A/N: I'M BACK! State-hopping on the East Coast is no joke, you guys. I'm feeling ill from fatigue as I type this. Anyway, the important part is that I'm back and I have Chapter 24 for you! It's a fun one (I had fun writing it as well), and I hope you guys will love it as much as I do.
Without further ado, here's Chapter 24. Enjoy!
Chapter 24: Say You'll Be Mine
Riley whistled as Maya emerged from her bedroom, wearing a tight-fitting dark green cocktail dress. "Well, you certainly don't look like you're going to a party—you're bringing the party over," she commented, wiggling her eyebrows.
Maya chuckled and rolled her eyes, reaching behind her head to hook her necklace in place. "Riley, we're just having a celebratory dinner courtesy of future Mr. and Mrs. Farkle Minkus," she responded.
Riley stood up from the loveseat and addressed the rest of her social circle. "Did no one tell our dear Maya here about our after-hours plans?" she queried, hands on her hips.
"Don't you mean our last minute after-hours plan?" Lucas corrected. He strode over to his wife and whispered something in her ear that made her blush.
"Riley might've convinced me to go all out with the engagement celebration and totally booked a VIP section at Club Sinners," Isadora informed as she smoothened her skirt. "So after dinner, we'll jump into our rented limo and head straight to the nightclub. There, we'll meet up with Josh and Andrew for a fun night of drinks and karaoke."
Maya froze. Isadora blurted out a mouthful of words yet only one thing stood out from the rest. "Wait, did you say Josh?" she asked.
Farkle's head turned in Maya's direction. "I saw the two of you hanging out the other day at Grab-A-Burger, and I had the thought to invite him," he explained.
"Yeah, we had a lot of fun on New Year's with them, so I asked Zay to contact him. And apparently, Sophie went on another business trip so he's bringing Andrew with him. Jasmine's coming, too, because according to Josh, ever since those two began dating, you'll never see one without the other anymore," Isadora supplied.
"He didn't tell me Sophie left," Maya murmured to herself, which Isadora and Riley heard anyway and had them furrowing their brows in confusion.
Farkle took no notice of Isadora and Riley's questioning looks as he addressed Maya again. "You're okay with it, right? Because I can tell them we're 'canceling' our plans if you're not—"
"Farkle, it's fine. Josh, Andrew, and Jasmine are our friends. There shouldn't be a problem with wanting to include them in the celebration—I mean, they were there when you proposed to Isadora," Maya stated with a smile. "Besides, the more the merrier, right?"
And there really wasn't a problem. Maya acknowledged her feelings for Josh, but she wouldn't allow it to get in the way of the amazing friendship that resulted from the bond between her friends and Josh's friends. Even so, Josh was soon to be engaged to Sophie, thus she knew there was no need to make a big deal of what she was feeling for him. Because there was no chance of him reciprocating it.
"I mean if you're sure . . ." Farkle trailed off.
Maya rolled her eyes. "Guys, why are you all acting so weird? What's gotten into you to think that I would have a problem with Josh celebrating with us?" she asked as Zay strode up next to her.
Isadora shrugged. "I don't know. I guess it's because your whole aura changed when I mentioned that Josh was coming," she responded. Grabbing her clutch from the couch, she accepted Farkle's upturned palm and interlaced her fingers with his.
When she saw Riley nodding in agreement with Isadora, Maya sighed and looped her arm around Zay's. "Don't we have a dinner reservation at seven? It's 6:45. We're gonna be late," she noted.
"Yeah, like our group is always early for everything," Lucas commented, chuckling as he and Riley led their friends out of Maya's apartment.
Riley guffawed. "Oh, my God. Remember our college graduation? We all arrived at the auditorium twenty minutes late, and the six of us strutted down the aisle like we were about to go all High School Musical in the middle of the ceremony."
Everyone in the group laughed at the memory as Lucas pressed the down button, prompting the elevator doors to open.
The limo driver idled outside of Club Sinners, and the group piled out one by one. Maya was the last one out, her eyes immediately catching Josh's gaze from amidst the line of clubbers waiting to get inside the establishment.
Isadora beckoned Josh, Andrew, and Jasmine over as Farkle informed the bouncer of the group's VIP reservation.
"You know, when you kept mentioning the perks that come with being friends with these people, I didn't realize it'd be this glamorous. You could say you're friends with one of Forbes' 30 Under 30 and I would believe you a hundred percent," Josh stated as he stood alongside Maya.
