tired and just wanted to fix himself a sandwich for dinner, watch some TV, and go to bed early. He hoped that starting tomorrow, he would begin worrying about Maya a little less and stop hurting his own health. A few hours later when he started nodding off on the couch, he decided it was time for bed even though it was only 10:30. He changed into his PJs, crawled under his covers, and within a few minutes was sound asleep.
[Later]
Josh is suddenly jolted awake out of a deep sleep. It was such a deep sleep that his mind was still foggy as he tried to figure out what woke him. Finally after a few seconds, his mind clears enough for him to recognize that it's his phone ringing that has awakened him. He looks at the clock beside his bed as sees that it's two-o'clock in the morning! He let's out a groan. "I was sleeping so good," he says to himself. "It better not be that idiot who mistakenly called me before in the middle of the night but kept insisting he had called the right number." He lets out a sigh and answers his phone without looking at the number. "Hello," he says sharply, ready to give that guy a piece of his mind if it's a wrong number again.
"Josh?" Comes a weak voice from the other end.
He sits bolt upright in his bed and is instantly wide awake. He recognized that voice instantly. "Maya? Is that you?" He answers.
"It's me," she says meekly, then desperately asks: "Can you come and get me Josh? I'm stranded."
He immediately gets out of bed and starts looking for cloths to put on. "Of course I'll come and get you Maya. Where are you? What happened?"
"I'm at Heath's Tavern where I work. That asshole Max left me stranded here. We came here tonight to have a drink. He ran into a couple of his buddies and they ended up picking up three girls to take back to his apartment. He wanted me to come with them to 'party,' as he put it. I knew what he wanted, and I refused. So he just left me here….alone. Josh, I can't get a taxi or ride the train. I don't have any money and no place to go. I know it's late, but could you please come and get me?"
"I'll come and get you Maya; don't worry. I'm getting dressed right now," he tells her, trying to sound reassuring.
"Could you please hurry Josh?" She pleads. "They're about to close and won't let me wait inside until you get here. And I'm scared Josh."
He can hear the fear in here voice. "I'll be there as fast as I can Maya; I promise," he tells her. Hoping that will alleviate her fear.
"Okay," she answers weekly; "please hurry." Then her phone goes dead.
Josh gets dressed in record time, grabs his wallet, keys, and phone, and runs out of his apartment. He runs down the stairs, out the building door, and sprints to his car which is parked two blocks away. When her gets to his car, he's completely out of breath and breathing hard, but he doesn't stop to rest. He starts his car and heads out in Maya's direction. At first, he drives much too fast, then realizes that if he has a wreck or gets stopped for speeding, he may not get to Maya in time. So, he slows down to the speed limit and concentrates on driving as steadily as he can. He knows that's the fastest way he can get to her. There's still a lot of traffic, even at this late hour, and it frustrates him. But he calms his nerves and drives as fast as safety will allow.
Finally, after what seems like hours, but has actually only been a little over thirty minutes, he spots the side street where Heath's Tavern is located. When he turns onto that street, he sees Maya. She's been pinned up against a wall by two goons who are pawing at her. One keeps trying to kiss her as well. She's doing her best trying to push their hands away, but is failing. The sight of this makes Josh's blood boil. He floors the accelerator and heads right toward them. He puts his headlights on bright and starts blowing his horn, hoping to get their attention away from Maya and onto him, which he does. Just before her gets to them, he slams on his brakes and screeches to a halt right at the curb in front of them. This causes them to flatten themselves against the wall beside Maya thinking there about to be hit by his car. Unfortunately, this scares Maya too, but at least the two oafs don't have their hands on her now. When his car comes to a stop, he jumps out, and screams at the two guys: "Hey! You assholes, get away from her….NOW!" This startles the two guys and they begin to back away from Maya. She recognizes who it is though, and he sees her relax a little.
"Sorry dude," one guy says as they continue to back away from Maya. "We didn't know she had a boyfriend."
"Well now you do," Josh says in a cold, angry voice. "Now leave," he continues, "or I'll end you both."
"No problem dude; we're out 'o here," they both say as they turn and walk away quickly.
