Maya and Riley continued to play together each day after school. Sometimes they would go to Riley's house, or sometimes they would stay at the playground at school. Nobody ever asked why they didn't go to Maya's house - Riley knew that topic was off limits. They would sit together in Riley's bedroom, braiding each other's hair or playing cards.

"Got any two's?" Riley would ask.

"Go fish."

Riley often tried to persuade Maya to play dolls with her, but Maya refused. She had given them up when her father moved out, claiming to have lost interest. Riley only asked about her father once. It was two weeks after they met, and Riley had just met Maya's mom for the first time that morning.

"Where's your daddy, Maya?" Riley asked innocently.

"He's gone." Maya responded, voice careful. She didn't want Riley to stop being her friend just because her dad left.

"My dad leaves sometimes." Riley continued, oblivious to the warning looks Maya was giving her. "He always comes back, though. He says it's for his work. He works at a school, but they go on lots of field trips, so he has to leave sometimes."

"Oh." Was all Maya said, and Riley had dropped the topic, opting instead to play tag on the playground. Maya hadn't argued.

The rest of the year flew by, leaving the two girls on the front steps on the last day of school.

"We'll hang out this summer, right?" Riley asked eagerly.

"Actually, me and my family always go campi…" Maya trailed off. "Sure, we'll hang out."

"Cool. Here's my mom's phone number. You guys can call when you want to come over."

"Actually, my mom says the phone is only for emergencies. I don't think she can afford the phone bill."

"There's a bill for the phone?" Riley asked in awe.

Maya laughed. "How about I'll come over later today and we can figure it out."

"Okay." Riley said happily, and with that, Maya began to walk home.

Later that day, Maya swung in through Riley's window for the first time. "I couldn't remember your last name for the speaker box." She explained.

"It's Matthews, but you can just come through my window. It's easier." Riley told her, motioning towards the window.

Maya ended up sleeping over at Riley's that night, saying her mom wouldn't be home till the day after next.

"Your mom leaves you home alone?" Topanga asked, concerned.

"Sometimes." Maya shrugged. "I'm used to it."

"Tell you what, Maya. Any time your mom has to leave you home, you just swing through that window, okay?" Cory told her, pointing towards Riley's bedroom.

"Thanks, Mr. Matthews, but my mom says we can't afford daycare."

"It's free, Maya. You can always come stay with us."

In the middle of summer break, Maya suddenly disappeared. She stopped going to hang out at the Matthews place, and nobody had heard from or seen her in the last two days. Riley was getting worried, and Cory and Topanga weren't sure what to do. They spent two days driving around the city, looking for the missing best friend. Riley didn't know where she lived, so they just cruised around the main places they had seen Maya - by Skipping Stone, around the bakery, even on the fire escape outside of Riley's window. They couldn't find her. They were just about to give up, when Cory spotted a small blonde girl on a bench in the corner of the park.

"Topanga, that's her." He said, pointing like a child.

"Are you sure? You've said that three times already, and you weren't right."

"No, that's her." Riley confirmed. "See her boots?"

They got out of the car, walking quietly towards the bench where the girl in question sat, drawing. Riley timidly walked up to her. Maya looked up, smiling as she recognized her friend. They exchanged brief greetings before Cory stepped in.

"Where've you been, Maya?" He asked carefully.

"Around." She answered cheerfully, not looking up from her drawing.

That was all she would tell them. "I've been around," or "Nowhere, really," were her general responses. When they asked about her mother, she frowned.

"She's gone again." She said, like it was obvious.

"Why didn't you come by?" Topanga asked.

"Riley's window was locked. I thought it meant you didn't want me to come by for a while." Maya looked up as she spoke, still smiling, but confused.

"Maya, you can always come over." Riley sat down next to her friend. "Right daddy?"

"Right." Cory confirmed, and Topanga nodded. "You can consider yourself part of our family, Maya. Remember that."

