So I know it's been too long, but I'm back! I recently read a fic that hasn't been updated in a while and it inspired me to push out this update for you. I'm sorry it's taken me so long to update. Life is hard. Depression sucks, but I'm giving it a hell of a fight. As usual, this chap should probably be two chapters but I do what I want so...buckle your seat belts and get a snack….

Chapter 14- Say Something

Zay wanted to hold Maya's hand as they walked. His fingers twitched with anticipation, but he resisted. Instead, Maya took a few steps ahead of him and wordlessly led the way to the art room.

As usual, the room was empty. Zay shut the door as Maya let out a sigh.

He waited a beat before speaking, "So...we need to talk."

Maya raised her eyebrows at him, "Do we?"

Zay nodded and took a timid step toward her. "Our night at the party was special…"

"Zay…" Maya started, but he shook his head.

"Shh… Let me finish Sugar," He took her hand and gently ran his thumb over her knuckles. "Our night was special but…" Zay grabbed her other hand "...it didn't exactly end how we wanted."

Maya's breath hitched as Zay leaned his head down, letting his forehead rest against hers.

"There's something you need to know and I know might be crossing some kind of weird friendship line and I know you have some kind of thing going with Josh, but you deserve something real. You need to see that you have options."

Zay could see dark clouds building in her eyes, but her face showed no emotion. She was so difficult to read.

"I like you Maya... more than just a friend."

Unable to think of a response, Maya blurted out the first thing that came to her head.

"I know."

Josh didn't know what was possessing him, but he knew he was being ridiculous. He knew he needed to ignore whatever this was he felt. He knew he should go to the cafeteria for recon. He knew he had to give her space.

But what did he do instead? He followed them to the art room.

Josh hesitated as he reached the door. What am I doing? He didn't have a plan. He didn't even know why he followed them.

He peeked through the window and saw Zay intimately holding her hands. He watched as Zay lowered his head and placed a soft kiss on Maya's lips.

Rage.

Pure unadulterated rage filled his mind. Venomous vines snaked around his chest and squeezed. He couldn't breathe. He couldn't move. He couldn't think.

The only thing he could do was count every miserable second Zay's lips were on hers.

His stomach sank to his feet when Zay finally pulled away. His entire body tensed as he waited. Come on Maya. Punch him. Slap him. Something! He waited for her reaction. Waited for her to say something. But she didn't.

Finally, unable to take anymore, Josh tore his eyes away from the window and stormed away with his hands balled into fists.

He had to push this away. Maya didn't owe him a damn thing. She never has. If this was how she wanted it to be, fine. He had more important things to worry about, like Peter Roark and keeping his sister safe.

Josh blindly charged into the cafeteria while forming a plan. He scanned the room until he found Missy. She wasn't hard to miss, sitting on her throne in the middle of the cafeteria surrounded by her cheerleaders. A girl with jet black hair sitting not too far from Missy's table caught his attention. She smiled and waved at him. Josh smiled to himself and made his way over to her.

"Victoria, you're looking good today." He gave her a mischievous grin and sat down next to her.

"I was wondering how long you were going to take." Victoria teased and wrapped her arm around his.

"By all means ladies," Josh turned to address the girls at her table, "don't let me interrupt." He gave them a quick wink and lazily sat back in his chair. He felt like a parody of himself, but attempted to half-listen to the girls' obnoxious gossip. Maddie was mad at Missy, blah blah blah, Jordan had a crush on some guy on the football team, blah blah blah, Lucas Friar's...ack! Josh internally rolled his eyes and scanned the cafeteria.

Out of the corner of his eye, he spotted his father standing in the doorway, accompanied by a police officer.

"I'll be right back."

He pulled his arm from Victoria's grasp and hurried towards his father.

"Dad? What's going on?"

Cory had a somber yet serious look on his face. "Not now. Do you know where Maya is?"

"Yeah. She's in the art room..."

Mr. Matthews nodded to the officer and quickly started down the hall.

"Dad, stop!" Josh followed after him, "What's wrong? Is she in trouble?"

