A/N: Okay, so you guys were a little iffy about the public proposal, but trust me, big things are coming. The benefit concert is like the "main event" of the story that'll stir a lot of things up. The story is almost over, though. I can't really say I'm sad to see it go soon, but I'm pretty excited about my future stories. I decided to step out of my "Maya Zone" and write about Riley this time.

Anyway, here's Chapter 26. I wanted this one to be longer, but there's a particular scene within this chapter that made me want to stop it there. You'll see.

Enjoy!

Chapter 26: Another Year Older

"And what exactly are we doing today?"

Maya's head snapped up the instant Josh's voice rang in her ears. She twisted around to discover him standing behind her, his hands shoved inside the pockets of his winter coat. He smiled at her, which caused his breath to slip from between his lips in a white cloud.

"I wanted you to see what Leigh and I have done with Complex Sounds. I thought it'd be best to give you a feel of the venue before next week's shindig," Maya responded, sniffling due to the cold temperature. In her hands were two piping hot to-go cups of coffee, and she handed one to Josh. "I don't know how you take your coffee, so I just got you whatever I normally get."

Josh accepted the hot drink. "Oh, don't worry about it. I could take just about any kind of coffee, so long as it's piping hot. But I do have a strong preference for Robusta."

Maya's face lit up. "Consider this your lucky day, then."

Josh lifted up his coffee in a toast before he took a cautious sip. The hot liquid traveled down his throat, warming up his insides right away. "Thank you for this," he told Maya.

Maya's grin widened. She nudged her head in the direction of the Complex Sounds' entrance doors. "So, should we get going?"

"Lead the way," Josh stated with an exaggerated wave of his hand toward the entrance.

Upon entering, the lobby of the venue was littered with booths. Some of them were for the many reputable organizations that NYC Lends a Helping Hand Committee partnered with for the benefit concert, while the others were for the bands to sell their merchandises. There was also a concession stand, where the attendees can buy food and drinks. And on the far wall of the lobby was a gigantic banner indicating that all proceeds from the benefit concert would be donated to the numerous charities NYC Lends a Helping Hand Committee had chosen.

There was also a small Topanga's stand for serving coffee and baked goods.

Josh pointed at it. "Any chance Topanga's is going to serve some champagne cronuts?"

Maya laughed. "Unfortunately, no. The event's mainly for the benefit of the children victims of violence, so Riley and I thought it wouldn't be smart to serve anything alcoholic when there will be children present. The concession stands are taking all the alcohols off their menu as well."

"Cool."

After touring the lobby and throwing their empty cups of coffee in the trash bin, Maya led Josh into the main room where the concert would be held. The stage was already decorated and cleared for bands to easily set up their equipment. The logo Maya designed for the event hung printed on a massive tarpaulin on the wall behind the main stage. There were steel barricades placed about seventeen meters from the stage. The floor between the stage and the barrier was plastered with signs that read 'Media.'

Maya glanced at Josh and saw him admiring the stage, where he would be singing and proposing to Sophie this time next week. "Nervous?"

Josh didn't pry his eyes away from the stage. "A little, yeah. I can't believe we actually made it. It seems like yesterday I was begging you to help me with Sophie's proposal, and now . . ."

"Here we are." Maya matched her voice with Josh's quietness. She knew if she spoke loud enough, her voice would echo all throughout the spacious venue. "How's the song coming along, by the way?"

"I asked Donnie to help me," Josh replied. "I didn't tell him it's a song for his sister, though. He was thrilled about it, despite the lack of explanation on why I suddenly picked up songwriting. It's coming along pretty fast, actually. We finished the poem—or the lyrics, I guess—and we're going to work on the melody all weekend so that during the weekdays it's just practice, practice, practice."

Maya nodded with a smile. "Can I listen to you?"

Josh shook his head. "Nope. You gotta wait until the concert to hear it like everybody else."

"What? I don't even get a special privilege? I was the one who gave you the idea!"

Still shaking his head, Josh laughed. "You'll hear it when you hear it, Maya."

"You're not playing fair, you know that?"

Crew members suddenly flooded the room, catching both Josh and Maya's attention. One of them held a large cardboard box in his arms. He turned to Maya after recognizing her from the previous days. "You work with Leigh, right? Do you know where she wants us to put these?" he queried.

"Depends. What's inside?" Maya inquired.

"The shirts that were supposed to be delivered here the other day."

Those damn shirts. It was one of the many reasons why Leigh was in full panic mode the same day she announced that she couldn't get The Monochrome Blond on the lineup. "Oh, you can just put them somewhere backstage. I'll let Leigh know I ask you to put them there. Just make sure you label it so none of us forgets," Maya instructed.

The crew member disappeared backstage as Maya's phone blared with an incoming call. She took it out of her pocket and saw Zay's picture flashing on her home screen. Swiping a finger, Maya answered. "Hey, Z. What's up?"