After the bouncer unhooked the retractable belt barrier that blocked the nightclub's entrance, Farkle and Isadora led the group inside. The rest followed the couple with Josh and Maya at the tail.
"It's not that glamorous . . . it's just VIP," Maya replied with a taunting smirk.
Josh's eyebrows rose. "Just VIP? Wow, you must be so used to this by now, huh?"
Maya shrugged nonchalantly, her ears filling up with the reverberating music the further they walked inside the nightclub. "I've been friends with Farkle since my freshman year in college, so technically, I've been a VIP for eight years—eight years and counting."
Josh laughed, leaning closer to Maya as he dodged a dancing clubber. "It must be fate then that I met you" —he placed his mouth next to her ear, his lower lip brushing her earlobe briefly— "because word on the street, I'm the biggest gold digger in New York City."
When the group entered their reserved VIP lounge, Maya emitted a high-pitched laugh as she gave Josh's shoulder a playful shove. She then surveyed the VIP lounge and noted that it had a personal bar with a bartender ready to concoct drinks. On the other end of the room was a small stage with two microphone stands and a karaoke machine.
"All right, my favorite people! Let's get this party started!" Riley exclaimed, throwing her arms around Lucas's neck and swaying her hips to the rhythm of the electronic music blaring through the speakers.
Josh sat by the bar, a glass of scotch in hand, watching as Andrew flicked through the karaoke songbook with Riley. From the way Andrew's hands flung animatedly, it was easy to tell that he and Riley couldn't settle on a song they both wanted to sing.
"Believe it or not, they're arguing over which Whitney Houston song to sing," Farkle declared as he perched himself on the stool next to Josh.
Josh scrunched his face. "But do they both have the pipes for a Whitney Houston song?"
"I don't think so, but I think we should let the kids dream the impossible dream for just tonight."
Josh laughed before he took a sip of his scotch. He diverted his gaze to Maya when she happened to pass by Andrew and Riley.
Farkle studied the man seated next to him, and saw the way he followed Maya with his eyes. He cleared his throat and said, "So, Zay mentioned that Sophie went on another business trip."
"Yeah," Josh replied with a sigh. "When she went on her last business trip to Los Angeles, her designs got noticed by Valentina Mendez. She came back home, worked on some new pieces, and then flew back to Los Angeles to show Valentina the finished products."
"That's impressive," Farkle commented. "Valentina's a big deal."
Josh nodded. "Her future as a fashion designer is actually depending on this trip. Sophie might come home as the next Valentina Mendez or she might not." He paused for a beat. "I'm really proud of my girlfriend, but if I'm being honest, I'm not sure what her success would mean for our relationship."
"I guess we'll just have to wait and see," Farkle responded. He took a sip of his beer and trained his eyes on Isadora, who was immersed in a conversation with Maya and Jasmine. "Anyway, I didn't know you and Maya have a thing going on."
Josh choked on his scotch, surprised by Farkle's statement. "I'm sorry—what thing?"
"You know, her helping you out with your marriage proposal to Sophie," Farkle clarified.
"Oh, that. We try to keep it low-key so we could lessen Sophie's chances of finding out."
Farkle licked his lips. His mind raced through the many possible ways he could steer the conversation to the subject he came to talk to Josh about in the first place. "But, you and Maya . . . when did it . . . when did you guys realize that you're more than business partners to each other?"
Josh paused. He wasn't certain what Farkle was up to, but he figured the latter was merely looking out for his friend. If he was in Farkle's shoes, he knew he'd be doing the same thing. "I guess it was when our meetings started feeling like we were just two friends having a good time," he answered. "I felt comfortable around Maya and I knew that I want to be friends with her."
Farkle nodded and sighed. "Okay, I'm done playing the 'big brother' role here. You passed the test," he declared with a broad grin.
"What test?" Josh asked, chuckling.
Farkle waved him off. "Isadora's actually the more protective one of Maya between the two of us. She asked me to intimidate you and I had to—you get the idea. The point is, I didn't want to disappoint my fiancée."
"Can I offer you an advice?" Josh queried. When Farkle nodded, he continued. "If you don't want to disappoint your fiancée, I think it would be best if you don't tell her you didn't intimidate me. You surprised me—yes—but you definitely didn't intimidate me."
"A man wise beyond his years," Farkle stated, patting Josh on his shoulder before sliding off the stool. "All right. I gotta report back to my fiancée. I'll tell her I intimidated you so much you wanted to pack your bags and move to the other side of the world this instant."