A million different scenarios flashed through his mind. Although, one with Maya playfully putting him into handcuffs and having her way with him didn't seem so bad...

"Josh, I said not now." Cory answered sharply.

"No. Tell me what's going on!" Josh demanded.

Cory turned to him as they reached the art room. "Joshua, enough."

Cory turned back to the officer and entered the art room. Josh waited by the open door, afraid to look into the room again.

He took a breath and followed them into the room. He was surprised to find Maya alone.

Mr. Matthews cleared his throat. "Maya, this is officer Banks."

Maya eyed the officer suspiciously, "Uh...okay?"

"Maya I have a few questions for you regarding your mother."

Maya's eyes drifted to Josh. Mr. Matthews followed her gaze and rolled his eyes.

"Joshua. Go find your sister. Now." His voice was stern.

Josh nodded and moved for the door, but lingered as the officer spoke again.

"Is your mother Katherine Clutter-Bucket Hart?"

Maya nodded slowly. "Yes... Mr. Matthews what's going on?"

Officer Banks continued, "and do you know of any relation to Douglas Meirheister?"

"I don't know. That's probably her boyfriend." Panic began to rise in her voice. "Can somebody tell me what the hell is going on?"

"Officer Banks, let me, please." Mr. Matthews stepped forward, "Maya, this is very difficult for me to say but, your mother was arrested last night."

Maya fell into her chair. "I'm sorry, what?"

Officer Banks answered her, "She was picked up at a private residence outside of Brooklyn, with her alleged boyfriend, for accessory to drug trafficking and possession of illegal drug paraphernalia."

Maya's mouth hung open in shock. "What...but...where is she now?"

"She's in custody at NYPD. Her bail is set at twenty-five thousand. The man you refer to as her boyfriend was bailed out this morning."

"And he just left her there?" Rage flamed in her eyes, "Why didn't she call me?"

The officer shrugged. "She attempted to call a man named Kermit. Does that name mean anything to you?"

The rage in her eyes turned to cold emotionless stone.

"No. It doesn't."

"Right," the officer continued, "Well because you are still a minor and your mother's role as sole custody owner of you, a social worker has been assigned to the case. She will be here to take you to a group house..."

"Absolutely not!" Cory Snapped at the officer. "My wife and myself are listed as Maya's emergency contacts and we will care for her while this plays out." Cory sat down next to Maya.

"Sweetie, everything is going to be okay. Topanga is already working on the case. I promise we will not let anything happen to you."

Maya looked towards the door as Mr. Matthews spoke. Her eyes locked with Josh's, but he couldn't hold her gaze. Josh shook his head and silently slipped out of the room. As much as it pained him to do, he knew she couldn't keep relying on him anymore. She had Zay now. What did she need him for?

"Peaches, are you sure you're alright?"

Maya nodded. "For the millionth time, I'm fine."

She pulled back the covers to Riley's bed and climbed in.

Riley clicked off the light and sat on the bed. Considering the circumstances, her parents lightened the terms of her grounding. Maya was no longer banned from the house and would be staying with them while her mom remained in custody. However, Riley still couldn't drive or have her phone for the remainder of her punishment.

"You don't have to help out with the show if you're not up to it." Riley added.

"No. I'm helping. Trust me, it's a welcomed distraction."

"Okay, but if you don't want to perform, you don't have to."

"I'll think about it."

Awkward silence settled over the dark room. Riley wanted to ask what Zay wanted to talk about, but she knew better. Maya had been through enough today and Riley didn't want to push her too far. She was afraid her yet-to-be-named show was already too much for Maya to worry about, but she seemed to be interested in participating, either as a distraction or to fuel her fiery revenge against Missy.

Riley laid in her bed and pretended to fall asleep. Instead she was waiting to see if Maya would sneak off to Josh's room. At least that would give her some indication of how Maya was really feeling.

Maya aimlessly stared out of the bay window, waiting for Riley to fall asleep. As much as she willed her mind would think of anything else, it was consumed with anger, frustration and hurt.