"Maya, I want you to come here to the rehab center. Now!" Zay ordered frantically.

Maya glanced at Josh, and she saw him with a worried look in his eyes. His brows creased in question, but Maya could only shrug in response.

"Why? What's going on? Is it mom?" she asked.

"Yes! She's—I don't know—I was just talking to her and then suddenly she—Maya, I don't—I'll tell you when you get here, so please just get here! And fast!"

Maya was nodding vehemently, ensuring Zay that she'd be there as soon as possible. She hung up the call and grabbed Josh by his sleeve, pulling him toward Complex Sounds' exit.

"Maya, what's wrong? What's going on?" Josh questioned as the cold January air prickled his skin.

"It's my mom. Josh, we gotta get to the rehab center."

Josh spotted an oncoming taxi and raised his arm to flag it. The vehicle hadn't even made a complete stop by the curb when Josh flung the passenger door and ushered Maya inside. He hopped in after her, their destination given way before he had the chance to slam the passenger door shut.

Josh and Maya burst through the doors of the rehab center. Even before Maya could stroll up to the receptionist desk to ask about Katy Chamberlain, Zay ran up to them. He looked disheveled and distressed, which didn't ease Maya at all.

"Zay, what happened?" Maya asked.

Zay didn't answer. Instead, he gestured for Josh and Maya to follow him. Because Maya was too worried to pay attention, she didn't notice the fact that Zay was leading her and Josh away from the elevators. He led them through many hallways, Maya still failing to notice that it wasn't the usual route she took to get to Katy's quarters. It wasn't until the three of them stepped inside the Social Hall and her friends and family yelled out "Surprise!" that Maya realized that it was all a setup.

"Happy birthday, Maya!"

She recovered from the shock a moment later. A quick glance at Josh confirmed that he was part of her birthday surprise plan.

"Oh, you guys are the worst, scaring me like that," Maya declared, a hand on her chest to feel the heightened pulsing of her heart.

As everyone mumbled different renditions of "I'm sorry, but we had to," Maya's closest friends separated from the group to embrace the birthday celebrant.

"You knew all along," Maya accused Josh, who wore the biggest grin on his face. His hands were shoved in his pockets as he hung back from the five-person crowd (two of those were trying to fit both their faces on Riley's phone screen, wanting to see a good view of the celebrant) that gathered around Maya.

Josh laughed, gesturing at Riley. "This is all on her, believe me."

Passing her phone to Lucas, who made a funny face at Isadora and Farkle on FaceTime, Riley enveloped Maya in a tight hug before she planted a kiss on her temple. "I knew you guys still aren't done working together, so I figured I'd let him in on the plan. It was either him or I make an excuse to lure you to Topanga's so Auggie could bring you here. Ultimately, I chose Josh because Auggie would be very suspicious."

"I didn't tell her about, you know . . ." Josh said, referring to Maya's situation with her mother. "At least I thought I didn't."

"It was actually Zay who first told me about you and your mom making amends, but then Josh accidentally slipped a little about your trip here with him and that was my deciding factor," Riley explained, winking. "I was honestly a little shook up when I found out that Josh knew about it before I did, but you know I'm not the type to hold a grudge. And I'm not really the jealous type." She nudged Maya with her elbow.

"I know you aren't, sweet cheeks," Maya responded, reaching over to pinch Riley's cheek.

"Hey, Maya," Isadora called. Her voice was choppy due to the poor Internet connection in the Social Hall. "Sorry Farkle and I couldn't be there physically. We would've stayed longer if our jobs weren't out to get our heads."

Maya waved her off. "Smackle, it's fine. Just make sure to send that million dollars you promised me when I dropped you off at the airport," she teased.

"What million dollars?" Farkle's head suddenly appeared on the scream, an eyebrow raised up exaggeratedly. "Does it include interest?"

Maya laughed at Farkle's antics.

"I'm just kidding, but Smackle and I will send you a gift. We promise," Farkle asserted, a sincere smile on his face this time. "Anything for our Sweet Hart that we wish we could wrap in a bone-crushing hug because we love her so, so, soooo much."

Everyone in the huddle guffawed. Through Riley's phone screen, Maya saw Isadora engulfing her fiancé in an embrace that showed just how much she adored him. The sight of the happily engaged couple made Maya's heart flutter with love.

"So . . . should we get the party started?" Maya addressed everyone in the Social Hall.

They all cheered in agreement.

Katy hadn't been able to keep her eyes from Josh and Maya. Ever since the two arrived together, neither left the other's side. She was finally seeing in person what Zay meant when he said that the two had become a 'package.'

"You can't get one without the other in tow," Zay stated the other day in her quarters.