Josh goes up to Maya and asks: "Are you okay Maya?"
"I am now," she says softly. "but if you hadn't gotten here when you did, I don't know what…" She trails off then, not wanting to finish her thought. But Josh knew where she was going with it.
"Come on," Josh says as he looks up the street in the direction the two went. "Let's leave before those two get a little more liquid courage and decide to come back." Maya nods her head. He takes her hand in his to lead her to his car, but she stumbles and almost falls.
"Guess I had a little too much to drink," she tells him, "sorry."
This makes him cringe. The last three times he's seen her she's been drunk. But he doesn't care about that right now. He just wants to get her to safety. "That's okay," he tells her, "I'll help you get to the car." She just nods her head again as he puts his arm around her waist to help steady her. He leads her to the passenger's door and helps her into the seat. He buckles her seatbelt, gets into the driver's seat and drives off. He allows himself to relax a little now. He steals a quick look at Maya. Her head is down and her hair hides her face. She hasn't looked him in the eye since he got there to pick her up. He's not sure what she wants to do now. He finally has her with him and she's not screaming at him and he wants to keep her calm. So he asks: "Maya, where would you like for me to take you? I'm thinking not back to Max's place."
"No," she answers softly, "not ever again."
"Okay," he says as he weighs his options. But he's happy she doesn't want to get back with Max. And he wants to keep it that way. "Would you like me to take you to your mom and dad's?" He asks first.
"No, please don't Josh," she pleads with him; looking at him now for the first time. "I don't want them to see me like this."
And for the first time tonight, Josh takes a good look at her. And what he sees, breaks his heart. The once vibrant and curvy blonde has lost a lot of weight. Her cloths hang off of her slight frame now. She seems to be almost skin and bone. Her hair is dirty and knotted and her complexion is horrible. He would never have thought he'd ever see this energetic, fiery, young woman he'd known for so long look like this. He tries his best not to cry in front of her. She needs his strength now. "How about Riley?" He asks next.
"No Josh, please; not there either. I don't want her to see me like this either. And not Cory and Topanga either. I don't want anyone to see me now….except you. For some reason, I don't mind as much you seeing me like this." She still has her head down as she's speaking. "Could we go to your place? I know that's a lot to ask, but…"
"That fine Maya; I don't mind," he says, interrupting her. "I don't care where I take you just as long as you're safe." She nods her head without looking at him again and he heads back to his apartment building. Luckily he finds a parking spot much closer to his building that the one he had before. He gets out of his car, goes around to Maya's side and helps her out. He puts an arm around her waist to steady her again but she does seem a little more stable. As he helps her walk toward his building, she puts both her arms around him and grabs a handful of his shirt in each hand as if she thinks someone might jerk her away from him at any moment. They take the elevator up to his apartment and as soon as he closes and locks the door behind him, he breaths a sigh of relief. Now he just needs to find a way to get her to stay with him and get the help he knows she needs. He's not sure how's he's going to do that though. He's learned that drinking makes Maya's temper flare easily. And he doesn't want that to happen because that might cause her to run away from him and he didn't know if he could bear that now. So, he'll just have to play it by ear he thinks.
As he helps her into his apartment, he notices she's shivering. "Maya," he says, "are you okay?"
"She nods her head but says: "I'm just so cold. I have been most of the night."
Josh can understand that. She's so skinny now she has practically no body fat to help keep her warm. "Why don't you take a hot shower? You can use all the hot water you want. That should warm you up."
"That sounds nice," she says and Josh leads her toward the bathroom.
When they get there, Josh tells her: "There's body wash and shampoo in the shower stall; towels and wash cloths are under the sink; and there's an extra toothbrush in the drawer if you want to use that." She nods her head again without looking at him. "Can you stand okay?" He asks.
"I think so," she replies. "I'm a little steadier now than before and I have the sink and walls to hold onto."
