A/N: Hey again, everyone. I know it's been a long time and I'm sorry for that – I feel like all I do with this story is to keep apologizing for not updating. I promise, I have every intent to finish this story. Life just keeps throwing obstacles in my way that need attention in the real world. But as you can see, I have not forgotten about this story or about you dear readers. Just like Piece by Piece, Mine has become very dear to my heart and I would love to give it the attention it deserves. But with things being as they are, the intervals in which I can devote my time to this story to not just give you some short, half-assed chapter, but one I really like, will probably continue to be rather long and irregular. But the updates will keep coming! Thanks to all of you who are still with me and continue to read this story. This admittedly rather long chapter is for you and I hope you enjoy it. As always, feel free to leave a review and let me know what you think :)
Disclaimer: I don't own any of the Girl Meets World characters.
Mine
Girl Meets Conversations
"Do you remember, we were sittin', there by the water?
You put your arm around me for the first time"
"Phew", Shawn Hunter said as he shut the door behind their last guest. Dinner had been great and the Matthews, Farkle and Jon had stayed late into the night while everyone caught up with each other. Things had been a bit tense and slightly awkward at first, but thanks to Topanga and Katy just starting conversation topic after conversation topic, making sure to find things everyone could be included it, everyone gradually relaxed and enjoy their time together. Shawn had to admit, it had been a very nice evening, but the day had been exhausting, nonetheless.
"I'll say," his daughter Maya agreed as she let herself fall down on the couch in their living room. The girl had decided to stay the night at her parents' place. Her head was still spinning from all the events of the day. She had felt bad at first, leaving Riley all by herself since the day had not been easy on the brunette as well. But Riley's boyfriend Farkle had quickly offered to stay with Riley, assuring Maya that he would make sure she was okay. Josh had decided to go home with his brother and sister-in-law. Apparently, he had promised his nephew Auggie he'd stop by this weekend. Jon had been the last one to bid the Hunter family goodnight. He'd waited until the others were away to make sure his son and family were doing okay, something all three Hunters appreciated very much.
Maya's mom Katy sat down beside her daughter and patted the space on her other side to invite her husband to join them. "Sit down, hun. You look exhausted."
"I am," Shawn admitted before starting to chuckle. "I have to say, this did not end up being the quiet night in with the family I had planned for today."
"My head hurts," Maya agreed.
Katy laughed. "You don't say." She shook her head. "I know both of you had an exhausting week and you just wanted to relax today." The older blonde hesitated for a moment. "But … it was a good evening … wasn't it?"
Shawn and Maya shared a look. "Of course," they immediately agreed.
"Not at all what I had in mind when I thought about introducing my friends to you or meeting Riley's parents, but still good," Maya admitted.
"And it certainly wasn't the reunion I had thought Cory and I would have …" Shawn paused. "Scratch that, I have no idea what I would have wanted it to be like, but I know I would never have imagined this." Shawn shook his head laughing. "Of all the roommates in the world, yours had to be Cory-with-Topanga's-hair."
Katy and Maya joined in. "Must have been fate," the older blonde mused.
"I wouldn't change it for the world," their daughter added.
"But I have to say, maybe this was the best way it could've happened," Shawn said slowly. "You know, unplanned. Quick and without panicking about it for days in advance."
"Like ripping off a band aid," Katy said.
"Hoping it doesn't bleed like hell once you do," Maya joked tentatively.
Her parents chuckled. "Which thankfully it really didn't," Shawn said. "It's not quite finished healing … but we're headed in the right direction."
"You'll get there," Katy assured. "You're on the right track."
"I hope so," Shawn said. "It just hit me today. I mean, I know it's been so long since we saw each other. But today it suddenly became very clear. Seeing Riley – God, she's just as old as you Maya. I can't even imagine how much Auggie must have grown up in the last years. I missed a lot of big moments with both of them. But especially Josh, I was there when he was born, when he grew up, we used to be so close. And now he's all grown-up, a young adult. I missed so much with him too." Shawn buried his head in his hands. "God, I really messed up, didn't I."
Katy and Maya looked at each other. As if on cue Katy wrapped her arm around her husband and squeezed him tight while Maya jumped up, went to her father's other side and set down on the arm of the couch. The girl too wrapped an arm around her father, completing the family-group-hug. "Shh," Katy tried to soothe her husband as she placed a kiss on his cheek. "It's gonna be okay. You didn't mean to mess up, hun."
"She's right, Daddy," Maya quickly added. "Both you and the Matthews made some mistakes in the past, that's what we found out today. But none of you meant for anyone to get hurt. You did what you thought was best at that moment in time. You can't blame yourself for that."
"I know, kiddo." Shawn ruffled his daughter's hair. "And I don't for even a second regret leaving New York. It brought me you, your mom and Jon." He paused. "But I could have tried harder to stay in touch. Let them know what was up with me, find out what was going on with them."
"That goes both ways, hun," Katy reminded him. "And you heard today that Cory and Topanga regret what happened as well. I bet they blame themselves just as much. How much do you wanna bet that Josh is trying to reassure them right now just like Maya and I are doing with you."
That finally made Shawn chuckle. "And Little Matthews would pull it off, just like my two girls. He's always been a bright and clever boy."
"Daddy, I know both you and the Matthews are probably gonna feel like that for a while," Maya began. "But try and not dwell too much on the past. You can't change it now."
"Our little girl is right, hun," Katy agreed. "Don't focus too much on the past. Save your energy for what's coming right now. Hang out with Cory and Topanga, get to know Riley and Auggie and spend time with Josh."
"From all we heard today, they seem to be your family too, Dad," Maya said.
Shawn got lost in memories for a while. Memories of his childhood, growing up with absentee parents and escaping to the Matthews' house more often than not. Alan taking him fishing, Amy making sure he was fed and well-clothed, learning what it meant to have siblings long before learning about his half-brother Jack and eventually even taking on the role of another older brother and role model for little Josh. Feeling like he'd always have a place, people to come home to. Feeling like he had a home. "They used to be," he finally answered his daughter. "And would really like them to be again."
