A/N: Hey everybody. In one of the reviews someone wrote something about Katy's accident maybe being a kind of wake-up call for both Shawn and Josh – I really liked that idea and decided to include it in this story (Sadly, it was a guest review, so I can't thank you by name. But if the person who wrote it, is still reading this story, Thank you for your idea!). It's probably going to take Josh a little longer to act on this new realization than Shawn, but I promise, we're getting there – piece by piece (sorry, I just had to ;)). This chapter is loosely based on the episode "Girl Meets Semi-Formal". I really hope you like it. 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.

Piece by Piece

Piece by piece he filled the holes (II)

"Piece by piece he filled the holes that you burned in me

Six years old and you know"

To say that the last few weeks had been an emotional rollercoaster would have to be the understatement of the year. Katy's accident had been a catalyst for many of her friends and family to reexamine their feelings. A lot of other things happened in all of their lives to further complicate matters. Now, it's gonna take a while to catch up with everybody. Where should we start? Well, let's do this all piece by piece, one step at a time.

First of all, Josh has been accepted to NYU and the brunette boy wasn't the only one thrilled by the this new development in his life. His parents couldn't be prouder; and as for Josh's whole New-York-family, they were overjoyed that he would be in the same city as them and could stop by even more often than he already did. But the person who was probably most excited by the news – apart from Josh of course – was Maya Hart. Josh, however, was equally happy at the prospect of spending even more time with his favorite blonde. Katy's accident had somehow put things into perspective for him. The thought of something similar happening to Maya was almost too much to bear for the teenager. He was still determined to take things slow – to play the long game as Maya had once put it – and he wasn't sure if the two of them starting a relationship just now would be the best idea. But he was also not willing to stay away from her completely until their age difference was no longer such a big issue. He didn't know exactly how to handle it – hell, he didn't even know how exactly Maya felt about it all – but he knew he wanted things to change. Now, he just had to figure out how to let Maya know.

Maya, on the other hand, had also been in quite an emotional turmoil. With Riley and Lucas deciding to just be friends for now, after their awkward attempt at a first date, and the fact that her and Lucas had been voted favorite couple in their yearbook, Maya had been given some food for thought and started to examine her friendship with Huckleberry more closely. She had to admit that Lucas was an attractive guy and their witty banter could easily be mistaken for flirtation. However, she also knew that the feelings had for Lucas – whatever they might be exactly – could in no way compare with what she felt for a certain Uncle Boing. So actually, things should be pretty clear for our favorite blonde. Should being the operative word here, mainly because of the fact that her best friend's uncle kept sending her mixed signals and she didn't know where she stood. Sure, they kept flirting with each other any chance they had and had shared some moments over the past few months, but that was it. Nothing clear, nothing precise. And it was starting to get to Maya. Add in the fact that the girl was currently surrounded by her completely love-struck mother, the girl's emotional havoc was very understandable.

Katy and Shawn had gone on their first date as soon as Katy had been released from the hospital. The accident had been a wake-up call for Shawn and he didn't want to miss his opportunity. Life really was too short to be a coward. Now, since Katy's leg had still been in a cast, the two lovebirds had opted to stay home. While Maya had made herself scarce and gone to the Matthews, Shawn had cooked dinner for the him and Katy and afterwards, they had cuddled up together on the couch to watch a movie. Upon her return home, Maya had tried to walk into the apartment as carefully as possible, not knowing in what kind of state she would find the two adults – and not really wanting to be scared for life. However, her worries had been completely unnecessary; instead, the blonde's heart had welled up at the sight of them the two adults They had obviously fallen asleep at some point during the movie: Katy's head was resting on Shawn's shoulder and he had his arm wrapped protectively around her shoulders, pulling the older blonde closely to him. Not wanting to disturb the two of them, Maya had tip-toed into her room with a huge smile on her face. Only after she had closed her door, had she allowed herself to exclaim "Yay!" in a true Riley Matthews fashion and had gone to bed, positively bubbly with excitement. Anyway, after that first successful date, Katy and Shawn had gone on a second … and a third … and a fourth … and, well you get the gist. Still, they had agreed to take things slow, both having been badly burned by previous relationships. They were together and they were happy; that was all that mattered to them.