"Thanks, Mrs. Matthews." Maya said, slightly offhandedly. "I don't want to be a burden."

"You're not a burden, Maya." Riley said quickly. "You can be my sister."

"Yeah…" Maya beamed at her best friend. "I'd like that."

Maya continued to grow into her personality. She became slightly sarcastic, beginning to slack off schoolwork as she entered third grade Her fashion sense turned from 'trouble' to 'you definitely don't wanna mess with me'. Riley also began to develop her personality and style, choosing flowers over frills, and kindness over anything else. Auggie was born a little after Maya turned nine, leaving the Matthews' hands full. Maya knew that babies had to be hard work, so she stayed away from the Matthews house after that. She only visited once or twice a week, always making some excuse about homework or helping her mom repaint the diner. As if my mom would ever ask for my help. Riley never figured out what was going on, but Cory and Topanga did. They let it go, though, only making sure to tell Maya she was welcome whenever and to tell Riley to make sure Maya had food to eat. Her lack of lunches in second grade worried them, and they wanted to make sure she ate more this year.

"So." Maya said as she walked into class one day. "Who's the new kid?"

"I'm Farkle." The boy said, smiling flirtatiously up at her. "And you are?"

"In third grade." She smirked at him. "Keep dreaming, Romeo."

As she sat down, she thought she heard him say "I will."

Farkle became friends with the two, always eating lunch with them on the swings and choosing them for three person class projects. He flirted with both of them equally, and took rejection quite well for a eight year old. The teachers thought he was hilarious - or his flirting, anyway - but always respected him. He had the highest grades in the school, always a little higher than Riley's.

"A+!" He would announce, right before Riley would yell "A!".

"C." Maya always said after them, nodding her head. Even in third grade, her expectations for life were low, so she figured her teacher's expectations of her should be, too.

Riley and Farkle were often confused when she tried to explain it to them. "If you understand the math, why don't you do it right?"

"Because," She would answer. "If I get a good grade each time, they'll be disappointed when I get bad ones."

"Farkle doesn't understand." Farkle always slipped into the third person when he was confused.

"Never mind." She would shake her head, returning to her math homework.

Third, fourth, and fifth grade went on like this, each friend learning more about their personalities each day. Sixth grade was exciting - their first year of middle school. It was filled with lots of surprises (more homework, less recess) and a few new people. Missy Bradford came into their school halfway through the year. She had just moved from somewhere, and was very petty. Riley was friends with her for a short time, until she learned that Missy had been bullying Maya.

Rounding the corner, Riley almost ran into the person she'd been running after.

"Maya, why won't you talk to me?"

"I will. I am right now, see?"

"Then why won't you tell me what's going on?"

Maya bit her lip. She didn't want to tell Riley about the fight she'd just started with Missy. In her opinion, Missy had started it, but she couldn't deny that she'd thrown the first punch.

"I know someone's bullying you, and I know you're strong enough to deal with it. I just want to know who."

At that minute, Missy came out of the principal's office, icepack on eye.

"I don't understand why you're friends with this little brat." She spat, glaring at Maya.

"Funny, I was thinking the same thing." Maya retorted, smirking at the bully.

After the Missy incident, Riley and Maya had been closer. Maya still didn't share everything with Riley - some things were just too much for her best friend, like her father, or why her mom was never home. Why their house was her jail cell. But they did grow closer, gaining more trust. Nobody really understood their friendship - not even Farkle - but it worked. It always worked out, even after the time when Maya started dating Cole.

"He's an idiot! He flirts with everything that has legs!"

"Why can't you just be happy for me?"

Or the time Riley broke Maya's arm under a bookshelf.

"Riles, it's okay. I'm okay."

"I know, Maya, but I'm really sorry. Maybe indoor soccer wasn't the best idea."

"I'd do it again. It was fun."

Or any of the other times their friendship was tested. The only real time it was in danger was in seventh grade.

With Lucas Friar.