"Well." Katy clapped her hands together. "Everyone who's part of your family is part of our family as well."
Shawn and Maya burst out laughing. "Exactly," Maya chimed in. "That's what that big shiny ring on mom's finger means."
"So I guess what we're saying here …," Katy began again. "… is that we're with you, no matter what you decide."
"My girls." Shawn got all misty-eyed as he pulled his wife and daughter into another hug. "What would I ever do without you."
Katy giggled. "Thankfully, you'll never have to find out since I'm staying right here with you. You're not getting rid of me that easily, that's also what this big shiny ring means."
Shawn smiled at his wife lovingly and gave her a tender kiss. "Thank God for that."
"Okay guys, get a room!" Maya exclaimed, causing her parents to burst out laughing. "And I'm only a short drive away without any intention of leaving anytime soon. And even then, you two would probably just pack up and follow me again."
Shawn and Katy shared a conspiring look. "Probably," they agreed teasingly and all three of them laughed at that.
"So you see, Dad," Maya said after calming down a bit. "We're not going anywhere. After all, it's usually you taking off on us," she teased with a wink, letting Shawn know that she didn't mean it.
"Well, what if I didn't?" he suddenly asked innocently.
"Wait what?" Katy and Maya exclaimed, their eyes wide.
"What if I didn't have to travel so much anymore?"
"What do you mean, hun?" Katy asked.
"You always said that you didn't mind me travelling so much, as long as it meant I was doing what I loved to do, didn't you Katy?" he clarified.
When they had been dating for a while, Katy and Shawn had had a long discussion about this topic. He knew that his job could easily put a strain on their relationship and be hard on Maya, the closer they got. They had been talking for a long time already when Katy had asked what she thought of as the most important question: Do you love what you're doing? Are you living your dream? And Shawn had said yes. He loved his job, travelling, seeing places, it was all he'd ever wanted to do. And Katy knew exactly what it meant to give up on your dream job. She never wanted to force Shawn to do the same, so they had agreed that he would continue to travel. Shawn made sure he wasn't gone for too long periods at a time and to spend as much time as possible with his girls while he was with them. And sometimes, Maya, Katy or both of them accompanied Shawn on his trips when they had the time. It was a system that had worked very well for the three of them over the last couple of years. At least until now. "Yeah, I did say that."
"And I'm so grateful for that. I got to do what I love to do and have the family I'd always wanted. And I had always loved travelling just as much as I loved coming back home to you girls. But these last few assignments, something changed," Shawn said. "It got harder and harder for me to leave, especially with Maya getting older and preparing to leave for college. I did like doing my assignments, but while I was gone, the things I looked forward to most were the calls and texts I got from you girls." He paused. "I don't know, maybe it's just me getting older … but I think this vagabonding lifestyle just isn't for me anymore."
Nobody said anything for a little while. Shawn was deep in thought and Maya and Katy were trying to process this new piece of information they had just been given. Eventually, Maya had cleared her head enough to ask another question. "So, what exactly are you planning to do, Dad?"
Shawn took a deep breath. "I'm gonna take a break from travelling," he said. "Maybe give it up completely, I'm not sure yet. I've already talked to Oliver, he's fine with me taking on more local jobs for a while. That's what I'm gonna do for now until …"
"Until?" Katy encouraged.
"Until I've decided what to do next," Shawn said. "A friend of mine owns a photo studio here in New York. He said he was looking for a business partner. I told him I'd think about it."
"Wow," Katy and Maya said.
"That's huge, Dad!"
"I know." Shawn chuckled. "Would you girls be okay with that? I know it's a lot to take in?"
"Hm, I don't know …" Katy mused. "What do you say, baby girl? Would we be okay with having your dad around more often? With not having to worry about something happening to him on the road, on a train or in a plane? With him finding himself a new dream?"
"Well, if you put it like that …" Maya grinned and tackled her father in another hug. "If you're happy, we're happy."
"Couldn't have said it any better," Katy agreed.
"Well, in that case I'm very happy." Shawn smiled lovingly at his wife and daughter.
The Hunter family sat in comfortable silence for a while. Eventually Maya yawned, causing her parents to chuckle. "No laughing," she pouted. "It was a long day. I'm think I'm gonna go hit the hay."
"You do that, baby girl." Katy leaned over and placed a kiss on her daughter's forehead. "I don't think we're gonna be up that much longer either."
"Yeah, I'm beat too," Shawn said. There was something in his voice, like he had something else to say. However, neither of his girls noticed, they were too tired, and he didn't want to elaborate just now. This was something he had to discuss with his wife first before they would let their daughter know.
"Alrighty. Goodnight, lovebirds." Maya slowly got up and hugged both her parents. "I'm glad your back, Daddy."
"Me too, kiddo. Believe me," Shawn agreed.
"See you guys tomorrow." Maya made her way towards her room but turned around again before leaving the room completely. "By the way Mom, I think we just got started on the sequel to 'Potato Confessions'."
Shawn looked from his daughter to his wife and back again with a confused expression and Katy just laughed. "I think we should go back to 'Meltdown in the Supermarket' for part one. That way, we can call part two 'Confessions of a Vagabonding Photographer'."
Shawn's expression just got more and more confused as Maya started giggling. "Love it, just one little change." The girl grinned. "I'd call it 'Confessions of a Vagabonding Hunter'."
Katy was close to falling off the couch from laughing so hard and Shawn wasn't any closer to deciphering the meaning of his girls' words. "I will call the director and Topanga first thing in the morning."
"Then the nice men in the white coats will be here by noon," Maya dead-panned. The two Hunter girls were positively howling with laughter while Shawn just sat by, completely puzzled by his girls' strange behavior. "Don't worry, Dad. I'll tell you all about our billion dollar idea tomorrow."