"Okay," he replies, "but if I hear you fall, I'm coming in here whether you're dressed or not." That may have sounded like Josh was teasing her to someone that didn't know what was going on, but Josh was very serious. He didn't want her to hurt herself. She nods her head without saying a word and begins to take her shirt off. "When you get your clothes off," he begins, "just set them outside the door and I'll put them in the washing machine. I'll get you a pair of sweat pants, a thick hoodie, and some wool socks for you to wear. That should keep you warm." Again she says nothing and just nods her head as she continues to get undressed. He takes one more look at her to make sure she's okay and leaves. In his room, he retrieves the sweat pants, hoodie, and socks. Then he waits till she gets in the shower. When he hears her step into the shower and the water come on, he heads to the bathroom with her clean cloths. He sees her old clothes on the floor outside the bathroom. He moves them aside, opens the door, and puts her new clothes in. Then he picks up the cloths she's just taken off and heads to the washing machine. The clothes smell unclean; another reminder that Maya isn't herself. After putting them in the washer and starting the wash cycle, he heads to the kitchen. He wants to fix her something warm to drink, but not coffee. He can tell she needs sleep and coffee might keep her awake. Then he remembers he has the kind of herbal tea Maya likes. He finds it, gets a teabag out. Puts it in a cup and puts a pot of water on to boil. Then he settles down for Maya to finish her shower.
Several minutes pass until he hears the water turn off. He listens closely as she steps out of the shower just in case she falls; but she doesn't. He hears her get a towel from under the sink and begin to dry off. A few minutes later, he hears her brushing her teeth. That makes him smile. He knows brushing your teeth can make you feel better. Soon the bathroom door opens and she walks out. She immediately begins to look around. When she sees him, she heads right to the kitchen. "Hear, sit down," he suggests, indicating a chair at his small table. "Feeling better?" He asks.
"Un-hu," she mumbles in response.
"Good," he replies with a smile. But she never sees it, because she never looks up as she sits down. "I have some of your favorite herbal tea," he begins. "I was going to fix myself a cup if you would like some too. It'll help you stay warm," he says hopefully.
"Sounds good," she says quietly as she sits at the table, head down, not moving.
When the water starts to boil, he pours some of it in the cup he's gotten for her and some in his own cup. They sit in silence for the next few minutes as they let their teabags steep in the hot water. When Josh thinks it's been long enough, he takes a sip of his to see how it tastes. Then he takes another sip.
When Maya sees him drink some of his tea, she takes a sip of hers. "It's good," she says, "really good; and warm." Then she takes another sip.
"I'm glad you like it," he replies with a smile. But again, she doesn't see it. As they continue to sit and sip their tea in silence, Josh begins to think about what his next move should be. He figures she knows it's okay for her to spend the night at his apartment. But what about tomorrow? She'll probably feel better after a good night's sleep, then what? Will she want to leave then? And if so, where will she go. She'd already told him she didn't have another place she could go and she didn't want to go back to Max's apartment. And apparently, she didn't want to go home to her mom and dad or to her old apartment with Riley. So where then? And he still had the problem of convincing her she needed help. As he was lost in thought about all this, he hears her cup clink on the table top as if she sat it down hard. When he looks toward her, he sees her trying to take another sip, but can't because her hands are shaking badly. When she tries again, the same thing happens. Josh is afraid he knows what's happening to her. She probably hasn't had a drink in a while and her body is probably starting to crave alcohol. She may ask her for a drink soon, but he's decided he won't no matter what she says. She'll probably be angry with him for refusing her, but he's not going to be an enabler for her drinking.
She tries one more time to take a sip of her tea and fails as some of the tea spills onto the table. She begins to tremble again, but not from being cold. Then he sees tears form in her eyes and she begins to cry; first just a little, and then she breaks down completely and cries uncontrollably. When Josh sees this, he moves over to her and puts a comforting hand on her shoulder. "Are you alright Maya? Why are you crying?" As soon as his hand touches her shoulder, she throws her arms around him and clings to him tightly. She buries her face in his chest and continues to cry. Josh doesn't know what to do at this point but just hold her.
After a short while, her crying subsides enough for her to be able to talk. She looks up at him for the first time that night, but keeps her arms tightly around him. "Josh, I need help," she says with despair in her voice. "And I'm scared Josh; I'm so scared. I'm scared because….because I can't stop drinking. And I'm scared because I'm afraid….I'm afraid I'm going to die Josh! I don't want to die; please help me Josh! I don't want to die; please help me!" See buries her face in his chest and begins to cry uncontrollably again.