But the person who was currently in the most confusing state of emotional havoc would have to be Riley Matthews. After having mutually decided to stay in the friendzone, Lucas and she had gone back to the same way as things had been before their kiss. However, Riley would be lying if she said there wasn't some lingering attraction between the two of them – even if she did see him sometimes glancing at Maya with a longing look. There also was another boy from school – Charlie Gardiner – who seemed to have a romantic interest towards the brunette. Riley liked him and was really flattered, however, she wondered if her feelings would ever be more than that. The newest – and probably most surprising – addition to her emotional rollercoaster was none other than her childhood friend – the boy who had had a crush on her for literally ever – Farkle Minkus. No one had been more surprised than Riley herself when she suddenly found herself thinking about Farkle in a non-platonic way. When she had told Maya about it, the blonde hat laughed at first, but, after thinking about it for a while, she had had to admit that the two of them would make a really sweet couple. Even Maya had to agree that Farkle was growing up and starting to get really cute.

Anyway, that's about the gist of the emotional rollercoaster currently going on in everyone's lives. It seems obvious that things weren't particularly easy at the moment … and they were about to get a whole lot more complicated.

"So, let me get this straight," Maya said slowly. "You're telling me that you have three potential suitors and you still decided to go stag with little old me to the Semi-Formal?"

"Yes," Riley said hesitantly.

"Riley, Honey. I love you. And you know I only want what's best for you and would never hurt you. So, forgive me if I sound a bit blunt now, but …" Maya took a deep breath. "What the hell is wrong with you?" The two girls were currently sitting in their bay window in Riley's room, waiting for their mothers to come and collect them and Maya was giving her best friend an exasperated look.

"I know." Riley buried her face in her hands. "But I just don't know what to do. At first none of them asked me and then, all three of them did. Literally in the span of five minutes. And I didn't know what to do, I don't want to hurt any of them."

"Riley, you are the sweetest person in the world," Maya said. "But maybe this is the one time in your life, when you can't think about everybody else. I fear that in this case, you have to think about yourself."

"I know," Riley repeated. "But that's just the problem. I don't even know what I'm feeling. So, how can I make this decision when I don't even understand my own heart."

"Oh, Honey." Maya gasped. "I didn't realize you really didn't know." The blonde looked at her best friend sadly.

"It sounds so stupid." Riley shook her head. "I have three amazing guys wanting to accompany me to the dance and I just can't sort out my own feelings." The brunette was quite for a minute. "You're lucky, you know?"

"Come again?" Maya's eyes went wide.

"You know your feelings. You know you like Uncle Josh in a way you don't like anybody else," Riley explained.

"Well, yeah," Maya admitted. She had given up denying her feelings a long time ago. "But that doesn't mean I am any less confused than you. It just opens up a whole other box of problems. Because while I do like him, I don't think he feels the same way."

"He does," Riley said softly.

"What did you just say?" Maya inquired, thinking she must have heard her best friend wrong.

"He does," Riley repeated firmly. "He does like you."

"He told you that?" Maya asked disbelievingly.

"Well, no," Riley admitted. "But I'm not blind." She echoed Shawn's words from a few weeks ago.

"Well, I'm not either. But it seems like he is," Maya told her best friend just as she had told Shawn.

"No, he isn't," Riley insisted. "Think about it, what is he always telling you?"

"That he's three years older than me. That I'm three years younger than him," Maya rattled off what Josh always told her.

"Exactly," Riley grinned. "He also keeps reminding you that he's not your uncle."

"Well, he isn't." Maya shrugged. "What are you getting at, Riles?"

"Has he ever – even once – told you that he didn't like you?" Riley asked.

Maya had to think about that for a moment. "No," she said slowly. "I don't think so."