"Please do," Shawn pleaded. "Although I'm not sure I even wanna know." This time all three Hunters laughed out loud and with another wave, Maya finally went into her room.
Watching their daughter head out of the room, Katy and Shawn leaned back on the couch, his arm around her shoulders and her curled into him. Even though they were used to being separated for short periods of time on a regular basis, that didn't mean they didn't miss each other or weren't incredibly happy when they were reunited again. And Katy would be lying if she said that Shawn's decision to stop travelling didn't make her feel the least bit happy.
Sitting there with his wife, their daughter getting ready for bed in the next room, Shawn finally felt at peace again. He was home with his family. But at the same time, he felt torn. Because there was something he had to talk to Katy, and eventually Maya, about. Something that had happened on his assignment in Seattle. Something he on the one hand felt so sure was the right thing to do, was something he really wanted to do; but also something he on the other hand felt like it was just crazy. Shawn shook his head. He couldn't think about this clearly, he was too close to it, too involved. He needed someone to talk to about this. Someone he could trust, someone rational, someone who'd know what to do … who always knew what to do, who was always there for him. And luckily that person was sitting right beside him at this particular moment.
He looked down at his wife's face, she looked so content and peaceful sitting there curled into him. Happy to finally have her husband back with her. He didn't want to disturb that peace, but this was something that would involve Katy and Maya as well. She needed to know. "Hey Katy?"
"Yeah Shawn?" She looked up at him with her warm brown eyes.
"Do ever think about … you know, having another kid?" he asked carefully.
Katy's eyes got wide. "Um, yeah. I guess, sometimes I do." The blonde smiled nervously.
A small smile spread across Shawn's face. "And how do you feel about it?"
"Um," Katy hesitated and looked up at her husband. She took a deep breath. This was not easy and she didn't want to hurt him. But she had to tell him the truth. "Shawn, you know I love kids. Maya's my best friend and I love her with all my heart." Shawn nodded, he knew exactly how close his two girls were. "And I would be lying if I said I hadn't thought about us having a kid together. I mean, we would make cute kids, wouldn't we?"
Shawn grinned. "We would make very cute kids."
Katy chuckled before sobering up a bit. "But Shawn, I just don't think right now would be the right time." She could see her husband's face falling and quickly tried to explain her reasoning. "I mean, I only just got started in the acting business and just got cast in a role – I told you about that sitcom, right? And I have a few more callbacks. I've been waiting so long for this chance. And if we do have another kid, I would love it – of course, I would – and I would stay home at the end of the pregnancy and at least for the first couple of months after. And maybe then we would want a third kid. And as much as I love our family – it's my dream I never would have imagined could come true – I'm just afraid if I put my other dream – my acting dream – on hold for much longer … I would be putting it on hold forever." Katy looked down at her lap, not daring to meet her husband's gaze. Would he be disappointed?
Shawn knew that he had to tread carefully now. It was never his intention to make his wife feel pressured into anything, maybe he shouldn't have beaten around the bush so much and have just come out with what he wanted to say. But first, he had to fix what he had messed up. "Katy, look at me please." Katy slowly raised her gaze and looked up her husband shyly. "You did tell me about the sitcom and I'm so proud of you. And you will rock those callbacks as well. Because you're an amazing actress who is finally able to live her dream." He took her hands in his and held her gaze intently. "Katy, I would never ask you to give up your dream. You enabled me two follow both my dreams for the last couple of years: you gave me my family and still enabled me to travel and do my dream job. I never meant to ask you to give up your dream, that's not why I was asking."
Tears welled up in Katy's eyes, she knew she had married a good man. "But Shawn, you asked if I wanted more children. And I don't see a way to do that without me getting pregnant and giving birth."
"Well, what if there was a way." Shawn gave her a mischievous look. "Would you wanna have another kid?"
Katy looked at her husband with wide eyes. "You're pregnant?"
Shawn burst out laughing. "No, I'm not." He shook his head. "But we're getting closer."
"I don't get it." Katy gave her husband a completely confused look.
"Well, you see …" Shawn started, but quickly trailed off. He finally had his chance and now he didn't know how to tell her what he needed to tell her.
Sensing her husband's distress, Katy gave him an encouraging nudge. "Hun, what do you want to tell me? Just start at the beginning."
Shawn took a deep breath. He could do this. "While I was doing my assignment in Seattle, I ran into an old friend of mine, Logan. We met for dinner to catch up a bit and when he heard that I was working as a photographer, he asked if I could do him a favor." He chuckled. "You see, he's a teacher and in charge of their school's art club. He promised his students that they would learn something about photography next. Since he himself isn't that well-versed in that particular art-form, he organized for a professional photographer to join them in their course for a couple of sessions. However, the photographer got sick, so he couldn't do it. And that's when Logan asked if I could fill in. I had some spare time, so I figured I'd see if I could pull off a Mr. Feeny and Jon just like Cory did."
Katy giggled as she tried to imagine her husband as a teacher in front of a bunch of high-school students. "And did you?"
"Well, I don't think I'll be making a career change in that particular direction just yet." Shawn chuckled to his wife's amusement. "But I had a lot of fun working with the kids. They were so eager to learn and a lot of them were really talented. Especially …" Shawn trailed off.
Katy quickly sobered up. Her eyes went wide as she realized where this was headed now. "What's his name?" she asked, looking at her husband softly.
"Jasper." A warm smile appeared on Shawn's lips at that. "His name's Jasper Chase Bennet."
Katy smiled. "What's he like?"
A mischievous grin spread across Shawn's face. "A real troublemaker."
Katy burst out laughing and she put her hand on her husband's arm. "Sounds like someone I know pretty well."
Shawn chuckled. "Kinda yeah," he admitted. "But not a troublemaker in a bad way, you know. Just a lot of 'in the wrong place at the wrong time' kinda stuff and 'tries to do the right thing, but it kinda backfires on him'. You know what I mean?"