"I'm right here," he tells her in a soothing voice as he begins to gently stroke her hair. "Of course, I'll help you Maya. And you're not going to die. I won't let that happen." As she continues to cry, Josh feels his shirt being soaked to his skin from her tears. He's tried his best not cry at all tonight; to be strong for her; but seeing her like this, completely broken, seeing that the bright flame of passion that once burned in her completely extinguished, is more that he can take and he begins to cry too. His tears run down his cheeks and nose and drip onto the top of her head. And he can't help but believe that the Maya she used to be, the Maya that all her family and friends know and love was gone; completely destroyed by her drinking, never to return. That thought made his sink deeper into despair. He begins to wonder how will he tell Shawn and Katy, and Riley, and Cory and Topanga. And later how will be tell his mom and dad and the rest of her friends, that the Maya they all once knew and loved was gone. That her body may still be alive, but her spirit, the spirit that made her Maya was gone, maybe never to return.
But just as he reached the bottom of his despair, something dawned on him. And he saw a sliver of hope. It takes courage to admit to yourself that you have a problem and ask someone for help. And Maya, the real Maya, had that kind of courage in abundance. That told him that the Maya they all know and love wasn't dead. It may be buried somewhere deep down inside of her, but it was there. And if it was there, then with the help she needs, she can get that Maya back. Hope; Maya knows more about hope than most. And she's taught others about hope, including him. He's learned that with hope, all things are possible. He has hope now and begins to feel better.
Josh holds Maya and she continues to cry. He doesn't know what else to do other than to hold and comfort her. Finally, after several minutes, her crying begins to subside. She finally stops with just a few sniffles but continues to hold onto him tightly. After a few more minutes, she releases her hold on him just enough, to look up at him. With sad eyes, she says: "I guess I need to go into rehab." He gives her a reassuring smile and nods his head. "Will you help me find a place to go to?" She asks with a hopeful look.
"Of course," he answers, "in fact we have a place already picked out for you."
Her eyes open wind at his answer. "You do?" She asks in a surprised voice. As he nods his head in answer to her question, her eyes get wider as all of what she's just been told sinks in. "We?" She asks, "who's we?"
"Your mom and dad, Cory and Topanga, Riley and me," he answers. When she says nothing in response, he continues. "They all knew something was wrong with you Maya; they saw that you had a drinking problem. So they all got together and found a rehab center for you, so they could take you there when you were ready to go. They haven't told anyone else about you. I wouldn't have known either if I hadn't run into you at O'Malley's that night. So since I knew, they included me in their little group. Riley calls us the Maya Committee."
After taking this all in, she says: "sounds like her." When she says this, Josh sees a little grin form on her face. This thrills him because that's exactly what the Maya he'd always known would say. And his sliver of hope grows a little larger. After saying that, she lays her head back down on his chest and sighs. "What now?" She asks.
"Well, they have everything ready to admit you as soon as you get there. So why don't we take you there tomorrow and get you started on recovery?" Josh asks with an encouraging smile.
"We?" She asks again.
"Yeah," Josh begins. "all of us. We can all be there with you tomorrow when you're admitted."
Suddenly, fear fills Maya's eyes. "No, Josh, no, please!" She pleads with him. "I don't want them to see me like this. And I said so many awful thinks to them that I'm ashamed to face them."
"Maya," Josh begins with a kind, knowing smile, "you weren't nice to me either the last time we saw each other. And you've let me see you. So why not them too. And I'll need for Riley or Topanga to notify the center that we're bringing you in tomorrow so they'll be ready for you."
"Please Josh," she continues pleading. "It's hard enough for me to face YOU after all I've said and done. And I'm so ashamed of myself. But….I don't know, you're the one I thought of tonight when I needed someone to come and get me. You've always understood me more than anyone else, even more so than mom and dad or even Riley in some ways. And we've always been able to talk. Having you see me like this is bad enough and I just can't bear for everyone else to see me right now. Please Josh, please don't tell them, just take me there tomorrow….please."
