A/N: Okay, I know I said I didn't have any more short chapters for you, but I lied. This one's shorter than my usual chapters, but I promise you Chapter 12 is a HUGE chapter. And I'm excited for you to read it, that's why I'm giving you Chapter 11 so we could get a move on with our story.

Enjoy!

Chapter 11: Labels

Maya was erasing a line from her sketch when she saw Josh barreling in through Topanga's' entrance doors. He immediately spotted her table in the corner and made his way to her.

"I will never be on time for anything and expecting that out of me will only bring disappointment," Josh announced the second he sat down across from Maya.

Maya closed her sketchpad, a smile on her face. "You're forgiven," she uttered.

Josh's eyebrows shot up. "Well, look who woke up on the right side of the bed this morning," he teased.

Maya, still with that goofy smile on her face, stood up from her seat and informed Josh that she'd be back. She strode over to the counter, where Auggie was manning the register.

"Hey, Maya, you here for the bag?" Auggie questioned as he left the register to retrieve a brown Topanga's bag placed atop the back counter. After, he filled two to-go cups, one with cappuccino and one with regular black coffee. He handed the cups in a carrier along with the brown Topanga's bag to Maya, who already paid earlier.

Maya double-checked the contents of the bag and nodded when she saw the box of cronuts and a couple of wrapped sandwiches. With a quick thank you to Auggie, Maya trudged back to Josh.

"You ready?" Maya queried.

Josh nodded, his eyes landing on the brown Topanga's bag and the cup carrier Maya had in her hands. An amused expression took over his features. "Maya, you do know we're having a meeting not a picnic, right?" he taunted.

Maya grinned. "I know that," she replied, "but I also know you. Sooner or later, you're bound to announce that you're hungry, so I thought I'd go to war prepared."

"So, I'm guessing that means we're not working here?" Josh asked.

"I figured perhaps a change in scenery might help," Maya answered, shrugging. "I heard it could boost your creativity, which you could really use if you want to make progress on that poem."

"Where are we gonna go?"

"I don't know. Where do you normally go with Sophie?"

"Well, she enjoys walking around Central Park . . ."

"But, we were there yesterday and you were clearly uninspired," Maya commented.

"Yes, but maybe today I won't."

A smile crept up Maya's lips. "Let's get going, then. We don't want to waste precious time, don't we?" she stated as she exited the coffee shop with Josh trailing after her.

"Maya, you're going to kill the nerves in your hands!" Josh scolded as Maya attempted to create a snowman with her bare hands.

"I'll be fine." Maya waved him off, reaching down to scoop another handful of snow to slap on her snowman. So far, she'd managed to make the smallest ball of snow for the base layer.

From the corner of her eye, Maya noticed that Josh was getting up from the park bench. He marched to her side.

"Here," Josh pronounced while he presented her with his pair of winter gloves. "I'm not wearing them anyway since I'm supposed to be writing down ideas—and I'm still not done eating."

Maya knew she mentioned that her hands were fine, but truth be told, she couldn't feel them any longer. But she wouldn't give Josh the satisfaction of being right, thus she pretended she was hesitant while she retrieved the gloves from him.

"So," Maya began, "have you got any ideas yet?"

Josh sank back on the park bench, picking up the notebook he left open alongside him. "No," he answered.

Maya scrunched her face in thought. "How about we start from the very beginning?" she suggested, slapping yet another fistful of snow on her snowman's base layer.

"What do you mean?"

"Like, when you first met Sophie or even when you first saw her—that is only if the first time you saw Sophie wasn't the first time you met her. Maybe you can write about how you felt during those moments. That could be a good starting point," Maya elaborated.

A smile crept up Josh's lips as the happy memory found its way back to him.

"How did the two of you meet anyway? You never told me that story before," Maya remarked.

"Believe it or not, we actually met right there on that exact spot," Josh revealed, pointing his finger at the spot where Maya stood.

Maya hopped away from where she stood, as though Josh told her she was stepping on hot lava and she needed to clamber over to the nearest higher ground immediately. She diverted her gaze from the snow-covered patch she left and took a look at Josh, unsure whether he was messing with her. His features showed nothing but truthfulness.

"Right here?" Maya inquired.

Josh nodded. "I first saw Sophie when I was only a freshman in college. It was Christmas when it happened. Back then, I'm not sure if you remember, Central Park used to have this annual public wishlist thing—"

"I remember that!" Maya exclaimed. "That's the one where you bring your own ornament with your wish written on it, and then you hang it on the giant Christmas tree, right? Then, a bunch of selected people gets to have their wishes come true. That was a lot of fun. I wonder why they stopped doing it."

Josh shrugged in response to Maya's statement.