"I think so, yeah. So rather edgy exterior, but a good heart inside of him?" Katy inquired.
"Exactly yeah." Shawn's eyes lit up. "He's fifteen. His parents died when he was a little kid and he's been in and out of foster families ever since. He's really smart, but doesn't get a lot of support from home, so he bores easily in school. His teachers try their best, but they don't have the capacity to do too much. As far as I've gotten to know him, he seems to be very kind and caring, but a bit closed off. He doesn't trust easily but would do anything for the people he's close too – which also led him to get into trouble sometimes."
Katy smiled. "Yeah, sounds a lot like someone I know."
"I think Jon would have a flashback to back in the day if he met Jasper," he admitted. "He's a little artist, just like Maya. That's why he joined the club. And because he gets along well with Logan as a teacher. And just like Maya, he's very stubborn and a bit cheeky. Tried to give me attitude at first, but when he realized it didn't work, we actually got on really good."
"That's nice, hun," Katy said.
"He often stayed late after class, I didn't mind I had work to do anyways. I could do it from school as well. Eventually we got to talking, he told me a bit about his homelife. He doesn't really feel at home with his current foster family. They're not bad people, just very busy. They have quite a few foster kids, so he doesn't really get any peace and quiet. That's why he liked staying behind at school with me. But he doesn't want to complain because he's afraid they'll send him off to the next family and apparently he's had experience with some not so nice ones already."
"That's terrible," Katy said. She felt bad for the kid and she hadn't even met him. She had an inkling of why this story hit Shawn hard especially. It was a fate he could've been met with when his father took off, had Jon not taken him in.
"I thought so too. And that's what I wanted to talk to you about …" Shawn broke off again, trying to find the right words. And then words just kept on pouring out of him "You know … I haven't said anything to Jasper yet … but I had a talk with Logan … he said he thought Jasper might be on board … but he also said to make sure we all were on board … which of course I knew already … that's why I'm talking to you now … and we'd have to check with Maya as well of course … but still …"
"Shawn!" Katy interrupted her husband softly and he immediately shut his mouth. "Are you saying what I think you're saying?"
"Well, that depends on what you think I'm saying." Shawn chuckled nervously.
"Do you want to adopt Jasper?" Katy asked bluntly.
"Well, I was thinking of fostering at first. If you, Maya and he are up for it of course. With the option to adopt if that's something we'd all feel comfortable with," Shawn started rambling again. "But yeah, that's what I was thinking about. What do you think?"
Katy took a deep breath and allowed herself a moment to process all this. "Okay," she said slowly.
"What did you just say?" Shawn's eyes were as big as saucers.
Katy chuckled. "I said okay," she repeated. "I think this is something we'd have to sleep over and I would like to talk to Maya if we still think it's something we would want to do tomorrow. I don't want to overwhelm her with something like this."
"I totally agree," Shawn immediately assured.
"And if we're all on board, I would like to meet Jasper in person. And also give him a chance to meet us. See if he likes us. You said you didn't talk with him about it yet?" Katy clarified.
"I didn't," Shawn said. "I told him about my daughter, that I adopted her not that long ago. And he said he hoped he'd be lucky to one day be adopted by kind people as well." He smiled at the memory.
"Okay, but still we'd have to check with him if it'd be something he'd want to do. It would mean he'd have to move very far away from his current home."
"Of course …" Shawn started, but Katy interrupted him again. She had since jumped up from her seat on the couch and was pacing in front of him.
"And then we'd have to talk to his social worker. God, there's probably a lot of legal stuff to figure out as well. You know what, I'll talk to Topanga once I see her again. Maybe she knows something about adoption or knows somebody who knows something …" Katy was already ten steps ahead of Shawn.
"Katy!" Shawn interrupted his wife who looked at him like a deer caught in headlights upon being forcefully ripped from her chain of thoughts. "There will be a lot of things we'll have to figure out. But does this mean, you'd be on board?" he asked hopefully.
Katy blinked. "Yeah, I guess it does." She chuckled.
Shawn let out an excited cry, jumped up out of his seat, gathered his wife in his arms and spun her around. Katy giggled delightedly as he finally set her down and kissed her firmly on the lips. "I love you, Mrs. Hunter. You know that?"
"Well, that works out just fine, Mr. Hunter," Katy played with some strands of her husband's hair at the back of his neck. "Because I love you too. Very much so."
All three Hunters slept very well that night. They were all exhausted from the events of the day before and fell asleep almost as soon as their heads hit their pillows. The next morning, they slept in late and then met up in the kitchen for a late breakfast. Shawn had made Maya's favorite, his famous chocolate chip pancakes, so while he was still busy at the stove, Maya and Katy were already stuffing their faces with pancakes and drinking their bodyweight in coffee.
"I always knew it," Katy eventually said. "I married the perfect man!"
"Took you long enough to realize that," Shawn teased.
"Oh Dad, you know the way to a Hunter girls' heart is through her stomach," Maya joined in and they all had a good laugh.
A little while later, Shawn joined his girls at the table and was soon filled in on Katy's billion dollar movie idea. He was completely on board and had already made several attempts to grab the phone and call Topanga for legal advice.
"You two, I swear," Maya groaned after placing the phone well out of her father's reach for the umpteenth time. "How am I the child in this family?"
"You love us, baby girl." Katy grinned as she hugged her daughter from behind. "Admit it."
"Of course, I do. But you're still crazy," she insisted.
"You would be bored out of your mind if we weren't," Shawn boasted.
"Probably," Maya admitted. "But remember, I'm alone dealing with you two crazy people. No siblings to complain to, so go easy on me." She laughed and waited for her parents to join in. She was surprised when they just shot each other nervous looks. "Guys, that was a humorous comment, sometimes referred to as a joke." The two of them chuckled but did not look any more relaxed. Suspicious of their behavior, Maya crossed her arms in front of her chest and looked at them skeptically. "Are you guys okay? You're acting weird."
"We're fine, baby girl," Katy assured.