Josh laughed. "Go and make your fiancée proud."
After Farkle left him alone, Josh drained his scotch and watched Maya partake in a drinking game with Zay and Lucas. Andrew and Riley continued belting out Whitney Houston songs from the stage at the other end of the VIP lounge.
When the last note of the song ended, Isadora and Farkle bowed as the rest of the group sprung up from their seats and applauded the engaged couple.
"All right, who wants to go next?" Farkle asked, pointing his microphone at everyone, waiting until someone volunteered to take the stage.
"Oh, I wanna sing!" Riley exclaimed. With her glass of margarita in hand, she ran up to the stage and claimed the microphone from Farkle. "My beloved husband, come on up here!"
Lucas shook his head. "Absolutely no. I have a bet going on with Josh, and I'll only come up there and sing if I lose it," he reasoned. "You're actually the person we're both waiting for to sing because the winner of the bet depends on the song you'll choose."
"Is that so?" Riley stated, glancing briefly at the karaoke machine behind her. "If that's the case then, I want all my ladies up here with me."
Jasmine didn't hesitate. She passed her mojito to Andrew and joined Riley on stage. Isadora willingly hopped on the stage as well, but Maya stayed put.
"Peaches, what are you still doing there? Get your ass up here!" Riley encouraged. "This could be the start of our career as a girl group! We could be the next Donna and the Dynamos!"
Maya shook her head. "Riley, that group only has three members."
"So? We can have four members and be called Riley and the Radiant Rabbits!"
"God, I forgot how much I love Riley and her spur of the moment alliterations," Zay commented through the rim of his beer bottle.
"Riley—no," Maya argued, laughing at the ridiculous group name her best friend came up with.
With a sigh, Riley gave up. She might've allowed Maya to not join her for a number, but she knew she'd have to get her up there at some point before their night of celebration ended. "I'll let you have your way this time, but don't get too comfortable yet," she uttered with a mischievous wink.
Turning to the karaoke machine, Riley grinned as she thought of a particular song the three of them could sing. She punched the numbers assigned to the song, and the moment the first notes of Britney Spears' "…Baby One More Time" started playing, Riley caught sight of Josh defeatedly slapping a twenty on Lucas's upturned palm.
"Oh, baby, baby. How was I supposed to know? That something wasn't right here," Riley sang, sending a wink at Lucas as her way of congratulating him for winning the bet. The moment she heard that Josh and Lucas made a bet on what song she was going to sing, she knew that her husband would win it. "…Baby One More Time" had been her go-to karaoke song way before she and Lucas met.
Isadora and Jasmine finished the rest of the first verse, and the three of them sang the chorus together with Isadora claiming the role of the second voice.
Near the ending of the song, Riley had gotten so drunk from all the margaritas she kept sipping in between the lyrics. Isadora was still as sober as when she first arrived at the nightclub (she and Farkle had a flight back to San Francisco tomorrow and she didn't want to be hungover for it), while Jasmine just went along with whatever choreography Isadora and Riley pulled off.
"Oh, baby, baby, how was I supposed to know? Oh, pretty baby, I shouldn't have let you goooo," Riley belted out as she hopped on the bar and started dancing, surprising not only Isadora and Jasmine but Maya as well.
Maya had known Riley since college, but she'd only seen her best friend's wildest side once. Sure, Riley knew how to have a good time, but she'd never allowed herself to let loose as she would had she still been in college. And because Maya knew that Rambunctious Riley only appeared rarely nowadays, the former unhesitatingly pulled out her phone and videotaped her best friend.
Riley encouraged Isadora and Jasmine to join her on top of the bar. Jasmine followed suit, feeling daring herself, but Isadora refused. "I must confess that my loneliness is killing me nooooow—Lucas, come get your wife!—don't you know I still believe—please!" she begged in between her lines.
"What? No!" Maya protested, struggling to keep her phone upright to prevent the video from turning out shaky. But being squished between Josh and Andrew, who were enthusiastically bopping along to the girls' terrible singing, made that task impossible.
"Still belieeevee!" Riley sang in a high off-key note. "That you will be here, and give me a siiign—"
"Rambunctious Riley only comes out once in a blue moon; this is gold!" Maya added as she resumed videotaping her best friend.