She knew her mom was dating lowlifes, but a drug dealer? That had to be the lowest of the low. The scumbag didn't even care about her, he just left her in jail! And of course, what does her idiot mother do? Call her father. The man who walked out on them. The man who didn't love them.

Maya forced the painful memories from her mind and banished them to her dungeon of sadness.

But, her mind was a cruel place, replacing one painful memory with another.

Zay flashed to the forefront of her thoughts.

He kissed her. Her lips burned at the memory.

She knew how he felt about her and she let her curiosity get the best of her. She wanted to know what it felt like to kiss someone other than Josh.

It was a strange sensation. Different, but not bad. His lips were soft and timid. The kiss was quick, barely more than a peck. She thought it would give her an answer. She hoped it would prove to her heart that whatever it felt for Josh could be felt for anyone. Instead, the feeling of Zay's kiss only reinforced her biggest fear.

She could tell Riley was pretending to sleep. Her fake, rhythmic snores were a dead give away, but she didn't care anymore.

Maya slipped out of the bed and tiptoed across the hall to Josh's room. She slowly reached out to turn the knob, but it wouldn't move.

The door was locked.

Maya closed her eyes and forced a wave of numbness over herself.

Her biggest fear had officially come true. The people she loved never really loved her.

It had been almost a week since Riley came up with the plan to save the musical. Lucas barely saw her after she took his hand and pulled him through the school looking for Farkle. Naturally, Farkle was eager to help put on a show and once they got Mr. Carter on board, it was all downhill from there.

For Lucas, that is.

As soon as the show was given the green light, Riley became a blur, constantly running in every direction, yet never able to be found. The only time Lucas got to see her was during class, which didn't really count to him.

For as much as his life revolved around football, hers revolved around planning and rehearsals. What used to be private moments in the auditorium together, became tech practice and even more rehearsal time- which he had been banned from watching. Riley wanted to keep the show a complete surprise. He tried not to take it personally, even Josh had been banned from rehearsals, not like he seemed to care though. Lucas noticed Josh spending a lot of time with some girl who definitely wasn't Maya. If Josh wasn't with Riley, he was definitely somewhere with Victoria on his arm. Lucas didn't dare bring it up though. He knew better than to get into the middle of his two best friends' drama. Although, to be fair, Maya had been just as busy as Riley with the show. A point that Zay complained about often. Lucas hoped he didn't seem as whiney about Riley as Zay was about Maya.

He knew he was being selfish, but he struggled to hide his disappointment when Riley missed most of the football game on Friday. It was the home opener against South High and a repeat of the scrimmage game. So much so, that Coach Thompson pulled Lucas from the game before the third quarter, which gave him plenty of time to watch Riley, Maya and Farkle walk to the stadium from the side door of the auditorium. He tried to focus on the game and find ways to help coach the JV quarterback, but his mind kept wandering to the brunette beauty sitting next to her friends in the third row.

"Maya, dah-ling. Your boyfriend is waving at you." Farkle linked his arm with hers and waved at the field.

Maya glared at him, "Zay is not my boyfriend."

Farkle snorted, "does he know that?"

"Farkle leave her alone, she's dumped a milkshake on someone's head before and she'll do it again." Riley leaned over from Maya's other side to scold him.

"Thanks Hon." Maya wrapped her arm around Riley's shoulders and pulled her close as the chilly fall air settled over the night.

A mischievously innocent smile haunted Riley's face as she spoke, "I mean he did kiss you after all…"

Maya finally told them what happened with Zay, but she didn't say much about it. She casually mentioned it the morning after her first night back at the Matthews. Riley didn't push her for the juicy details, but appreciated Maya's attempt to be brave during this difficult time. Topanga had been working day and night on her mom's case, but it was proving difficult for her to work around the federal jurisdictions of a drug-related case.

"Judas!" Maya shouted as she pushed Riley out from under her arm.

"...and she totally ghosted him for it!" Farkle added.

"I did not ghost him. I've been busy with you guys' show, but I can back out if you want me too…"

"No! Please, we need you!" Riley begged.