Shawn nodded his agreement. "But there is something we wanted to talk to you about."
Maya looked at them curiously. "Okay?" She gestured for them to go on. "I'm all ears."
And that's how Maya found herself listening to her father telling her the story of how he met a teenaged boy called Jasper while he was gone on his last assignment. How the boy had lost his parent at a very young age and was all alone. How he had gone from one family to the next, never fitting in, never staying on. Shawn didn't say it, but Maya suspected that not all of these families had been very kind. How Shawn had met this troublemaker-teenager who tried to give him attitude, but gradually started to trust and open up to him. And before he even said the word, Maya knew why her father was telling her all this. Because she had heard a very similar story to this one before. She herself had lived story that wasn't that far from this one.
"You wanna adopt him?" Maya concluded for her father.
Shawn's eyes went wide. "How did I get myself two such clever women who manage to put things together before I finish with my rambling."
Maya giggled, apparently this conversation had gone very similarly when he'd had it with her mom. "The idea's not that out there, Dad."
"I guess not," he admitted.
"And yes Maya," Katy jumped in. "We are thinking about fostering to adopt Jasper. If he wants, that is."
"He'd be real crazy not to," Maya teased.
"Would you be alright with that?" Shawn asked tentatively.
Maya's eyes went wide. "You're asking me?"
Shawn looked over to his wife nervously. "Well yeah," he said. "Maya, if we really do this, Jasper would be part of this family, our family. Eventually, he would even be your brother. Of course, you're included in the decision making."
Maya blinked back a few tears. Yeah, Katy's teasing comment from before had been absolutely correct. She really had married the perfect man. And Katy herself was just as great. Maya was legally a grown-up now, she didn't even live at home anymore. They didn't have to include her in the decision, they could have only let her know about it. But they didn't. They knew all about Maya's insecurities and how best to handle them and make the girl feel comfortable with new developments. And that's how her answered rolled off her tongue so easily "Okay."
"What did you just say?" Shawn asked, a brilliant smile on his face. Katy stood a bit off to the side, grinning proudly at her daughter.
"I said okay." Maya smiled. "Let's meet this kid."
And Shawn went over to his daughter, picked her up and spun her around. As he sat her back on the ground he looked over at his wife while shaking his head in disbelief. "Just like your mother."
A few days had passed since the big reunion and the many confessions of one Shawn Hunter. It was Thursday afternoon and Maya Hunter was hanging out with her friends Riley, Farkle and Zay at Topanga's – a half-platonic double date as Zay jokingly called it. The girl had brought a big bag along that held an assortment of her art supplies. She had to do a big assignment for one of her classes and was trying to come up with a place that would provide her the best inspiration for it.
Josh had just brought them each a slice of cake and some coffee that they were all digging into hungrily. And after hanging around for a few more minutes, the brunette had to get back to work.
"So," Zay said eventually, addressing the two girls. "How are things with your parents going?" Maya had met up with her old best friend earlier that week and filled him in on all new developments that had occurred over the weekend. Well, all but one. She hadn't yet had the courage to tell any one of her new friends about the possibility of her becoming a big sister.
"Surprisingly well," Riley told him. "Our dads have hung out together a few times since the big reunion and so far, there has been no talk of any kind of falling out."
"I agree," Maya added. "I think they're both so happy to have the other one in their lives again, neither wants to disturb the peace just yet."
"Well, that's something, I guess." Zay nodded as he took a big gulp of his coffee.
"But you should see their mothers," Farkle jumped in. "Best friends in the making, I tell you."
Zay laughed. "Katy and Topanga … yeah, I can see that."
"It's amazing," Riley said. "They only met each other Saturday afternoon and by dinner those two were already conspiring together against Dad and Uncle Shawn."
"And they've been hanging out too, almost as much as our dads," Maya added.
"It's crazy how much things can change in only one weekend," Josh suddenly joined their conversation, having heard the last bits and pieces.
"It really is, Uncle Josh," Riley agreed. "I haven't had a chance to ask you how you're doing. I know you and Uncle Shawn were really close back when you were a little kid." Maya perked up at that. It was a bit weird for her that her father and her new friend apparently had a history from long before she had known either of them. And judging from how fondly Shawn talked about Josh, they weren't talking about just bi-monthly visits to the Matthews family, but something deeper.
"I'm fine," Josh assured his niece. "I actually ran into Shawn when I was visiting Cory a few days ago. We decided to grab a bite to eat and catch up. It was really nice, I enjoyed it a lot." He turned to Maya. "He looks happier than the last time I saw him all those years ago and I know you and your mom played a big part in that. Thank you for that, it's good to see him so happy and carefree again. That's what he was like when I was a little kid."
"You're very welcome." Maya smiled at the older boy. "He's done so much for us, I'm glad we seem to have done something for him as well."
"You did and still do," Josh said. "I always thought Shawn would make a great dad, he was always really good with me. I was sad he didn't have that for a long time. Seeing him happy with a wife and daughter now, it's really great."
Maya grinned. "You were right with that. Shawn's the best dad I could ever hope for."
The two of them smiled at each other for a while longer until Josh was called away by some customers wanting to pay. Maya turned back to her three other friends, only to be met with all of them sporting knowing smiles. "What?" she asked, confused.
"Oh nothing." Riley shrugged and the boys immediately nodded their agreement.
"You guys are weird," Maya stated before taking another forkful of her pie.
"Anyway," Farkle suddenly said. "Riley and I were thinking of going Bowling tonight. Would you guys like to join us?"
"And thereby expanding this half-platonic double date!" Zay gushed and threw his arm around Maya's shoulder, causing the blonde to choke on her pie. "Oops! Sorry, short-stack." He carefully patted her back.
"Dammit, Isaiah Atticus!" Maya croaked while still coughing.
"Still nope." Zay shook his head. "And really, Atticus?"
Before Maya could croak out another answer, Josh came rushing over, placing a glass of water in front of the blonde with a worried look on his face. "Here, this might help."