"Exactly!" At her best friend's still confused look, Riley decided to elaborate a bit more. "What I am getting at is that while he does point out the reasons you two can't or shouldn't be together – at least for now – he never says that he doesn't want to be with you or that he doesn't like you in that way."

Maya thought long and hard about her best friend's words. "So, what you're saying is … I shouldn't give up hope?"

"Never!" Riley nodded furiously. "Hope isn't for suckers, Maya. I think the two of you should definitely talk about things but until you do, don't give up hope, Peaches."

"Maybe you're right," Maya mused, her mind still occupied by the brunette boy. "Maybe hope really isn't for suckers." The blonde paused for a minute before a mischievous look came across her face. "How come you're suddenly so supportive of this? I mean, if things actually work out one of these days, that really would make me your aunt."

"I just want you to be happy." Riley hugged her best friend. "That's all that matters, Aunty Peaches." Both girls burst out laughing at that.

Before one of them could say something else, they were interrupted by Topanga and Katy barging through the door. "You girls ready?" they called excitedly. The four of them had planned to go dress shopping today while Shawn, Cory and Auggie hung out at the apartment.

"Of course, we are," Riley squealed, equally as excited as their two mothers.

"Yay!" Maya called half-heartedly and the other three just laughed.

"Let's go!" Topanga grabbed Maya's arm and pulled the girl out of the room. Katy and Riley followed with matching grins on their faces.

"Matthews! Help me! Your wife is crazy!" Maya exclaimed as she was being dragged through the living room where the guys were currently sitting on the couch.

"Have fun, girls!" Cory called. Traitor, Maya thought.

Katy walked over to give Shawn a kiss on the cheek, actually making the man blush. "We'll be back in a few hours. See you guys later!"

"Hours?" Maya cried dramatically. "Shawn please! Get me out of this!"

"Sorry, kiddo." Shawn shrugged. "But Topanga and Katy are an even more dangerous combination than Cory and Shawn."

"You guys are no help at all," Maya pouted before being dragged out the door completely.

"Maya, hurry up and get your butt out here!" Topanga called impatiently.

"Guys, this is the umpteenth dress I've tried on today," Maya complained. "And it's pink tulle. I'm not the type of girl that can pull off pink tulle. Why do I have to show it to you if I know I'm not gonna wear it."

"Please," Katy begged. "At least we'll have a good laugh if it's really that bad."

"Oh alright." Maya reluctantly stepped out of the dressing room and the two women burst out laughing at the sight of the blonde in a huge pink nightmare. Maya played along and struck a dramatic pose which made the mothers crack up even more.

"Riley, hurry up and get out here!" Topanga exclaimed. "You have to see this!"

"Great, why don't you take a picture and send it to Cory and Shawn," Maya said sarcastically. The girl was startled by the flash going off on her mother's camera. "Mom!"

"Sorry, baby girl," Katy said sheepishly. "But Shawn will never believe me that I got you into a pink princess dress if I don't have the evidence." Maya just rolled her eyes at that.

Riley stepped out of her changing room in a beautiful, flowy yellow dress with a matching bow tied around her waist. It made her look a bit like Belle from the Disney movie Beauty and the Beast – just a bit less puffy – and was just so Riley that Maya and the two mothers were at a complete loss for words. Riley however, catching sight of her best friend, bust out laughing, ruining the whole effect. "Oh please, tell me you got a picture of Maya in that dress!"

"Of course, we did." Katy grinned. "But honestly Riley, you look amazing."

"I agree," Topanga chimed in. "That dress is beautiful, sweety!"

"What do you think, Peaches?" Riley asked.

"I think this dress is so you, it would be a crime if you didn't take it," Maya said honestly. "Now please tell me, I can get rid of this dress."

The other three chuckled at Maya's dramatic exclamation as another woman approached their group. "Oh sweetie, I don't think that dress is quite what you're looking for," the employee whose nametag read Janet said hesitantly.

"No kidding," Maya agreed. "Just for the record, I did not put it on voluntarily. Those two women over there made me."