"Anyway," Josh continued. "I hated going there because of the crowd. But that year, I didn't have any choice. The entire Matthews clan was in town for the holidays, and since some of them were new to New York, my dad didn't hesitate to bring them to the event. We were in the midst of taking a family picture when I happened to gaze a little bit to my left and there was Sophie. I thought—and I'm being serious here—that she was an angel.

"It was because she was wearing this white winter coat that stopped at her calves, her dark hair cascading down her back in waves. Her eyes looked lazy and bored, but her wonderful smile and adorable cheekbones were the ones that struck me the most. I watched as she stood behind whom I could only assume back then was her mother, observing her own family take their places for the picture."

"And she was standing exactly on that spot?" Maya asked for what seemed like the umpteenth time. She just couldn't grasp the idea of being precisely where Josh and Sophie first met.

Josh smiled and nodded. "Exactly," he answered, pointing at the spot Maya vacated earlier. He then gestured at the space in front of him and added, "And I was here."

"Wow," Maya muttered to herself, riveted by her discovery. She'd worked with a lot of clients before for Tan House Events, but she'd never felt so invested in their story like she was with Josh and Sophie's. Maya abandoned her poor attempt at constructing a snowman and trudged over to Josh, claiming the unoccupied spot on the bench next to the brown Topanga's bag. "Tell me more," she prompted.

Josh grinned at Maya's ever-growing fascination.

"After we took our family picture, I noticed that Sophie wasn't there anymore," Josh narrated. "It wasn't long before I found myself constantly looking for her. I carried on like that until my family and I lined up to hang our ornaments on the tree. When it was my turn . . . Oh, dear God, I couldn't begin to explain how happy I felt when I discovered it was Sophie's turn, too. There were multiple lines around the tree, and I found it so unreal that Sophie ended up next to me. How I didn't notice her before, I didn't know. She was pissed when she came up to the tree because her cousin was nagging her about accompanying her to this Christmas party that this one college jock invited her to. Sophie wasn't having any of it, so she hung her ornament on the tree and fled.

"I didn't see her again after that. I honestly thought it was the last time I'd ever see her, but time proved me wrong. Before I forget—and this is a crucial part of the story—my family has this weird Christmas tradition in which we designate one family member to come up with a theme for the year. It doesn't matter what the theme is, as long as there is one. My cousin was the one assigned that year and, let me tell you, he chose to have us wear the ugliest Christmas sweater he could find."

Maya's grin transitioned to hysterics. "And what did he get for you?" she queried the second her laughter died down.

"You would not believe," Josh replied exasperatingly. "My cousin bought me the most horrendous Christmas sweater I had ever seen in my entire life. And when I say the most horrendous, I'm talking bright green with red sleeves knit sweater with a gigantic reindeer design and blinking lights outlining the poor reindeer's head!"

"Oh, my God!" Maya exclaimed, clamping a hand over her mouth. "Tell me you're joking. That sweater couldn't possibly exist!"

"But it does," Josh countered, laughing. "I've seen it—I've worn it."

"Wait. Don't tell me you were wearing that when you met Sophie?"

The knowing look Josh sent her way was enough to sustain Maya's supposition. "No," she whispered, horrified.

"Oh, yes. I was wearing the sweater," Josh confirmed. "But, that wasn't all. Just when my family and I were about to leave, I saw Sophie again. Thankfully, I managed to gain enough courage to introduce myself to her. I told my family that my best friend at that time asked me to meet up with him. My family left me there and I went to talk to Sophie. As I was making my way to her, I noticed something more ridiculous than the reindeer sweater I had on."

"What was Sophie wearing?" Maya demanded. She didn't know when it occurred, but she found herself sitting very close to Josh. She had scooted so close that their knees were bumping against each other. The brown Topanga's bag became the one occupying the space she sat on earlier.

Josh guffawed. "Sophie had deer antlers on her shoes, Maya! It was ridiculous! I called her out for it, but she mocked my reindeer sweater. She said she could recognize me within a hundred-mile radius."

At that point, Maya was a laughing mess. Her eyes brimmed with tears of joy. "Oh, you two are so hilarious," she commented, lifting a hand to wipe away her tears. "I wish I was there to witness everything, especially the reindeer sweater and the antler shoes."

"Sophie had a boyfriend back then, but she agreed to get coffee with me that night—as new friends—and the number of stares that were sent our way was insane," Josh added, sighing at the memory.

After both their laughter died down, Maya nudged Josh on his side. "That could be a little something you could write about," she noted. "Remind her of the first time the two of you met. Talk about how ridiculous your reindeer sweater and her antler shoes were. If it managed to make you happy just by revisiting that night, I'm sure it holds the same power on Sophie, too."