Maya nodded at him gratefully and took a careful gulp of the clear liquid. "Thanks, Josh."
"No problem, Maya." Josh smiled at her.
"Huh, finally given up on the cutesy nicknames?" Maya teased.
"Not by a long shot," Josh played along. "Just trying to come up with something fitting, Hunter."
"Well, Matthews." Maya laughed. "Good luck with that." She turned to Zay. "And don't you go complaining about Atticus. I've ruled out the majority of normal names like John, Jack and Andrew back in elementary school."
"Oh yeah." Zay nodded, remembering that time. "Still wrong."
"Dammit. One of these days," Maya promised. "And would you be so kind as to finally explain to me what a half-platonic double date is?"
Riley and Farkle laughed, while Josh just looked confused. "A what?" he asked.
"A half-platonic double date, cub-scout," Zay repeated. "And as for you, my dear Maya, a half-platonic double date is defined as a date-like activity in which four people take part whereby only two of those people have any sort of romantic interest in each other." Riley and Farkle looked at each other lovingly while Maya and Josh still looked doubtful, so Zay decided to provide an example. "Like what Riley, Farkle, Maya and I are doing now."
Maya's face lit up with understanding. "Ah, because Riley and Farkle are definitely interested in each other romantically, whereas you and I are not," she concluded. "Not bad, Zay."
"You could also say we're just third- and fourth-wheeling." Zay looked like he was having the time of his life right then and there.
"You're very creative today," Riley teased.
"I have my moments." Zay grinned.
"Anyway, would you like to join us?" Farkle tried to get everyone back to his former question.
"Thanks for asking, Farkle. But I still got some work to do today." Maya patted the bag that was lying beside her feet. "I thought I'd walk around a bit later, see if I can find something to work with."
"Well, unless Joshie here is willing to be the fourth- to my third-wheel …" Zay looked at the older boy hopefully.
"Sorry, Zay. I'm working tonight," Josh said. "And stop it with the Joshie."
"I would rather not only third-wheel with the happy couple," Zay continued his sentence, ignoring the second part of Josh's statement.
"We'd love to have you, Zay," Riley assured and Farkle nodded his agreement. "You know that."
"Nah, you two lovebirds go have fun." Zay grinned at them before turning to Maya. "What do you say, short-stack? Would you mind some company on your walk?"
"Not at all, Sunshine," Maya agreed. "Should we take off then? I'd like to paint while there's still enough light outside to see my canvas."
"Very good thinking, Maya," Farkle said. "We should head off too, Riles." The four said goodbye to Josh who told them to have fun before going back to work and they headed out the door.
Maya and Zay had been walking around their neighborhood in Greenwich for a good hour. They had had a lot of fun just talking about the good old times and the new developments in both their lives. Zay had even told Maya about this girl in one of his classes that had caught his eye. The had stopped at various very cool locations to see if Maya would feel inspired, but nothing had caught the blonde's eye.
Eventually the reached Greenwich Park and Maya got a strong inkling that she really wanted to go in. She had a feeling she'd find what she was looking for right there. She was just about to say so to Zay when she saw him checking the time on his phone.
"I'm sorry, Maya," he started. "But I think I should head home. I still got some work to do for tomorrow as well. Will you be alright by yourself?"
"Of course, Zay," she assured. "Thanks for joining me up till now. I didn't mean to keep you from your work."
"Always a pleasure to spend time with you, short-stack." Zay grinned as he gave his old best friend a hug. "If you need anything or if you forget the time again while painting and it's already dark when you want to head home, you give me a call, alright?"
Maya shook her head, Zay had always been very protective of her. "I will, Zay. I promise." She squeezed him tight before letting go. Zay handed her the bag he had insisted on carrying for her and she took it back gratefully. Her painting equipment was something she did not trust just anybody with. "Now get to work, young man!"
"Ma'am, yes Ma'am," Zay saluted before skipping away, a big grin on his face.
Maya chuckled thinking about her goofy best friend as she slowly made her way through Greenwich Park. She was really glad to finally have him back. As she was walking, she took in all her surroundings intently. She was still unsure what she wanted to paint for her assignment.
"Paint your own haven" had been all the professor had written on the board at the end of his lesson, shortly before sending them back out into the world. No clear instructions, usually exactly the kind of assignments Maya loved to work on. The problem was only that her safe place, her haven was back in Possum Trot. And it's not like Maya didn't have the little pond in her backyard memorized by heart, she also had a lot of pictures of it from when Shawn had given her some tips on photography. But the blonde wasn't quite sure it fit the description anymore, at least not completely. Because while the pond had been her and her mother's favorite escape back when they lived in Arkansas, Maya had a feeling that moving to New York had changed that. It had changed her. And thereby, it only made sense that her safe place would change as well. Now she only had to figure out what her new haven was.
Eventually Maya reached another pond. Not the one from her old hometown, but a different one located in Greenwich Park. It was very different from her old safe place. Where the other pond had been hidden away behind dark green trees and bushes, surrounded by all kinds of plants with all kinds of beetles, bugs and flies around it, this pond right here was the complete opposite. It was out in the open, only a few trees around it providing shelter from the sun, surrounded by a bright green meadow. There were some small boats to rent at one part of the pond and a few of them were already floating in the water with people inside them. Some kids were playing in the shallow waters and squealing delightedly to their parents' amusement.
What surprised Maya most was that this place here provided her with a similar sense of calm and peace that her old haven had always given her. And suddenly, the blonde had an epiphany. She knew what she wanted to paint. So she picked a spot from where she had the best view, laid down a blanket to sit on, got out her painting equipment and got to work.