"That's what I thought. Now shut it and watch your Huckleberry."

"Maya he's not even playing."

Maya rolled her eyes. "Like that matters."

"Ugh look, at her." Farkle pointed to Victoria, who was leaning up against the chain link fence trying to steal Josh's attention from the sideline. "God, could she look any more desperate?"

Riley shot Farkle a warning look, but he didn't see it. She could feel Maya's body tense next to her. Riley's ring-power senses were tingling and she had a sinking suspicion Maya's brave face would eventually break. Maya left for Josh's room on her first night at their house, but came back almost instantly. She attempted to hide her emotions, but Riley could see the moonlight reflecting off the tears in her eyes. Maya didn't say a word, but climbed back into her bed and stared straight up at the ceiling the entire night. Something was definitely wrong, very wrong.

Farkle continued, "seriously Maya, Josh is a hunk. You should go show Victoria how it's done. Everyone knows he can't resist you."

"That's not true."

"Pssht. Whatever Cleopatra."

"Farkle…" Riley warned.

Maya's jaw clenched. "Oh my god. I'm not in denial. Josh can do whatever he wants. I don't care."

"So suddenly you don't want a piece of that ab-sicle..."

Her eyes turned stone cold as her mouth opened to speak. Riley knew whatever she would say next would not be pretty.

"Farkle!" Riley loudly cleared her throat and leaned across Maya. "What do you think if we try bringing in water from the pool…"

Farkle instantly turned his attention to Riley and animatedly discussed the show's finale. Maya didn't say another word for the rest of the game, but eventually wrapped her arm back around Riley, an unspoken sign of gratitude. When the game ended, she silently followed Riley and her parents onto the field.

Riley hugged her brother, "Good game bro!"

Josh returned her bear hug and lifted her up in the process, "Thanks Sis."

After putting her back down, his eyes drifted to Maya, who refused to look at him.

"Maya."

"Hi whatever I don't care. Can we go now?"

Topanga eyed Maya suspiciously. Cory leaned over to whisper his wife's ear, "Uh what's with that?"

"Joshy!"

The entire Matthews family, Maya included, cringed at his new nickname. Victoria approached Josh and linked her arm with his.

"On that note…" Maya muttered and pulled Riley towards the gate.

"Mom is it okay if I ride back with Josh?" Riley called as Maya continued to lead her from the field.

"Uh huh." Topanga slowly answered, dumbstruck at the scene before her. She saw Josh mouth 'thank you' to Riley and the puzzle pieces suddenly clicked in her mind. Without missing a beat she snapped into mom-mode.

"Hi, I'm Josh's mom." She gave Victoria a dazzling smile and nudged Cory to follow her lead.

As soon as the game was over and the cool down stretches were done, Lucas finally had Riley within arms reach as she stood on the field to congratulate her brother. He took a step in her direction, only to be stopped by a local news reporter. By the time he was done with the interview she gone again, like a blur.

Zay shook his head at his friend's dumbstruck reaction and gave him a playful pat on the back.

"Don't worry man. I feel your pain."

Lucas groaned and picked his helmet up from the ground, "Maya still not talking to you?"

"Yeah, no thanks to you. I finally had her alone again and who bursts in? Riley."

Lucas laughed. It was all he could do at this point. "Sorry. How am I supposed to know where she is anymore. She's so busy with the show... Wait, how is that my fault?"

"Dude. It's Riley and Maya. They're like magnets to each other. How did you not know where she is? Fine one and you find the other."

Lucas shook his head, "Says the guy who's having so much luck with Maya... Humor me, what do you suggest we do?"

"You see, I've put a lot of thought into this. There is only one way to keep those two apart. You have to keep Riley occupied, if you know what I mean…" Zay wiggled his eyebrows.

Lucas rolled his eyes and started towards the locker room, "So I take it you still haven't talked to Maya about the..."

"Nope."