Janet laughed. "I believe you." She smiled at the blonde girl. "Why don't you go back to the dressing room and I'll bring you something else. I think I have just what you're looking for."

"Well, it's worth a shot." Maya shrugged and rushed off, happy to finally be rid of the pink nightmare she was currently wearing.

A short while later, Maya left the dressing room with a huge grin on her face. "Okay guys, get out the cameras because we have a winner!"

"I knew she'd like it," Janet said, happy to have been of service.

Maya was wearing a beautiful strapless red dress that stopped at her knees. It was a bit puffier than Riley's but not in an over-the-top way. Topanga, Katy and Riley were at a loss for words once more.

"Maya, you look beautiful!" Riley gushed and Topanga just nodded in agreement while fumbling to get out her camera.

"What do you say, Mom?" Maya asked curiously.

"You look amazing, baby girl." Katy had tears in her eyes. "Boy, when did you go from being my cute little baby girl to being such a beautiful young lady? I really must be getting old."

Topanga put her arm around her best friend and grinned at her. "I know the feeling."

Janet clapped her hands together. "So, girls. What do you say?"

Riley and Maya grinned at each other. "We'll take it!" they chorused.

The actual day of the Semi-Formal had the whole Matthews household in a frenzy. Maya and Riley were currently sitting in Riley's bedroom wearing their bathrobes and getting ready. Katy and Topanga were in the living room, looking at old photo albums and reminiscing about their girls' childhoods. They were waiting until the girls left, so they could grab Auggie and Ava and have a fun night out with the little ones. Cory had spent the last twenty-four hours searching for new chaperones for the dance since two of the original ones had fallen ill and couldn't come. Eventually, he had asked Shawn, who had immediately agreed to spend the night with Cory attending a Middle School Dance. Now they were only waiting for one missing chaperone to arrive.

The girls had no idea about the change of plans and were immersed in their preparations. They stayed clear of the topic of Riley's mess of a love life while chatting about anything and everything else. Even Maya was starting to get a bit into the spirit of the dance after being in the company of her bubbly best friend for so long. Maya was in the middle of styling her hair and Riley was just starting to apply make-up when they heard a knock on the door.

Confused – nobody in the Matthews family usually had the decency to knock before entering the girl's room – she called "Yeah?". The door opened, revealing Auggie's little friend – or rather his wife of roughly fifty years – Ava Morgenstern. "Hey, Ava. Do you need something?" Riley asked with a friendly smile.

"Oh no," the little blonde girl waved off. "But the guys were afraid to come into the room. They thought you might not be – what did he say? – decently clothed. Whatever that means."

Auggie's head popped up in the door next. "Just for the record, I would have just barged in. But somebody stopped me." The girls laughed at the little boy.

"It's fine," Riley said, thinking that both Shawn and Cory were starting to get even more weird than they already were. "Send them in."

Both girls were surprised to not have their father (figure) walk in but a brunette boy looking especially handsome in black pants and a navy button-down that matched his eyes. The only thing about him that looked just like always were his unruly brown locks. "Hey there!" Josh called. "So, I heard you guys are decent and it's safe for me to come in."

"Morally? Around you? Never, Uncle Boing," Maya teased. "But as for being sufficiently clothed to be seen by people outside our immediate family, yeah I guess you can say that."

Riley burst out laughing and shoved her best friend. "Maya, leave him alone. Look, he's getting all flustered all of the sudden. How you doing, Uncle Josh?"

"Ju … just peachy," Josh stammered while desperately trying to stop himself from blushing even more. "And I'm still not your uncle, Maya."

Riley gave her best friend a conspiratorial glance while Maya just grinned, thinking back to their earlier conversation. "Don't I know it." She winked at the teenaged boy. "So, how come you decided to grace us with your presence on this beautiful day, Boing. Miss me?"

"Always, Gorgeous," Josh couldn't keep himself from reacting. Both Maya and Riley's eyes went wide but before either of them could comment, he quickly changed the subject. "Anyway, I'm here because Cory called me. Something about missing chaperones for some school dance."