Maya was on the verge of crying again, so he nodded his head. "Alright, we'll work something out," he tells her. She nods her head and lays it back on his chest. After a few more minutes, Josh says. "Let's get some sleep, okay? Tomorrow is going to be a good day, but probably a long day, so we need the rest."
"Okay," she says quietly.
"You can sleep in my bed; the sheets are actually clean." He grins a little at his small attempt at humor, but Maya doesn't react in any way, so he goes on: "And I'll sleep on the couch."
As soon as he says this, she quickly looks at him and says: "Sleep with me tonight Josh, please."
He can hear her pleading with him, but answers: "I don't think that's such a good idea Maya."
"No," she says hesitantly, "I mean just sleep. I don't want to be alone tonight Josh, please."
He can see the loneliness in her eyes and understands what she wants and even needs right now. "Okay," he says with a smile, "maybe that'll help us both sleep better."
She gives him a brief smile then and says: "thanks." She gets out get out of the chair she's in and they both head down the hallway to Josh's bedroom. The whole time she clings to him with both hands. This is just another sign to Josh that Maya is broken. She has never been clingy, not to Riley, not to her mom and dad, not to anybody. Yet here she is clinging to him. "Well, that all begins to end tomorrow," he says to himself. "Tomorrow she starts on the road to recovery."
They enter the bedroom and walk to the bed. As Maya gets in the bed, Josh retrieves an extra blanket he has laying at the foot of his bed. He covers Maya with it on top of the sheet and bedspread she's already under. "Warm enough?" He asks.
"Mmmm," she answers. But as Josh begins to ease away from her, she grabs him and asks in a panic: "Where are you going? Aren't you going to sleep with me?"
He can see she's worried, so he tells her in a reassuring voice: "I'm not going anywhere Maya, but I don't want to sleep in these clothes." She looks at him and realizes he still has his regular clothes on and nods her head in understanding. "I'm just going to go right over there and change into my PJs, okay?" She releases him then and lays back down in the bed to wait for him. He soon changes into his PJs, flannel sleep pants and an oversized t-shirt. Then he climbs into the bed as Maya moves over to make room for him. He makes sure all the bed covers are on Maya to keep her warm, then lays down on his back. As soon as he does, Maya lays her head on his chest, snuggles as close to his as she can, puts an arm across his chest, and holds on to his t-shirt. "Are you warm enough?" He asks.
She nods her head and says: "Yes, your body feels so warm."
"Good," he says. Now let's get some sleep." She nods her head and says: "I'm so tired."
Josh doesn't try to fall asleep quite yet. He wants to make sure she falls asleep first. Soon, he hears her breathing become slow and steady, telling him she's fallen asleep. He gently strokes her hair then and breaths a sigh of relief; happy she's sleeping peacefully. And shortly, he drifts off to sleep himself.
He wakes up a few times during the night. He doesn't mind. He believes it's his brain telling him to wake up and check on Maya, which he always does. And every time he does, she still sound asleep, which makes him happy. On the last time he wakes up to check on her, he can't fall back to sleep. He looks at his clock and sees it's 7:30 and decides to get up and put some coffee on. When he sees that Maya is still fast asleep, he slips out of bed as easily as he can trying not to wake her. He puts his pillow next to her for her to hug. After making sure she's still covered well to keep her warm, he kneels beside the bed to check her one more time. She's still sleeping peacefully. He can't help but think how normal she looks now. And even though he knows she's not; it gives him hope she can get back to a normal life. He leans down and gives her a gentle kiss on her temple. He strokes her hair one more time and leaves the bedroom, pulling the door almost shut behind him. He goes to the kitchen and starts a pot of coffee brewing. He sets a skillet on the stove to fry some bacon and starts getting what he needs to cook pancakes. He knows those are two of Maya's favorites and hopes they'll put a smile on her face when she gets up. He pauses as he gets started and thinks about what he needs to do today to get Maya to the rehab center. He realizes he'd be better off with some help. So even though Maya didn't want him to, he decides to call Riley. "Besides," he thinks with a smile, "Riley would kill me if she found out Maya was with me and didn't call her." So he retrieves his phone and punches in her number. The phone rings several times before Riley answers. "Joshua Matthews," she begins with a touch of annoyance in her voice, "you better have a darn good reason for calling me at this ungodly hour on a Saturday morning.