Josh flashed her a smile. Without mentioning a single word, he turned to his notebook and scribbled something down. Maya couldn't help but smile when she saw what he wrote.

"Light in the Dark," Maya read.

"That's the title of the poem," Josh explained. "When I first saw her, I thought she was an angel. And angels are supposed to be there to provide light in times of darkness—"

"It's perfect."

At some point, Josh and Maya grew too cold from sitting on the bench and agreed to walk around the park to get their blood pumping again.

The two continued discussing Josh's relationship with Sophie. It turned out, Sophie had a boyfriend when they first met, which Josh respected. After a year, Sophie's relationship ended and Josh became the friend she'd always turn to for comfort. They were friends for two years before Sophie began seeing Josh in a new light, and the two decided to enter a relationship.

"Are you really set on having that title?" Maya interrogated as she and Josh crossed a bridge. She took a speedy look at Josh while he walked alongside her, and she caught him rubbing his palms together to keep them warm. Maya removed the pair of gloves he lent her a while ago.

"Here," Maya told Josh, handing over the gloves. "I have a feeling you need this more than I do."

Josh shook his head. "No, put them back on. I can handle the cold."

Rolling her eyes at him, Maya grabbed both of Josh's freezing hands and slipped the winter gloves on. She gave him a look that signaled him that any protesting he planned to cast her way wouldn't be tolerated.

"We can take turns if that'll help you sleep at night," Maya uttered.

"Thanks," Josh stated. "And yes, I do plan on sticking with that title . . . at least for now. I mean, it's the one that makes the most sense to me at the moment."

"What about the poem itself?" Maya prodded. "What's it gonna be about?"

"I'm still thinking about it, to be honest."

"Okay, let's try this," Maya started, taking her bare hands out of her coat's pockets. "Tell me the first thought that comes to your mind when you think of Sophie. It doesn't matter how nonsensical it sounds, just hit me with something. Go."

"Home."

It was as pure and simple as that. Josh didn't hesitate. His gaze didn't weaken, his breath didn't hitch, and his voice didn't falter.

"Good. Now, explain to me why 'home' is the first word you thought of," Maya challenged. She already possessed a clue as to what he meant by that, but she wanted to hear the explanation coming from his own lips.

"Sophie is home to me," Josh began. "Back when I still traveled for People's Verse, I always found myself looking forward to coming home to her. When she's away on a business trip, I can't wait for her to get back home to me. We've known each other for seven whole years and she'd been with me throughout, even back when we still saw one another as friends, especially now that we're close to celebrating our sixth year together as a couple."

Maya pursed her lips. She stopped walking when Josh leaned on the railing of the bridge, planting his hands on its stone structure to keep his body steady. Maya parked herself next to him, replacing her hands in her coat's pockets.

"There you go, that's your poem right there," Maya remarked with a soft smile. "Exaggerate it if you will."

Josh raised a questioning brow at her. "Exaggerate?" he interrogated.

"Well, yeah," Maya drawled. "Exaggeration can lead to a good thing."

Josh gawked at Maya extensively, but it didn't cause any effect on her any longer. Maya already came to the realization that it was one of Josh's quirks she had to get used to.

"What do you say?" Maya asked, poking his arm.

"You have no idea how happy I am that I got you involved in this," Josh ventured. He leaned away from the railing and the two of them resumed their walk.

Maya flashed him the biggest smile she'd ever given him circa the day they started working together. "I did promise you that you won't regret your decision," she reminded. "When I say business, I really do mean business."

Josh nudged her. "I think we're way past that, don't you think?" he admitted.

"What do you mean?" Maya queried, her eyebrows creasing together.

"Oh, come on. Don't pretend you haven't noticed," Josh replied with a taunting smirk.

"Notice what?"

"How easily we get along with each other, even from the very first moment we met," Josh explained, his voice dropping low. "I've long stopped seeing you as an event coordinator helping me plan a marriage proposal, Maya. This thing we have" —Josh gestured between him and Maya— "I see this as a good friend helping out a good friend in need."

Maya beamed. "All right, let's make it official then," she said as she stuck out a hand. "Friends?"

"Friends," Josh agreed. He accepted her outstretched hand and shook it.

When they unclasped their hands, Josh gazed at Maya with a playful look in his eyes.

"What?" Maya asked.

"You were right, I am hungry," Josh replied, scrunching his face at her.

Maya chuckled as she rolled her eyes at him. She lifted the brown Topanga's bag filled with goodies, flashed Josh a grin, and said, "It's a good thing I thought ahead, right?"

Song of the Chapter: 18 by One Direction.

Now that Joshaya can start referring to/treat each other like friends, I wanna know what you think ;)

Thanks for reading! Chapter 12 should be up tomorrow.