After Riley and James had their first fight, Maya crawled through her best friend's bedroom window and into the double bed.

Both girls still lived at home since it was the most economical choice; renting an apartment in New York City was nearly impossible to do unless the goal was to go bankrupt. But their new maturity, disposable income, and freedom often created the illusion that they ran their own lives and had their own space. In fact, any distance that could have potentially presented itself between the two girls was practically non-existent. Somehow they were each other's best friends, roommates, sisters, and wives all at once without ever actually living in the same home.

In an attempt to preserve all of the heat that Riley had trapped in her cocoon, Maya lay on top of the blankets before rolling towards the sniffling lump that was her best friend.

Typically, Maya had four responses when she was faced with a problem: avoidance, dry humour, anger, and the bottling of her emotions. Occasionally she'd spice things up and go for some kind of combination, but that was about as deep as she got.

Things with Riley, however, were different.

While she was trying her best to believe, have faith in, and open up to more of the people in her life, Maya sometimes felt as though she was moving backwards instead of forwards emotionally. But when it came to her best friend, somehow things always managed to slide into place.

"Riles?"

The sniffling stopped momentarily. "In here," came the muffled response.

It was just after midnight, and Maya was still wearing her work uniform. She'd taken a weekend banquet hall gig serving food at weddings and other functions. While each job had its flaws, she couldn't complain about the hours - she was a night owl - and the heaps of free food. Usually she would still be there tearing down and tidying up, but she'd snuck out early after begging one of her co-workers to cover for her in case her boss started asking questions.

"I got your texts," Maya whispered, and then added, "all eighteen of them" as an afterthought, hoping to lighten the mood.

Riley remained uncharacteristically quiet, and Maya allowed a long time to pass in silence.

If she knew one thing, it was that Riley was a permanent fixture in her life. Nearly all of their "first steps" had been taken together. They'd moved through life as one for so long that so many new experiences had been shared and processed as a pair rather than individually. Together they'd gone through the trials of high school, getting their first jobs, choosing future paths, and the transition to university. But lately Maya was having trouble keeping up with Riley in the love department.

They'd both dated around. After high school, Maya had pursued her "long game" in an attempt to be true to her eighth grade self. She'd maintained a distant friendship with Josh up until grad, and once her interest in him became less illegal and untamed, he was more than happy to humour her. It hadn't lasted long. Things were okay until they weren't. He realized that she was emotionally unavailable and she realized that at some point he'd stopped making her heart go 'BOING'. Maya would like to say that she'd at least tried, but when Josh had ended things she'd been too relieved to be upset. After that she'd gone out a handful of times with one or two of the guys in her program, but being involved with an artist was usually emotionally draining for both parties. It had been over a year since she'd even been on a date, and the more time that passed, the more she found the idea of meeting new people and attempting to build some sort of relationship to be exhausting and unattractive.

But Riley had James.

Maya's best friend had a knack for making the world fall in love with her. First Farkle, which had lead to a lifelong valued friendship, then presumably Lucas - a nearly three year long relationship that ended with mutual fondness and respect. And of course Maya couldn't forget Charlie and how he had spent months pining after Riley in hopes of gaining her affections. There were probably a number of others who had fallen for the brunette over the years that Maya wasn't even aware of. One of Riley's superpowers was her ability to make a fairytale out of everyday life. Who falls into the lap of their future long-term high school boyfriend on the first day of seventh grade? No one. Who checks out a book from the library and then is consequently tracked down by the next love of their life? No one. And yet, somehow, there was Riley.

Maya shook her head and almost smiled. Whose lifetime best friend climbed through their childhood bedroom window?

James was new territory. He was Riley's first grown-up relationship and possibly the only person in the whole world able to stump Maya when it came to her best friend. While Riley evolved through experiencing mature love and intimacy, Maya was becoming even more closed-off. For the first time, she was finding it difficult to relate to Riley. Suddenly, after over a decade of shared experiences, Maya's best friend was venturing out on her own, leaving the blonde to wonder just how many laps behind she was. They were closer than ever, but still Maya knew that things were changing.

Which is why, at the moment, she wasn't too sure of how to comfort Riley. A bad day at work? Maya was there for a smile and a laugh. Family issues? Maya could offer a temporary escape and a shoulder to cry on. But relationship troubles? Riley's best friend was lacking in that department. To make matters worse, Maya was worried that her own dread wouldn't exactly help the situation.

Even though people would probably expect her to be jealous, Maya had never felt the need to compete with James for her best friend's time and affection. Her relationship with Riley was too important to obsess over such trivial things. James made Riley happy - happier than Maya had ever seen her. He was lighthearted enough to contrast the brunette's more serious side, yet his focus and enthusiasm were perfect complements to Riley's goofy tendencies. As a couple, Riley and James had incredible chemistry; they were comfortable, passionate, and fun. Their similar interests bonded them while their stark differences allowed for some challenge and growth.

Also, Maya actually liked James - like genuinely liked him. He was studying Photography & Imaging at NYU which meant that he was taking a lot of the same classes as Riley, but with some crossover into liberal, mixed-media, and visual art. Maya often picked his brain for his thoughts on various pieces that they'd both studied or current trends that were emerging in the modern art scene. James also always seemed to be cooking something, and no one was left unfed once he got into the kitchen. He'd gotten Riley into watching these really obscure Netflix documentaries, so now the two of them were filled to the brim with pointless information that no one cared about. In addition to treating Riley with the respect and adoration that she deserved, James was cool, smart, sweet, and an overall nice guy. Maya truly believed that he'd grown to love and accept her not only as a part of Riley but also as a friend.

So she was desperately trying to hide her panic for the sake of a distraught Riley. Maya knew very little about love, but she was pretty sure that she was programmed to believe that all relationships ended in some kind of gut-wrenching heartbreak. The point is, she thought to herself, that they all end. Surely there were exceptions, like Riley's parents and - Maya hoped - her mom and Shawn, but for the most part relationships seemed to be an awful lot of work all to wind up failing in the end.

Just as Maya figured that Riley had fallen asleep, the brunette peeked her head out from under the blankets.

"Thanks for coming, Peaches," she mumbled, her sensitive eyes squinting against the moonlight.

Maya brushed a few strands of hair back from Riley's face. "Wanna tell me what happened?"

The silence stretched out as the other girl considered. "Not yet," she said finally, before reaching out to grab Maya's hand. "Will you stay?"

Though Riley's words did nothing to settle Maya's anxiety, she had no choice but to nod and snuggle in closer.