Lucas made a move to stand up from his seat, but Maya stretched an arm out over Josh's chest to grab Lucas's left arm. She tugged on it to sit him back down, shooting him a challenging look that made Lucas raise his palms in surrender.
With Jasmine and Isadora standing on both sides of her (Isadora eventually caved in and joined her two friends on the bar counter), Riley readied herself to strike a pose before the trio semi-drunkenly belted, "Hit me baby one more time!"
The number ended, and Maya cheered the loudest. She stopped recording the video and raced to meet Riley by the bar, engulfing her in a big embrace after the former hopped off the counter.
When the hurrah died down, Lucas asserted that it was Josh's turn to sing since he lost the bet. Knowing that he couldn't back out of it, Josh recruited Andrew to join him on stage, but he refused. He turned to Jasmine and asked her, but she reasoned that she just did a very tiring number with Isadora and Riley, thus she'd done her share of karaoke entertainment.
Still functioning under the buzz of her Britney Spears performance, Riley pointed a finger at Maya and declared, "This young lady hasn't had her turn yet!"
"Oh, no. I want no part in this!" Maya stated, shaking her head.
"Maya, dear, just because I'm drunk doesn't mean I won't notice," Riley slurred, noticing the panicked expression on her best friend's face. "I have spidey senses when it comes to you, you know?"
"I don't see you pestering Lucas to sing."
"That's because he won a bet. Come on! It'll be fun!" Riley goaded.
"It wasn't even a fair bet. Lucas definitely knew you were going to choose '…Baby One More Time,'" Maya argued, which placed a shocked expression on Josh's face. He threw his arms up in disbelief as Lucas laughed his wits off while using Zay's body to shield himself from anything that Josh might be attempting to do to him.
"Peaches—just one song. Please?"
"Absolutely not going to happen, Riley."
Then, the chanting of her name began—with Riley being the instigator—and Maya soon caved in. She knew she didn't have any choice. The only way to get the chanting to stop (even the bartender was cheering for her) was to give Riley what she wanted, though she wouldn't let her get away with it without giving her arm a pinch.
"Ow! What was that for?" Riley said, laughing as she rubbed the spot Maya pinched.
"I can't believe you talked me into doing this. You owe me." Maya glanced at Josh and saw him giving her a comforting yet encouraging look. A smile emerged on her face as she went to meet Josh by the stage. She took her outstretched hand and allowed him to lead her up toward the karaoke machine.
"Whoo! Go, best friend!" Riley hollered, prompting the rest of the group to cheer louder.
"I've never regretted something so fast," Maya commented. Her voice was loud enough to earn a chuckle from Josh, but receive no reaction from her friends.
Maya grabbed a microphone from the stand while Josh punched in the numbers assigned to the song he'd chosen to sing with Maya. He didn't consult her regarding the song choice, but she didn't mind at all. She just wanted to get this over with as soon as possible.
Josh strode beside her and grabbed the other microphone. Steps' "Say You'll Be Mine" began blaring through the speakers.
"Baby, I was hypnotized . . . when I looked into your eyes . . . saw the love I've been waiting for . . ." Maya sang in her usual off-key tune. She bopped along to the beat of the music, surprising herself with how much enthusiasm she was exerting for the performance.
Josh gazed at her, an amused grin on his face. "Couldn't help but fantasize . . . about a world where you and I . . . stay together forevermore . . ."
"Don't hesitate, 'cause I can't control my feelings . . ." Maya continued.
"Just can't wait. Now I know where this is leading . . ."
Maya kept moving to the beat, though her features contorted into one of surprise after hearing Josh's singing voice. Unlike her off-key tune, Josh had an impressive set of pipes. She wondered then if there were any other talents he'd been keeping from her.
Noticing Maya's pause, Josh urged her to sing with him. "Baby, please, this heart's on the line. Don't waste this precious time, say you'll be mine. It's not hard to do. Just tell me you feel it, too. Baby, it's time, say you'll be mine . . ."
The song continued on to the second verse. Josh and Maya kept alternating lines, as though they'd rehearsed the song before and had decided which of them got which part.
"Took a spark to start the fire . . . fan the flame of my desire . . . turn the light on my destiny . . ." Maya began the second verse. Josh had taken his microphone from the stand, and she followed suit, slowly seeing the 'fun' Riley had yapped about.
"And it took me by surprise . . . all the love I felt inside . . . now I know it was meant to be . . ."
Josh and Maya turned to look at one another, inching closer with each step they took, as Maya belted out her line. "And step by step, I can feel how close we're getting . . ."