"So, you're gonna be our chaperone?" Riley asked confused. "But you're not even eighteen."

"I know that." Josh shrugged. "But apparently, Cory was desperate."

"Huh," was all Maya said.

"Well, that's actually all I came to say." Josh looked at the ground, still embarrassed by how easily Maya could rattle him. "I'll let you get back to getting ready. See you later." And with that Josh closed the door behind him.

"Did he just …?" Maya asked.

"Uh huh," Riley said.

"And again …"

"Uh huh."

"And did you see how he …"

"Oh yeah."

"Do you think …?"

"I don't know," Riley admitted before grabbing her lip-gloss. "But it seems that hope really isn't lost."

"Maybe not." Maya allowed herself a small smile before picking up her brush again.

The adults and Josh were all sitting in the living room, waiting for the girls to get ready to leave. The suddenly heard someone clearing their throat and turned to see Auggie and Ava standing at both sides of the door that led to the bedrooms.

"May we have your attention, please?" Auggie asked with a serious expression on his face.

"Ladies and Gentlemen, we are proud to present these two lovely young ladies," Ava started.

"Miss Riley Matthews and Miss Maya Hart," Auggie finished and both kids did a little bow towards where the girls were now entering the room. They were greeted with a stunned silence before Topanga and Katy burst out squealing and rushed to grab their cameras and took roughly a billion pictures of their daughters.

"With all the fuss they are creating, you'd think we're going to prom," Riley whispered to Maya when they got a short break.

Maya shrugged. "Let them," she said. "Look how happy they are." Topanga and Katy were gushing while looking at some of the photos on their cameras. The guys stood in the background, still a bit speechless by how grown up their girls suddenly looked.

"Okay, guys. Get over here. We would like some pictures with the rest of the family," Topanga ordered. Cory and Shawn went over to the girls and each put an arm around one of them.

"Girls, you look great," Shawn said earnestly and gave Maya's shoulders a squeeze.

"Yeah, you do," Cory agreed. "Now stop growing up!" The girls laughed and their mothers were able to catch exactly that moment on camera. Next were some pictures with the two kiddies before Josh took hold of the camera and took a few shots of the respective parents-daughter pairs – and yes, also one of Maya, Katy and Shawn together, grinning at the camera like a happy little family.

"Okay, I think that's enough," Riley eventually said. "I think you took more pictures of us today than in our whole lives up until now."

"Oh, don't exaggerate!" Topanga shushed her daughter. "But we do need one with Josh. Then you're off the hook and can go to the dance."

"Alright," Riley grumbled as Josh took his place next to her. The boy shoved her in a friendly manner and the grin quickly returned to Riley's face as Topanga started taking pictures.

"Maya, get over there," Shawn suddenly said, a mischievous twinkle in his eyes. "We need one with you and Josh as well."

"I don't think that's …" Maya started to argue.

"Oh, just come on over here." Josh shrugged. "They won't shut up otherwise."

They took pictures of the three teenagers together before Riley stepped away. Josh put an arm around Maya's waist and the girl pulled up enough courage to put her head against the boy's shoulder.

"Perfect!" Shawn gave them a thumbs up. While he was really protective of the girl he came to look upon as a daughter – Josh's guess with the baseball bat was not exaggerated – he thoroughly enjoyed teasing the two teenagers.

"Ah, that's so cute," Topanga and Katy gushed.

"We done?" Maya asked through gritted teeth while still smiling for the camera.

"Hold on, there's something wrong with the camera," Topanga called.

Inwardly, Maya rolled her eyes. At least, until she heard Josh whisper something into her ear. "You look really gorgeous tonight." Startled, the girl looked up at the boy, wonder in her eyes. He didn't acknowledge her at first, just kept smiling towards the adults; eventually, he couldn't help himself, he looked down at the girl and got a similar expression on his face. Neither one of them was able to look away, so they just kept on staring at each other.

"Okay, we got it!" They saw the flash go off and that was what brought the two of them out of their trance. "Beautiful, thanks guys."