Katy munched on a cupcake, watching as Josh and Maya made their way to a friend Maya hadn't made small talk with since the party started. She wasn't sure if it was intentional, but Katy noticed how the two just gravitated effortlessly toward one another. It was like they were magnets with electromagnetic forces made only to attract each other. And from the way their heads bobbed in agreement to what the other was saying, it implied that their thoughts were synchronized, too.

"Interesting," Katy murmured. She took another bite of her cupcake, her eyes never leaving the two. She wanted to prod, but they were both too engrossed by their conversation. In fact, they were too engrossed that the friend they originally went to talk to had left their side.

A new friend replaced the one who left, but Josh and Maya were still discussing like they were the only ones in the room.

Then, Maya glanced at the nearly nonexistent space between her and Josh and scooted away. Katy's gaze immediately jumped to Josh. The affable smile was still plastered on his handsome face, but there was a certain glint in his eyes that felt off-putting for her. Perhaps it was because of the newly found inches of space between him and Maya. Perhaps it was just Katy's motherly instincts kicking in. It had been a while since her only daughter had a boyfriend.

"Hey, Katy!" Riley greeted as she strode over to the dessert table where Katy was stood next to.

"Riley, what do you know about Josh and Maya?" Katy interrogated. An eyebrow quirked up when she witnessed her daughter placing a hand on Josh's arm, her head lolling back with laughter. Oh, an arm grab. Interesting . . . again.

"What do you mean?" Riley asked, deciding to eat the same cupcake as Katy.

"Like . . . I'm not certain how I'll ask it, but—"

"You see it, too, right?" Riley interrupted. From the brisk way Katy cut her gaze to hers, Riley knew it was the one she had been wanting to ask.

"Yeah, I think so . . ."

"Everyone sees it, to be honest. Everyone but them . . . and Sophie, Josh's girlfriend," Riley admitted. As close as she was to Katy, she felt skeptical to talk about Josh and Maya to her. She was afraid she might say the wrong things, and Katy would take it completely the wrong way.

"He has a girlfriend?" Katy asked.

Riley nodded. "Maya knows he does. They've met before."

"Where is she now?"

"She's still in LA, but Josh said she's flying back home tomorrow morning. She's an aspiring fashion designer who goes to every fashion convention to market her clothing line. Last I heard, she flew back to LA to meet with Valentina Mendez again. You know, the designer/supermodel dominating the magazines every week," Riley answered.

Katy couldn't care less about what Josh's girlfriend was doing career-wise, but Riley had a tendency to over-explain. "And is she aware of the reason why Josh and Maya are spending a lot of time together?" she asked further. "That it's because they're planning Josh's cousin's 18th birthday party?"

Riley bit her lip as her eyes fell on her best friend. She wanted to blurt out a half-assed truth, but then again, the whole truth wasn't really that bad. If 'wasn't really that bad' meant that Maya agreed to do something Katy clearly didn't want to do anymore. Something that Tan House Events didn't want to do anymore.

"Riley?" Katy cast on her 'strict mother' tone.

Riley had heard that tone numerous times before, especially during her college days when she and Maya would often get themselves in trouble. Riley and Maya's younger selves had a mysterious way of squeezing their asses into every party held in their dormitory.

"Maya is working with Josh to . . . plan his marriage proposal to Sophie. That's why she sometimes doesn't know that Josh's always with Maya," Riley divulged.

Katy was silent for a moment, which terrified Riley. Maya had just amended her relationship with her mother, and she was afraid she'd put a strain again. So she hurried to fix it, never mind that she was going to assert a half-assed truth. "But, I'm pretty sure we don't have anything to worry about. Maya is a very smart woman, and I have faith that she knows what she's doing."

Following Katy's line of sight, Riley watched as Josh scooted closer to Maya once again.

Maya, come on, Riley chanted in her head. Come on, come on, come on.

As though her words were transmitted telepathically, Maya coughed into her fist and broke away from Josh. She left him to talk to Oliver and Zay, who immediately urged her to open her presents. She shook her head no, of course, for the sole reason of riling up her two 'enthusiastic about gifts' best friends.

That's my girl. Riley's shoulders sagged in relief. From the corner of her eye, she saw Katy did the same.

Okay. That last scene, right? I wanted it to be a fun one - you know, Katy putting her FBI cap on and spying on her daughter. But then, somehow, it turned serious. What I meant with the last few paragraphs is that Riley didn't want to scare Katy, so she blurts out these excuses so as not to completely "expose" Maya. She then sort of cheers Maya on in her head, asking her to do something that would SUPPORT her excuses. And Maya miraculously pulled through. When Josh closed in on her again, she pried herself away. She put distance between them, and that made Riley exhale in relief. Katy, too, because that sort of solidified Riley's point of Maya knowing what she's doing regarding Josh.

Anyway, I hope you like that one. The benefit concert's next chapter and from that chapter on, BOMBS WILL BE DROPPING. I'm telling you. MANY MANY BOMBS.

Thanks for reading and let me know what you think!