She didn't know how long she'd been painting, but the sun was already starting to disappear behind the horizon when she finally put down her brush. Maya, however, didn't care. She put her paint brush away and looked at her accomplishment of the afternoon. In the center of the picture, you could see a pond, its clear blue water seemed to be glittering on the page. The left half of the picture showed the dark green forest – bushes and trees – behind Maya's old house in Possum Trot. Separating the left and the right half of the picture seemed to be an invisible line where the forest merged into a bright green meadow with only a few trees way in the back. Around the pond-half on the left side, you could see a lot of plants, flowers, a few butterflies and beetles and in the darker places even a few fireflies. On the right-half, you could see boats at the edge of the pond with people sitting inside and around them. In the background, there were also some people having a picnic or walking their dogs.
Completely happy and content with her work, Maya leaned back and let the last rays of sunshine fall on her face. She closed her eyes for a moment before opening them again and taking in her surroundings. The little kids were no longer there and the boats that had been out on the pond were now all tied together to keep them from floating away until they were needed again. There was still a lot of commotion in the park, but now it was mostly people walking their dogs, going for a run, riding their bikes or couples taking a stroll together after work.
One of the runners, a tall, dark-haired young man, headed straight in Maya's direction. However, he apparently hadn't even noticed her because, without looking at her, he headed straight for the pond. He sat down at the edge, took off his sweater, shoes and socks and let his feet hang in the water. He leaned forward a bit to splash his head with some water, probably to cool down from the run.
Maya found herself watching the young man intently and when she caught herself doing it, she was surprised. Usually, guys didn't faze her very much. But there was something about this guy. Maya shook her head and took another closer look at the runner, trying to figure out what had caught her eye. He suddenly took off the beanie he'd been wearing, revealing unruly brown locks. He cocked his head a little bit and Maya finally caught a small look of his face. And suddenly she realized what exactly had caught her eye.
The blonde quickly packed up her painting set, carefully grabbed the canvas – the paint wasn't dry yet – and headed over towards the runner who was now sitting there, his head leaning back and his eyes closed. She put her bag and painting down a few feet away from him – and the water – and headed over. She stood right behind the guy and he still hadn't noticed.
A mischievous glint in her eyes, the blonde crouched down as quietly as she could until her head was level with his. "Well, hello there. Is this seat taken?"
Startled, the guy jumped and ended up sitting in the shallow of the pond. Maya quickly held her hand to her mouth to stop herself from howling with laughter as she took in the sight him sitting there, looking like a deer caught in headlights, trying to wrap his mind around what had just happened.
"Maya?" he croaked, finally recognizing the figure in front of him.
"Why Josh, I am shocked!" Maya exclaimed. "You already forgot what I look like?"
"Funny, funny girl." Josh shook his head, but had to bite back a smile. "What brings you here this nice evening?"
Maya grinned and gestured towards where her bag and canvas lay. "Course assignment."
"Ah right," Josh said, remembering. "You found your inspiration?"
"I did at that." Maya smiled. She hesitated for a moment. "Would you like to see."
Josh lit up. "Yeah, I would." He looked down and made a face. "Mind helping me up first?"
Maya giggled. "You sure you wanna get up?" she asked cheekily. "Water looks really nice."
Josh rolled his eyes. "Oh yeah, I was dying to go for a swim today. However, did you know?"
"That's just part of my charm," Maya teased, but she held her hand out to him anyway. "Oh alright. Hold on, let's get you out."
Josh grabbed the blonde's hand and Maya just wanted to start pulling him up when she suddenly felt a tug on her arm, causing her to stumble and fall into the water as well. Josh burst out laughing when he saw Maya sputtering and glaring at him. "Oh, it's on!" she called, a mischievous glint in her eyes. And that's how the two of them ended up having the mother of all water fights … well, as much as is possible when sitting in the shallow of a pond.
Nobody could've said who won, they were very evenly matched. Eventually, they were both drenched and exhausted as they crawled back onto dry land. They looked at each other and started laughing hard, realizing that neither of them had had childish, carefree fun like that in quite some time.
"Well, that escalated quickly," Josh chuckled after they finally calmed down a bit.
"And was a lot more fun than expected." Maya grinned. She looked down at herself to find her clothes dripping wet and clinging to her body, Josh didn't look much better.
"But maybe not our brightest idea," Josh admitted, seeing her look.
"Eh, at least it's only late summer. And it's still rather warm," Maya argued, not willing to have her good mood taken away from her.
"I guess you're right." Josh was glad that Maya seemed to be having a good time. "Oh wait." He jumped up and walked over to wear his things still lay. Shoes, socks and … "Tada!" He handed Maya the sweater. She just looked up at him, confused. "Put it on, I don't want you to catch a cold."
"Oh." Maya nodded and took the sweater gratefully, finally understanding what he was getting at. "Thank you, Josh."
"Anytime." He smiled.
"Hm," Maya mused. "I should probably …" she trailed off before mirroring Josh's actions from before. She jumped up, rushed over to her things and brought back her bag and canvas. She pulled the blanket she had used to sit down on before out of the bag. She held it out for Josh and now it was his turn to look confused. "I should take my shirt off, it's soaked. Would you hold that out in front of me, so I can change?"
"Oh yeah, sure." And if Maya wasn't mistaken, she could even see the guy blush a little. But she decided not to focus on that. Instead she waited for Josh to hold out the blanket and quickly took off her shirt and exchanged it for his sweater. She let out a content breath of air upon feeling the warm and dry fabric on her skin. Josh who had kept his eyes shut while Maya had changed like the gentleman that he was opened his eyes and looked at her concerned. "Everything okay."
Maya blushed. "Great, I love your sweater. It's so soft and warm and dry."
Josh grinned as he took in the blonde who was very much drowning in his sweater. "Well, I'm glad. And I think it looks better on you than it did on me anyway."
Maya blushed even more and softly nudged his arm. "You should take off your shirt too." Josh's eyes went wide and Maya burst out laughing upon realizing just what she had said. "To avoid getting sick. You can wrap the blanket around your shoulders to keep you from getting cold."