Not knowing what else to do, Josh and Maya shot each other shy smiles before going off in different directions. Riley smirked at her best friend and Maya couldn't help the grin spreading across her face. "Not a word," she said through gritted teeth before turning to Shawn. "And you …"

Shawn quickly clapped his hands together. "Okay, let's get going!"

The dance was in full swing and Riley and Maya were having the time of their lives. Shawn, Cory and Josh – being the good chaperones that they were – were standing in the back while keeping a watchful eye on everything. Seeing the girls have so much fun was enough to keep them happy as well.

"Don't leave me, okay," Riley had said to Maya once they entered the school and caught sight of Lucas, Charlie and Farkle. Maya had nodded and had managed to stay true to her word. So, for the first half of the night, the girls had jumped around the dance floor together. The guys seemed to have taken the hint and had let them be … at least until now.

They were approached by Charlie first. "May I cut in?" he asked with a charming smile. Maya looked at her best friend and, upon her nodding, took a step back.

The blonde, however, wasn't alone for long as well. "'Sup, Ranger Rick?" Maya asked, seeing the tall blonde boy approaching her.

"Howdy, Ma'am." Lucas tapped his imaginary hat with a dazzling smile. "Care to dance?"

"Sure thing, Huckleberry." Maya grinned. "But I'm still not doing any Do-Si-Doing."

"Fair enough." The two of them started dancing to a fast song and joked around like they always. However, soon enough both of their glances started to wander. Lucas kept glancing towards where Riley was still dancing and laughing with Charlie. Maya noticed that and – to her own surprise – it didn't bother her – the feelings she had thought had developed towards the guy over the last few weeks were apparently really not as deep as she had first suspected. And she had a feeling that a certain blue eyed, brunette boy's strange behavior today had something to do with that. So, it really came as no surprise when something – or rather someone – else caught her eye.

Josh was still rather in the background and because of his dark clothes, it was hard to see him. But once Maya spotted the boy, she couldn't help herself from occasionally looking towards him. He had his arms crossed and was looking right at her with an unreadable expression on his face. Maya's brows furrowed, not quite knowing what his problem was. That was when the song ended. Deciding to do something about Riley's dilemma, she took a step back from a confused looking Lucas.

"Okay, Sundance, here's the deal." Maya crossed her arms. "If you think I didn't notice your longing glances towards a certain best friend of mine, you are sadly mistaken. Now you're lucky that my heart doesn't go clippety-clop at the mere sight of you, like the hearts of some other girls in this room do. So, I'm in no danger of getting my little heart broken. But you, my good friend, should try to sort out your feelings."

"I don't …" Lucas started.

"Sure, you don't," Maya interrupted while rolling her eyes. "Now, I don't know how Riley feels about you, so I won't tell you to go to her and declare your love for her or anything. Hell, I don't even know if that's what you would want to do. But you should figure out your own feelings. For your own sake, at least. I like you. And while Riley will always be my priority, I want you to be happy, too."

"Maybe you're right," Lucas mused. "Thanks Maya. Care to give me the names of some of those girls you just mentioned."

"Huckleberry!" Maya glared at the boy.

"Kidding." He grinned. "I'm gonna go get something to drink. You want something?"

"No, thank you. But that's mighty sweet of you to ask little old me." Maya did a sweet little curtsey and Lucas walked off laughing. The blonde looked around the room in search for her brunette best friend only to see that she was still dancing with Charlie. However, with less enthusiasm than before.

Maya was about to go over there and intervene when she was approached by another boy. "Would you care to dance with me, Maya?" Farkle asked politely.

"I'd be delighted, Farkle." Maya smiled at her good friend. The two of them laughed and joked around, but Farkle's attention was soon occupied by the pretty brunette as well. "Uh, Farkle. My eyes are over here. I swear, I must be losing my touch. Can't seem to keep a guy focused on me for just one dance," the blonde teased.

"Oh." The boy blushed. "Sorry, Maya. I was just …"

"Looking at Riley." The blonde girl grinned.