When he hears this, he smiles. Riley gets up early every week day to get to school early to begin her day of teaching and Josh knows that she loves to sleep-in on Saturday mornings. But he knows she won't mind when he tells her why he's calling. "Maya's with me," he says. As soon as he says this, he hears her say: "What!?" Then he hears her feet hit the floor as she walks across the room. He knows she's looking for cloths to put on and then she'll be headed to his apartment.
"How did you get her?" She asks.
"She called me early this morning," he begins. "That so-called friend of hers, Max, left her stranded at a bar after she refused to go back to his apartment with him. Seems he, some of his buddies, and some girls they picked up were apparently going to have some type of sex party and Maya wanted nothing to do with it. She had no money and no place to go, she asked me to come and pick her up. And she wouldn't let me take her anywhere but my place; not her mom and dad's and not even to you. She's ashamed for anyone to see her like she is."
"I don't care as long as she's with you Uncle Josh. How is she?" She asks. He pauses for a minute, trying to think of how to answer. His pause causes Riley to stop what she was doing. "Uncle Josh, please tell me; you're scaring me."
"She's alive Riley and safe with me. She's sleeping now. But that's about all I can say," he finally says.
"That's about all?" she asks in surprise. "What do you mean by that Uncle Josh."
"Riley, I want to prepare you for the when you get here. She's lost so much weight. He cloths literally hand off of her. She's almost skin and bone. Her complexion makes her look like she's sick, but she doesn't show any symptoms of actually being sick. She's weak and clingy, so be prepared when you see her." Now he hears her sit back down on her bed and begin to sob. He's told her the bad news, now he wants to give her some good news. "There is some good news Riley. A reason to hope."
She stops sobbing and asks: "What is it?"
"She told me last night that she has a problem. She said that she couldn't stop drinking and she was afraid she was going to die. Then she asked for my help Riley. She wants to go into rehab."
Now Riley starts sobbing for a different reason, relief. "Oh Uncle Josh," she says, "this is what we've been hoping and praying for. We can get her the help she needs now."
"I know Riley, I know," Josh says, "and that's why I called you. I need your help. Can you call your mom & dad and Shawn & Katy? They can call the rehab center when they open and let them know that we're bringing Maya in so they'll be ready."
"Okay, I'll do that as soon as I'm off the phone with you." She tells.
"Now I hate to bring this up Riley," Josh begins, "but she doesn't want anyone but me to see her right now. Like I said, she's ashamed. So please ask Shawn & Katy and your mom & dad not to come over. I'm not sure how she'll react."
"I will Uncle Josh," she begins, "Shawn & Katy won't be a problem, they're out of town. Uncle Shawn is on an assignment in Maine and Aunt Katy went with him for a little mini-vacation. And I believe I can convince mom & dad to stay home. But you might as well hold your breath when it comes to me. I'm coming over there as soon as I can."
"I know Riley," he says with a little smile. "I knew if you found out she was with me and didn't let you know, you'd kill me."
"And you'd be right," she says, "smart move."
"And I need you to do one more thing Riley," Josh tells her. "Can you bring her some clothes, comfortable clothes, including underwear and shoes? I put what she had on last night in the washer, but they're really not fit to wear."
"Not a problem," she answers. "She still has some of her own clothes in her old closet. And I'll bring some makeup for her too. A girl always feels better after putting on a little makeup. And I'll bring some other girl-related things she might need."
"Thanks Riley, this is a big help."
"You're welcome Uncle Josh. You take care of Maya, and I'll take care of everything else."
"Okay, I'll see you soon," he tells her as they hang up.
A/N: How will Maya react when she finds out Riley is coming to see her? And after getting some rest, will she still stay at Josh's apartment? Will she still let him take her to rehab? The next chapter will have the answers.