Zay was at wits ends. It seemed like Maya didn't even remember their moment in the art room, but she wasn't pushing him away either. It's like she was indifferent to him. After what happened with her mom, she seemed to be an empty shell, throwing herself into Riley's show. Why wouldn't she just talk to him? He could make her feel better, or at least try. How could she not see how good he was for her? Especially after Josh spent the whole week with that volleyball player hanging off his arm.

He tried calling her, but she never answered. He tried going to the diner, but his grandma put a stop that real quick. "You hungry? Well we got food in the kitchen..." And now with Riley's stupid show, she had even more ways to avoid him. She never left Riley's side. Even after Josh pulled back on what they decided to call "Peter Watch." He didn't understand why she was avoiding him. She wanted to kiss him that night after the party just as much as he wanted to kiss her. What was she so afraid of?

"You know, you're the one who told me to pull out the southern charm for Riley. Have you tried that on Maya?" Lucas offered.

"Man, I don't know. That stuff doesn't seem to work on her, but maybe if I could pull her attention away from Riley for just a little…."

Lucas grinned, "I guess I could try to distract her, for the sake of helping of friend of course…"

Zay chuckled sarcastically, "Yeah I'm sure you're really taking one for the team. Thanks."

After a quick shower and some not-so-quick game critiques from his father, Lucas was finally on on his way to his truck, Zay not far behind. He was staying the night with the Friars, just like he used to do as a kid.

Lucas's heart started to race as he spotted a figure on his truck. His throat tightened and his hands tingled as he drew closer to the petite figure sitting cross-legged on his open tailgate.

"Hey stranger," her melodic voice greeted him.

Riley uncrossed her legs and opened her arms, inviting him into a warm hug. Lucas dropped his bag, stood between her dangling legs and pulled her into his chest.

"Hey Beautiful." He buried his nose into her hair. It always smelled so good, like warm tropical sunshine.

God she felt amazing.

"I'm sorry I missed the game. It takes a lot of work to get a concert ready in less than two weeks." Riley mumbled into his chest.

Lucas pulled away just enough to rest his forehead against hers. His hand threaded into her hair.

"Don't worry about it. What are you doing out here?"

Riley nodded her head to the left. Lucas followed her gaze and saw Josh leaning against a dark green jeep talking to Victoria.

"My parents gave in and let him have his jeep back."

Lucas turned his attention back to Riley, eyebrows raised, "oh yeah?"

Riley nodded. "I think they just got tired of driving us around. So part of his new punishment is he has to drive me everywhere. Maya still has my car."

Lucas tried to focus on her words, but his mind was on the electrifying feeling of her small hands resting on his chest. He grinned and absentmindedly let his hand drift to rest on the curve of her hip.

"How much longer?"

"1 week…"

"Geez Huckleberry. Going through withdrawls?"

Lucas rolled his eyes at Maya's snarky voice. "Hi Maya."

"Well, would you look at that. It's Miss Riley Matthews in the flesh." Zay's amused voice filled the air.

Lucas reluctantly moved from his position in front of Riley, while she gave Zay a confused look.

"What?"

"You're a difficult lady to find these days, with the show and all…" Zay casually leaned his shoulder against the truck and turned to Maya.

"How you doin' Sugar?"

Maya gave him a weak smile, "Fine."

"Glad to hear it."

Lucas cleared his throat, "Anyway...how's the show coming?"

Riley nervously chewed on her bottom lip. "It's okay. Farkle and I have been trying to work out the tech for the finale."

"Riles, it's going to be amazing. Everything will come together." Maya assured her, "did you tell them the good news?"

Riley smiled although her eyes remained nervous. "Well, with the orchestra class participating and all of the sign-ups from the choir classes, we have a full show. And A few girls from the dance team agreed to do a few numbers."

Lucas grinned, "That's great Riley."

"Yeah it is," Maya added. "Missy is furious with the dance team, but Maddie, the captain, is mad at Missy for flirting with her boyfriend, so she was more than willing to sign up."

"Who's her boyfriend?" Lucas asked.

Maya shrugged her shoulders. "I think she's dating that office aid, Bobby?"

A loud giggle caught the group's attention.