"What?" Farkle shrieked. "No. No, no, no."

"Well, were you looking at Charlie Gardiner then?" Maya asked. "Because that was the general direction of your gaze."

"Of course not." Farkle glared at his friend. "Okay, maybe I was looking at Riley but just because I was watching out for her. We don't really know this Charlie Gardiner person." The boy once again glanced towards their brunette friend and got a dazed look in his eyes.

"She looks beautiful tonight, doesn't she?" Maya asked sweetly.

"Yeah," Farkle replied automatically. "Wait, what?"

"Oh, come on, Farkle. You don't have to hide it from me," Maya said. "You like Riley."

"Of course, I like Riley," Farkle said. "She's my friend."

"You know what I meant. You like like her." Maya wiggled her eyebrows at him.

Farkle didn't say anything for a while. "How did you figure it out?"

"Well, for one, you never had a problem talking about your crushes on both of us. At least, when they were nothing more than cute, little, innocent childhood crushes. But suddenly, you try to deny even just looking at Riley," Maya explained. "No, this is something more."

"How do you know?" Farkle asked. "It could still just be that we're closer now as friends."

"Well, my friend," Maya started. "That might all be nice and true but let me tell you: that look you have on your face. It's not the way friends look at each other."

"What should I do then?" Farkle asked exasperatedly. "I think this is the first time in my entire life that I don't know what to do."

"I can't tell you that." Farkle's face fell. "But I can tell you that Riley is confused right now as well."

"She doesn't look it," the boy said, a sad look on his face. He gestured towards where Riley was still dancing with Charlie.

"Trust me. Right now, she doesn't know her feelings any better than you do," Maya said. "So, I guess both of you have some figuring out to do."

"Do you think I even stand a chance?" Farkle asked, showing where his insecurities actually came from. "I mean, I would be competing against Lucas Friar and Charlie Gardiner."

"I think you do," Maya admitted truthfully. She really did believe that. "A very wise person once told me that you shouldn't give up hope. Apparently, hope isn't for suckers."

"It was Riley who told you that, wasn't it?" Farkle deadpanned.

"Pretty much." Maya nodded. "And it wasn't once, it was today actually."

"So, what about you?" he inquired. "Are you giving up hope on Uncle Boing?"

Maya paused for a moment. "Not yet," she said firmly. "And now you. Go get over there and cut in. Charlie has been dancing with Riley long enough. It's about time somebody else got a turn."

"You sure she'll say …?"

"Go!" Maya laughed and watched Farkle head on over to her best friend. He tapped Charlie on the shoulder and politely asked to cut in. Charlie nodded and took a step back, handing Riley over to Farkle. The thing that Maya was happiest about, however, was the big smile that appeared on the brunette's face at the sight of her new dance partner.

Just then, a slow song started playing. Taylor Swift's Mary's Song to be exact. Well, Maya thought, this should be interesting. The blonde chuckled and looked at her two friends with raised eyebrows; this should be fun. Both Riley and Farkle looked down on the ground shyly. But Maya was pleased to see the boy sum up enough of his courage to extend his hand to the brunette and Riley taking it with a small smile. They started dancing and Maya couldn't keep herself from gushing about how cute they looked.

"What are they doing?!" a voice exclaimed right next to her, startling the blonde.

"They're dancing," Maya explained to a furious looking Cory. "Oh, relax Matthews. You know Farkle, he's a good guy."

"I thought she and Lucas …" Cory trailed off. "And now Farkle … are they?"

"No." Maya shook her head. "But maybe … eventually. I don't know. Stranger things have happened."

"Oh boy, I'm so not ready for this," Cory groaned.

"Don't worry, Matthews." Maya grinned. "I remember him once offering four oxen and his best milking cow in exchange for your daughter. I also seem to remember you thinking it was a good deal.

"Well, that was a long time ago." Cory glared at the blonde and Maya just laughed. Shaking his head, Cory quickly took off towards Shawn to cry on his best friend's shoulder, leaving the girl alone once again.