Josh chuckled and nodded. "Good idea, thank you." He shrugged off his shirt and Maya's eyes went wide as she took in his upper body. You could see that he apparently went running regularly. Josh wasn't overly muscular, but his body was tanned and well-toned. As he started wrapping the blanket around his shoulders, Maya quickly averted her eyes to keep him from catching her staring. Yeah, she hadn't lied when she had said that she found him attractive.
"Would you like to head home?" Josh asked. "I'll walk you."
Maya looked at the sky, it still wasn't dark and she didn't feel like going home just yet. "Would you mind sitting here for a while longer?" she asked. "Then I'll gladly take you up on your offer."
"Not at all." Josh nodded and they sat back down by the water.
"You go running here often?" Maya asked.
"As often as I can," Josh told her. "This is my usual route. In summer I love stopping by the pond to cool off a bit." Maya nodded in understanding. "But I haven't seen you here before."
"I just found this place today," Maya said and told him about her assignment. "Would you still like to see it?"
"I would."
Maya leaned over and carefully picked up the canvas which was still a bit wet. "It's not completely dried yet."
"I'll be careful," Josh promised as he took the picture from her and studied it carefully. Maya watched him expectantly, but Josh took his time to really look at the picture which the blonde appreciated. "This is beautiful, Maya," he said earnestly.
"Thank you, Josh." She smiled at him.
"Now I recognize this part." He gestured to the right half of the painting and then towards the pond and park in front of them before pointing to the left half. "What's this here?" Maya hesitated and Josh immediately assured her "You don't have to tell me, I understand if you don't …"
"No, it's okay," Maya said and then slowly told him about her and her mom's favorite place at their old home.
"It sounds really beautiful," Josh told her.
"It was, I loved it there," Maya admitted.
"Do you miss it?" Josh asked tentatively.
"Sometimes," Maya said. "I've lived in Possum Trot all my life and New York City is … very different."
"I can imagine." Josh chuckled. He too had grown up in a rather quiet neighborhood back in Philadelphia that was so different from the Big Apple.
"But then I remember what Dad always tells me," Maya said and Josh perked up. "That home isn't a place, home is with the people you love."
"Shawn's a very wise man," Josh said.
"That he is." Maya smiled fondly. "How are Cory and Topanga doing? With the big reunion and all."
Josh laughed dryly. "A mix between deliriously happy and feeling completely guilty about not reaching out to Shawn for all those years. After we got home, they spent the rest of Saturday evening blaming themselves for letting it come so far."
Maya chuckled. "And you reassured them that it wasn't all their fault."
Josh nodded and rubbed his neck nervously. "I tried my best."
"Mom and I did the same for Shawn," she admitted. "She even told her that Cory and Topanga were probably feeling exactly like he did and that you would have your hands full comforting them."
Josh shrugged and gave Maya a small smile. "That's what family's for."
Maya nodded and got lost in her thoughts for a while. She thought back to the night of the big reunion. How Josh had been there every step of the way even though she had turned him away not that long ago. How he had been the friend she had asked him to be. How he had tried to comfort her even though he himself had been in an emotional turmoil. How he had done so without crowding her too much. He had been there when she had needed him to be and he had given her space when she had needed it. Somehow, even though they hadn't known each other for very long, he had known exactly what to do.
And as she was remembering all that, the next words just tumbled out without her even realizing it. "My parents are thinking of adopting a teenaged boy." She told him the thing she hadn't told anybody else yet. She waited for that feeling, that she wanted to take back telling him. But it didn't come. It felt right telling him.
Josh whirled around towards. "What?" And as if a dam had been broken, Maya started opening up to Josh and told him about Jasper. "Wow," he said after taking everything in. "How do you feel about it?"
Maya hesitated. She could lie to him, it would be the easy thing to do. She could tell him she was totally fine with it and couldn't wait. But something stopped her. Something made her tell him the truth. "I'm not sure yet." Josh nodded, signaling his understanding. "Mom and Dad seem really excited and I'm happy for them. I'm also looking forward to meeting Jasper. It's just … I guess I'm a little afraid."
"Of what?" Josh asked softly.
"It's probably stupid." Maya shrugged.
"If it's bothering you, it can't be stupid," Josh said.
"It's just, I don't want to feel replaced," she admitted. "God, I sound horrible."
"You don't," Josh assured. "It's totally understandable."
"I've never been a big fan of change. It's always been just Mom and me. Then it was Jon, Mom and me. And now it's Jon, Shawn, Mom and me," Maya said.
"Maybe this could change things for the better," Josh suggested. "All the changes you just mentioned made things better, right."
"They did," Maya admitted. "I'm just not good with change."
"I get that," Josh said. "Have you talked to your parents about this? About your doubts?
"I haven't," she told him. "You think I should?"
"I do," Josh said. "When you're ready. But probably before they start the whole process starts."
"You have a point there," Maya admitted. "Thanks, Josh. I didn't mean to unload on you."
"No problem, Maya," he assured. "Anytime. I'm right here, if you need me."
"Thank you," she repeated. "I really appreciate it. And the same goes for you. You know, if you ever need someone to talk to."
Josh smiled. "Thank you, Maya."
They sat together in comfortable silence for a while longer, watching the sky slowly go dark. Eventually, Maya started shivering. Josh noticed and scooted over to sit closer by her so he could drape the blanket around them both. "That okay? I don't want you to be cold."
Maya nodded. "Yeah, thanks." And before she could change her mind, she scooted even closer to the older boy and leaned against him a little. She felt him stiffen for a moment before relaxing into her. "That okay?" she asked.
"Yeah," he said quietly and the two of them went back to their comfortable silence.
Maya thought back to the conversation she had had with her mother on Saturday morning. When Katy had said she hoped that someday Maya would find a guy like her father. Someone who would show her rather than just tell her that he was there for her. Who would earn her trust and who she could open up to. Who might even eventually help her overcome her fears.
And as she sat there cuddled up to Josh, Maya allowed herself a small smile. Just for that moment. Yeah, someday.