Looking for the source, Maya spotted Victoria wrapping her arms around Josh as he leaned against his jeep.

Zay watched her body stiffen and darted his eyes to meet Lucas's. He discretely nodded his head towards Riley. Lucas gave him a cold glare in response and nodded his head towards Maya.

Zay cleared his throat, urging Lucas to make a move.

Lucas gave him a pointed look before moving to stand between Riley's legs again, placing his hands gently on the tops of her knees.

"I'm sure the show is going to be great Riley."

Riley looked down at her hands in her lap. "It doesn't matter if the show is good, it matters if people show up."

"Hey look at me," Lucas cupped her cheek and tilted her head up. "Everything is going to be fine. It's going to be a night filled with joy."

Riley let out a shaky breath and looked into his meadow green eyes. "I hope so."

Just as Lucas moved to bring his lips to hers, a deep-voiced yell caused him to freeze.

"Hey! I'm watching you Friar!" Josh yelled from across the parking lot.

Lucas remained frozen with his lips barely touching Riley's.

He gave her an evil grin, mischief sparkled in his eyes. "What'd you think, should we humor him?"

"Heck no." Riley mumbled before closing the distance between them.

Lucas closed his eyes in bliss as his lips moved against hers. Warm sparks fluttered their way from his lips to his chest. Unconsciously, he pulled her hips closer to his, enjoying the added height of his truck.

"Welp.." Zay turned to Maya again, his southern accent drawled as he spoke, "he gone."

Maya smirked to herself as she glanced at her best friend lip-locking with her cowboy.

"She has him wrapped around her finger doesn't she?"

Zay nodded, "Oh you have no idea."

Icy pain shot through Maya's chest as she thought about the secret Lucas was still keeping from Riley. He had to tell her and soon. The longer he put it off, the more it would only hurt her.

Victoria giggled loudly again in the distance, "Oh you are so bad!"

Speaking of hurt…

"So… Miss Maya…"

Maya turned her attention to Zay, eyebrows raised, challenging his exaggerated southern charm without even speaking.

He sheepishly grinned, "It was worth a shot. Walk you to Riley's car?"

Maya nodded and began walking towards Riley's blue beetle.

Zay took a timid step closer to her and gently laced his fingers with hers. "So…"

"So…" Maya cheekily echoed his words back at him.

"How have you really been Sugar?"

Maya glanced down at the hand holding hers. Her arm suddenly became stiff and the overwhelming sense of not know what to do with her own limbs overcame her. She hid behind cool eyes, while desperately begging her movements to feel natural.

"I already told you, I'm fine."

Zay squeezed her hand. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Lucas gently brush his fingertips through Riley's hair as she beamed at him. The pair was lost in their own little world.

Taking a moment to build his confidence, Zay tentatively imitated Lucas's move. His fingers delicately traced the porcelain skin of Maya's cheek before drifting into her blonde mane.

"You used to always talk to me Maya. Why won't you talk to me?"

Maya wished for the familiar electrifying tingles to warm her cheek and jumpstart her heart, but they never came.

"We're talking now."

Zay let both of his arms drop to his sides and let out an exhausted sigh. "You know what I'm talking about." He brought one hand up to rub across his eyes in frustration. "Do you even care about me?"

Maya narrowed her eyes at him. "Of course I do. I'm sorry I'm not really in the mood to skip through fields of rainbows and sunshine. If you haven't noticed I'm kind of going through a lot of shit right now."

Zay scoffed, "Well in case you haven't noticed, you're not the only person going through shit Maya. You're not the only person in the world with crappy parents, okay? My mom fucking left me too and my dad's been deployed for a year, but you don't see me throwing a pity party for myself every day."

Maya eyes turn into fiery slits. "What do you want, a fucking medal?"

Zay's tone softend, "No, I just want you to talk to me! I understand what you're going through, trust me more than anyone else, I do."