But not for long. Behind Maya, somebody else cleared his throat and Maya was expecting to have the third guy involved in her best friend's love life approach her now. "Good God, if that's you Charlie Gardiner, I swear …" Maya rolled her eyes.

"Who's Charlie Gardiner?" a very different voice asked. Maya spun around and came face to face with Josh.

"Oh, nobody." The blonde dismissed the thought quickly. "What are you doing here?"

"Well, I saw a pretty girl standing here all along during a slow song and thought she might like to dance with me." Josh gave her a small smile, even looking a bit insecure.

"You want to dance with me?" Maya asked incredulously and Josh nodded. "Well, I'm flattered. And I hate to disappoint you but the song's almost over."

"I have a feeling another slow song is going to come on next." Josh grinned and indeed, just as the last notes of Mary's Song faded away, another slow song started playing – Calum Scott's You are the Reason.

"Well, alright then." Maya's heart started beating furiously as Josh's arms went around her waist and she put hers around his neck. They started dancing and for a neither one of them said anything. The blonde was slowly getting very confused. While yes, her and Josh did flirt occasionally, he always made sure to keep his distance. This was … different somehow. And the girl didn't know how she felt about it yet.

"You okay, Maya?" Josh asked. "You seem a bit distracted?

"What are you doing here, Josh?" Maya blurted out.

"Well, I was chaperoning right over there until just now." Josh gestured to where Cory and Shawn were still standing. Maya tried not to look at Shawn too closely, she knew that the man was either grinning like a fool or furiously looking for the nearest baseball bat. And Maya didn't really know which she would prefer. "And right now, I'm dancing – with you."

"What are we doing here, Josh?" Maya clarified.

She didn't have to elaborate further; Josh had known exactly what she had been referring to already with the first question. He was just trying to buy himself some time. "I don't know," he admitted. "I just know that I like dancing with you.

"Okay," Maya nodded slowly. "I like dancing with you, too."

"Glad to hear it." Josh smiled at the girl.

"Can we just … keep dancing then?" Maya asked hesitantly. She was still confused but she enjoyed their closeness at the same time.

"Just dancing." Josh nodded slowly. "I'd like that."

The second slow song ended way too early and next was a much faster one. Josh tried to go back to his spot next to his older brothers, but Riley came bouncing up to them, dragging her uncle further into the crowd along with her. Farkle came up to Maya and all four of them started dancing together. Lucas and Charlie eventually joined their little group as well and all six of them started dancing together – as friends.

"We have a lot to talk about later, young lady," Maya told Riley, making sure none of the guys could hear her.

The brunette just giggled. "Same here, Aunty Peaches." Maya blushed furiously and both girls went back to dancing.

As the night slowly drew to a close, Cory got up on stage. "Okay, everybody. It looks like the night is winding down. We hope you all enjoyed the dance." Everybody started clapping and cheering. "Now for those of you who weren't here at last year's dance, we kind of started a little tradition. I noticed that, once again, some fathers have arrived to pick up their daughters. So, let's all have one last dance – a father-daughter dance." People started clapping even more as soft music started playing and fathers approached their daughters.

Maya watched with a small smile on her face as Cory went over to Riley and took his daughter in his arms. Maya felt someone tapping on her shoulder and the girl spun around, only to come face to face with none other than Shawn Hunter. "Now I know I'm not your father," Shawn started, not quite able to meet the girl's eyes. "But you are the closest thing I have to a daughter. So, what do you say, kiddo? May I have this dance?"

Tears started welling up in Maya's eyes. Cory had done the same thing for her last year and had danced with both her and Riley. But his was something different – it felt different. Like she was finally getting what she always had wanted – a Dad. "It would be my pleasure."

The two of them danced to the song My Little Girl by Tim McGraw, right next to Cory and Riley. Unbeknownst to them, Josh was taking filming both couples and Farkle stood right next to the older boy, taking pictures. Both of them could already hear Topanga and Katy gushing over the couples. But he also knew that especially Shawn and Maya would never want to forget that particular moment.