Grabbing her wrist, Josh twirled Maya, causing both to giggle into their microphones. "Can't stop yet, 'cause I know where this is heading . . ."
They sang the chorus again, off-tune and in-tune voices melting together in a way that mysteriously worked perfectly. By the bridge of the song, Josh and Maya faced each other again as the pre-recorded second voices of the song sounded from the speakers.
"Say it, all you gotta do is say it . . ." Josh sang, tapping Maya's nose and causing her to wrinkle it.
"You're the one I've been waiting for . . ."
As the song ended and they belted out the last note, Maya dropped her head on Josh's shoulder as he rested his on top of hers. They were too caught up in the moment that it was only when their friends clapped that Josh and Maya realized their positions. Josh didn't move a limb, but Maya attempted to subtly put some distance between them.
Riley ran up the stage and passed a glass of martini to Maya in celebration.
With Riley's arm draped across her shoulders, a microphone in one hand and a martini in the other, Maya glanced at Josh over Riley's head of brown hair. Her smile broadened when she caught him already looking at her.
"You put on a great performance, Ms. Hart," Josh stated with a chuckle.
"And this is the part where you tell me I'm better off dancing than singing," Maya replied.
Josh laughed and crinkled his nose. "Yeah, you weren't really much of a singer. You were a little off-key . . ."
Maya rolled her eyes, but her smile transitioned from teasing to sincere. "I had fun, Josh."
"Yeah . . . me, too—"
Then, Riley dropped to the floor, pulling Maya down with her.
The limo driver dropped them off at Maya's apartment, where the group decided to crash for the night (Josh, Andrew, and Jasmine decided to hang out for a bit before they had to head home). Lucas carried his passed out wife in his arms, which made Maya realize how tired she really was. She turned to Zay and saw him thanking the limo driver before the vehicle sped away.
"What?" Zay asked when he noticed Maya staring at him.
A mischievous grin erupted on Maya's face, and somehow, Zay knew what she wanted before she even opened her mouth to ask it.
"No," Zay stated, holding up his index finger.
"But, the stairs . . ."
"You only have to climb up five steps to get to your building's front door."
"May it be five steps or two, it's still stairs—and I would still have to climb it."
"Oh, and I wouldn't?" Zay retaliated.
Maya pouted. It once held a powerful effect on Zay when they were younger; Maya hadn't used it against him now that they were adults, but she was hoping it was still enough to get him to carry her on his back.
Zay sighed defeatedly and squatted down on the snow-covered pavement. Once Maya got on, he hopped up in a way that bounced her higher on his back, gripping her by the back of her knees to keep her from falling off.
"To my apartment, we all go!" Maya exclaimed, pointing toward the building's front door.
They passed Josh on their way inside the building, and Maya could've sworn she saw something flicker in his blue eyes. She couldn't pinpoint exactly what it was—she wanted it to be jealousy, but she knew it was dangerous to assume something that might not be there at all.
The elevator doors slid open and the group piled in. Lucas was careful not to bump Riley's head on the metallic walls, while Zay was careful not to let Maya's feet kick Riley's head when he stood beside the couple in the elevator.
Josh was the last one in. Maya tried to meet his gaze, thinking that perhaps she could catch a glimpse of that 'something' again. But he didn't spare her a glance; even after they reached Maya's floor and had unloaded the elevator, Josh averted his gaze from her and walked ahead of the group.
Maya slid off Zay's back to unlock her apartment. She walked in and held the door open for Lucas, who went straight to Maya's couch and carefully set Riley down on it.
"Why don't you guys go through my DVDs and find something we can watch? I'll go get some ice cream for everyone." Maya addressed her friends as she made her way to the kitchen.
"Let me help you with that," Isadora uttered and followed Maya in the kitchen. She found the latter already taking out the tubs of ice cream from her freezer, thus she took it upon herself to grab the bowls and spoons.
In the midst of scooping a gigantic ball of chocolate ice cream for Farkle, Isadora glanced at Maya with a knowing smile on her face. "So, Farkle told us he ran into you yesterday and you were with him," she stated, nodding her head in Josh's direction. When Maya diverted her gaze from the ice cream to her, Isadora wriggled her eyebrows mockingly.
"Tattle-tale," Maya commented, shaking her head.
"Shed some light upon me, please?" Isadora urged with a pout. She saw Maya do it to Zay earlier, and she wondered if it would have the same effect on Maya if she did it to her.