A small wave of guilt flashed across Maya's face, but she was quick to push it away. Yeah, she knew Zay's mom walked out on him just like her dad walked out on her. After returning from the first deployment in his career, Zay's father arrived home to find his girlfriend holding a baby in one arm and a suitcase in the other. She told him she found out she was pregnant soon after he deployed, but was afraid to tell him. She wasn't ready to be a parent, so she ran away, leaving the baby with his father and never looking back. His dad was forced to care for Zay in the best way he knew, by working hard every single day for the military and placing Zay in the trusted care of his grandmother. As his grandmother aged and Zay reached the summer of sixth grade, his aunt made the decision to move her mother to Cold Springs where she could take care of her and Zay while is father was frequently deployed overseas.

It was during that summer when he met Maya at a school car-wash. He rode past the school on his bike and stopped at small booth selling homemade baked goods alongside the car wash. A pretty girl with long brunette hair and big doe eyes, sold him the sweetest cupcake he'd ever tasted, which he eagerly informed her. The girl smiled at him and introduced herself as Riley, before getting easily distracted by the commotion of the car wash. He observed his new classmates running around and splashing each other with water, while enjoying his cupcake. It was clear to him they've all known each other for a long time. He was sure to be a fish out of water at this new school. Just when he thought he would never fit in, a petite girl with a messy mane of blonde hair sat down next to him and started talking to him. It was the best day of his life.

"Zay, I don't know what you want me to say." Maya sighed and ran her hand through her hair.

Zay reached out and took her hand again. "Just say something Maya. I practically spilled my heart out to you and you still haven't said anything about it."

Maya took a deep breath and closed her eyes as she spoke. "I like you Zay and I care about you, okay?"

Zay nodded, "But?"

"You're my friend and that matters a lot to me. I don't want to lose my friend. I can't lose anymore people right now." Maya placed a soft kiss on his cheek.

Zay let her hand fall out of his grasp and swallowed hard. "I understand."

Maya glanced at Riley and Lucas before climbing into the driver's seat of Riley's car. Zay placed one arm above the open window and leaned down to Maya's level.

"I just want you to know, this doesn't change how I feel about you."

"I know." Maya nodded.

"And it's not going to stop me from wanting to do this…" Zay ducked his head through the window and to Maya a chaste kiss. At the last moment Maya slightly turned her head, letting his lips meet her smooth cheek.

Zay pursed his lips as he pulled away. "Goodnight Sugar."

Lucas grinned as his nose brushed up against Riley's and brought her lips to his again. She felt so natural against him. He was struggling to keep Texas Lucas from taking over. Her lips were so soft he couldn't think straight. Her lips gently parted and Texas Lucas couldn't resist anymore. He slipped his tongue between her open lips, causing her to gasp softly.

That was a terrible idea.

Her soft gasp fueled his fire even more. He loved the sound and Texas Lucas wanted to hear it again. He wanted to hear it louder and louder until she was moaning his name.

Sweltering heat surged through Riley's body as Lucas's tongue brushed against her bottom lip again. She couldn't take it anymore. The heat was fogging her brain far too much. She knew she needed to pull away. She knew she needed to breathe, but she couldn't will her body to move away from his.

"FRIAR!"

A loud growl from across the parking lot finally broke Riley from her trance. She slowly pulled herself away, her chest heaving with the newfound air.

Lucas's eyes were still closed when she pulled away, but when they finally opened they were darker than the meadow green she was used to. They were almost emerald and filled with desire.

Riley giggled nervously, "Um...I think that's my cue."

Lucas nodded his head. "I'm sorry. I uh...got a little carried away."

She bit her lip and Lucas really wished she hadn't.

"It's okay," her small hand gently brushed through his hair.

Okay he really wished she hadn't done that. It took every ounce of his control to not to pull her hips against his and let his lips explore the nape of her neck. Instead he gently lifted her from the tailgate and placed her back on the ground.

Riley stood on her tiptoes and placed a lingering kiss on his cheek.

"Good game QB."

Lucas laughed slightly, "Goodnight beautiful."

Riley gave him a small smirk before turning to walk towards Josh's jeep. Lucas watched her hips swing with every step she took.

Riley winced to herself as she faced away from him. She'd never been kissed like that before, surely she must be terrible at it. He must think I'm an idiot.

Riley shook her head and tried to re-align her focus. She reached Josh's jeep and rolled her eyes at Victoria pushing herself against her brother, desperately trying to get him to kiss her. God, I hope I don't look like that to Lucas. Wait? Do I look desperate to him? Am I easy? I'll have to ask Maya.

Riley ignored the couple as she opened the passenger door and climbed in.

"Josh mom says you have to take me home."

Josh tried to hide his sigh of relief. It's about damn time she showed up. I'm going to have to kick Friar's ass.

"Joshy? What about Jessica's house?" Victoria whined.

"Sorry Vic, as lovely as that sounds, I have to take my little sister home."

Riley rolled her eyes again from the front seat and snorted. Little sister? What am I? Seven?

"Josh, hurry up. I have a curfew ya know." Riley yelled from the open-topped jeep. He sooo totally owes me.

"I gotta go. See you Monday." Josh quickly tried to free himself from Victoria's vine-like arms.

"Wait...aren't you going to walk me to my car?"

Josh tried not to cringe and finally freed his arm. "No sorry, I have to get Riley home. See you Monday."

Before Victoria could protest again, he darted around to the driver's seat and jumped in, quickly letting the engine roar to life.

Riley waited until they were out of the parking lot before speaking to him.

"You are pathetic."

"Shut up." Josh groaned at her.

"No. I can't believe you! You are blatantly using her!" Riley shouted over the wind whipping through the airy jeep.

Josh shook his head at her. "I'm keeping you safe."

"How? By flirting with some girl? How would you feel if Lucas was doing that to me?"

Josh growled, "I'd rip him apart."

"Why does that make it okay for you to do that same thing to Victoria? She's really sweet. She doesn't deserve that."

It was Josh's turn to roll his eyes at her. "She's annoying and clingy as hell."

"Then why are you doing this?"

"Because, she's in Missy's circle. Being with Victoria lets me spy on Missy without her knowing. I need to figure out what she's planning."

Riley's voice was soft as she spoke, "Josh..you don't have to do this…"

"Yes I do. I have to keep you safe, Riles. I can't let anything happen to you again."

"Josh, what happened wasn't your fault."

He shook his head at her. "It doesn't matter."

"What about Maya?"

Josh gripped the wheel tighter. Riley could see his knuckles turn white.

"What about Maya?"

"You're pushing her away! With everything going on around her mom right now, she needs you."

She watched his jaw clench.

"Maya doesn't need me. She has Zay."

Riley narrowed her eyes at him. "What makes you say that?"

"I saw them kissing. Okay? She has him now and I can focus on protecting you."

Riley laughed sarcastically. "Oh my god you are an idiot. First the party and now this."

Josh eyed her suspiciously, "What about the party?"

"You told her you loved her, you big idiot."

Josh slammed on the brakes. The car screeched to a stop causing Riley's seatbelt to jerk and painfully dig into her chest.

"Ow!"

"I DID WHAT!?"

AN

Heeeeeey guuuuys. Sooo. That was a doozy. Right? Things are hitting the fan left and right. What do you think? I know we've had a lot of joshaya angst, but hang in there guys! Things are really starting to heat up between Riley and Lucas...surely nothing could go wrong…. *evil laugh*

But seriously, thank you all so much for reading and reviewing. I'm still struggling with life and depression but writing again is helping me so much. Please review and favorite and do all the things! Your reviews make me so happy, I love hearing what you think!

Up next: (finally) Riley's Concert. I've been dying to write the concert. I'm still playing with the idea of like a spotify or youtube playlist for the songs of my story, is that something y'all would be interested in?

Fun Fact: I try to give everyone's name a purpose. For Example: the name Peter is associated with stone, and the last name Roark is a play on the word Rock. Therefore his name literally means Rock Rock.

Please review! Let me know what you think! And maybe the GMW Rucas story I'm currently obsessed with will update soon too! I'm not sure if the author reads my stuff, but if you do...hey gurl hey! I just reviewed your story!

Lilly.