"Josh is just a friend," Maya defended. She gritted her teeth when she struggled to scoop a still not softened ball of butter pecan ice cream for Riley, whom she knew would be waking up soon.
"Oh, friend," Isadora replied. "I believe it was during the New Year's Eve party that the two of you suddenly vanished into thin air."
Maya rolled her eyes. "You guys are never going to let that go, aren't you?"
Isadora swayed her head, giggling. "Nope." When Maya didn't respond, Isadora continued. Her playful expression now gone, concern taking over its place. "Maya? Can I ask you something? Just between you and me?"
Maya nodded her head. "Yeah, what is it?"
"Is there—" Isadora halted, biting her lower lip in hesitation. "Is there something going on between you and Josh? I know that you're helping him plan his marriage proposal, but from what I can see, you guys seem a lot . . . closer since the first time I saw the two of you together."
"Josh and I are just good friends," Maya answered, her voice low.
Isadora pursed her lips. "If you say so," she replied. "But, just in case . . . Maya, you do know where you stand in this situation, right?"
"Yeah, of course." Maya hastily jounced her head, picking up on what Isadora was implying.
"Good," Isadora said with a small nod, "because I don't want to see you get hurt."
Maya's gaze cut back to Isadora. She opened her mouth to respond, but Farkle suddenly appeared in the kitchen. He informed the two that a movie was chosen and that he would be having Riley's bowl of ice cream. He didn't think she was going to wake up soon.
"I just don't get how the two of you can eat whatever you please and never gain weight," Maya complained with a pout, referring to the engaged couple's huge appetites. "You guys are so unfair."
After all the bowls were filled with scoops of ice cream in different flavors, Maya and Isadora trotted back to the living room, each holding a wooden tray containing the bowls and spoons. They distributed it to their friends before they claimed the last two remaining bowls.
Isadora cuddled up next to Farkle just as Riley woke up. The first thing she spotted when she opened her eyes was Farkle about to take a huge bite of butter pecan ice cream. "Hey!" Riley chided, not caring at all that her head was pounding and that she felt like she was about to puke.
Maya spotted an empty seat next to Josh on the couch. She went for it, but paused when she recalled Isadora's words from earlier: You do know where you stand in this situation, right? Josh hadn't noticed her yet. Thus before he had the chance to, Maya slid down to the floor next to Andrew, who smiled at her like he was a little kid and Maya just handed him a king-sized chocolate bar.
Isadora witnessed the scene and bit her lip. Even though Maya said that she knew where she stood in her situation with Josh, Maya didn't necessarily say that she didn't have feelings for him. Whether Maya was aware of her feelings or not was still a question for her, but Isadora knew Maya's situation couldn't be good.
Be honest with me. Did I fool you with the chapter title? Ha!
Songs of the Chapter:
* King (Gryffin Remix) by Years & Years. The song that's playing when the gang arrived at the nightclub and the one Riley and Lucas danced to.
* ...Baby One More Time by Britney Spears. Riley, Isadora, and Jasmine's karaoke song.
* Say You'll Be Mine by Steps. Josh and Maya's karaoke song.
Okay, I thought I might do a little explaining here regarding this chapter. So, Maya has feelings for Josh. She decides not to do something about it in order to keep the friendship that they built together with their group. She didn't want to make a big deal about her feelings because it isn't like "Josh is going to reciprocate it" (wink, wink). She wants to keep their usual comfortable dynamic, but at the same time, she's struggling because she wants to keep her distance. Josh, on the other hand, is getting more and more jealous. We saw that when Zay carried Maya on her back up all the way up to her apartment. And jealousy is DEFINITELY what Maya saw in his eyes. She just didn't want to officially label it as jealousy because she thought she might be setting herself up for disaster.
And then we have that scene with Smackle at the end. The last line actually implies that Smackle doesn't know if Maya had realized her feelings or not because Maya hadn't told her anything regarding how she feels. She's just assuming that if Maya is aware of her feelings for Josh or not, her situation proves to be a tricky one. And she's concerned for Maya.
Also, I know that Maya is the one with an amazing voice, but for the sake of the storyline, we'll have to pass that talent to our dear Joshua Matthews. Trust me, it'll make sense soon.
I hope that cleared up this chapter if ever there were some parts that weren't quite clear. That's all for today - or tonight, I guess. I hope you liked this one and let me know what you think! Thanks for reading!