A/N: Yay! And now we've reached the halfway point of this story! xD Part II of the story starts next chapter!
I appreciate your support! Thank you for reading this story despite how long it is taking me to write! You guys are so sweet and reading your reviews always brings a smile to my face! :3
Disclaimer: I don't own GMW or A Walk To Remember.
Just like when Lucas betrayed her trust, Maya made good on her promise not to speak to him, only now it was ten times worse. She made no contact with him whatsoever. But it wasn't even that. Even spots that Maya used to frequent were completely vacant, probably because she knew Lucas would head over there to try to find her. He got the feeling that she was avoiding him completely, probably having decided not to give him the time of day.
And it stung.
Yes, he knew it was his fault and it probably hadn't been the best idea to up and kiss Maya unannounced, especially considering how volatile a personality she had. But there was just something about her that so beautiful, something about her smile that was so heartpounding that he hadn't been able to think. His mind had told him to go for it and he had, to disastrous results.
The part that sucked so bad was that he just wanted the chance to see her again to make amends. He just wanted to apologize for kissing her without her permission. He knew he'd messed up any and all chances with her, but it wouldn't sit well with him if he didn't get the opportunity to at least apologize to her for his behaviour.
It'd been a couple days since the disaster at the hospital, and Maya was virtually non-existent now. He saw Riley and Farkle around and Riley still waved and said hello, giggling like she knew some secret he didn't, but Farkle would always give him this disdainful look.
But no sign of Maya.
There was only so much avoiding he could deal with with Maya and if he let her have her way, he would never get the chance to try to fix things and they would never get the chance to make up. And he didn't want that.
He resolved to find her that day, to make sure he had a chance to apologize. He knew she valued actions more than words and his constant apologies were probably wearing thin by now, but it was the only way he could think of to show her how sorry he was over what he'd done. He didn't regret it. Kissing Maya was a dream come true, but he did regret what it had done to their relationship.
Lucas was surprised to find the hallways fairly bare considering it was the time most upperclassmen went to lunch, but as he walked towards the cafeteria, the corridor was pretty empty. He frowned in confusion until he heard the loud clacking of heels on the tiles coming in his direction.
To his surprise, Riley raced around the corner, her face totally flushed and completely out of breath.
"Lucas!" she exclaimed when she saw him, coming to an abrupt stop in front of him and bending over, resting her hands on her knees as she struggled to catch her breath. "Lucas, thank goodness you're here!"
"Riley? What's wrong?" he said in alarm when she straightened up and gave him a pleading look.
The absolute fear in her eyes made alarm bells ring in the back of his mind. And even without her saying anything, he knew this was about Maya.
"What happened to Maya?" he asked, feeling himself panic a bit. "Is she okay?"
"Lucas, it's horrible! Help Maya!" Riley cried, her eyes pooling with tears. "It's bad! Brandon came over to our lunch table and—"
That was all Lucas needed to hear.
He raced through the corridor as fast as he could, a cold chill running down his back as he tried to hurry to the cafeteria. Whatever was going on, he desperately hoped he could get there quick enough to help her. Brandon had it out for him, and Lucas was well aware that since he'd left the group, nothing bad had happened to him yet. There was no way this wasn't a coincidence.
This was all Lucas' fault. Thanks to him not being around Maya these past few days, no doubt Brandon figured it was a good opportunity for him to strike back. Lucas knew how he operated, and there was no way this wasn't his ploy for revenge.
When he finally got to the cafeteria, the room was completely hushed, people at their tables watching the turmoil anxiously. Maya was still sitting at the table, Farkle standing behind her with his hand protectively on her shoulder. And Brandon was standing in front of them both, looking at Maya with a sneer on his lips and holding a cellphone in his hands. Some of Lucas' old friends were in various places surrounding the area, uneasy looks on some of their faces, smirks on others'.
Lucas took a deep breath, moving right past some people who were standing in the way and making his way over to the confrontation. Maya stared at him, her eyes wide and the trepidation in her gaze making his stomach twist in knots. Despite her current ire towards him, he could see her eyes soften in relief when they made eye contact.
"Well, well. If it isn't your little boyfriend. Be careful Hart. Better keep Friar on a leash otherwise my finger might slip," Brandon said, laughing cruelly.
Maya's lip curled in disgust, but she said nothing, her hand curling into a fist as she glared angrily at him. Lucas sat down across from her, glancing at the somber Farkle before focusing his attention on Maya.
"Maya, are you okay?" Lucas said, reaching out and setting his hand on hers. "What happened?"
She unfolded her hand and clasped his, and he frowned when he could feel her hand trembling. He couldn't necessarily tell if it was because she was furious, but her anger was infused with a fear in her gaze that made his jaw clench. Farkle gave her a comforting squeeze on her shoulder.
What the hell had Brandon done to her?
"I…" She sighed. "I used to date Brandon back in early high school."
Lucas' face fell. He had suspected that to be the case somehow, though he'd desperately hoped it wasn't true. But from the way Brandon talked about her, it made a lot of sense now.
"He wanted to go farther than I was ready…"
"Did he…?" Lucas asked, feeling his rage boil up inside him.
If Brandon did anything to Maya to hurt her, Lucas would kill him.
"No." She shook her head, chewing on her lower lip and giving Riley a slight, reassuring smile when the brunette finally arrived back in the cafeteria, standing beside Farkle and wrapping her arms around his in fright. "I said no and I got dumped right after that and then stupidly, I tried to get him back when he said he would take me back if I sent him some nudes. So I did."
"Shit…" Lucas closed his eyes with a sigh. "And now he's threatening to send them out to the whole school?"
"The internet," Maya said weakly, her voice wavering as she stared down at the table. "My alternative is to give him a blowjob in front of everyone."
"What…?" he muttered, the word almost getting caught in his throat.
Lucas' heart stopped and his gaze went dark, teeth grit as he struggled to keep his anger at bay. How could he do something like that? How could Brandon ever think it was okay to dehumanize someone in such a disgusting way?
She was trying to put on a brave face, but Lucas could feel and see just how terrified she was. Maya was strong, of that he had no doubt, but this was too much for anyone to handle.
Brandon was dead.
"Why did you try so hard to get him back?" he growled, his fury rising from the ultimatum Brandon had given her. "He wasn't worth it if those were the kind of terms he gave you to get back together."
Maya didn't respond, her expression turning almost desperate and anxious. Lucas realized whatever her reasoning was, it was tied to whatever secret Maya was keeping and was not something she was ready to share.
"Lucas… that's not important," Riley said quickly, putting her hand on Maya's other shoulder.
"So what are you going to do about this, eh Gangbanger?" Brandon called out patronizingly. "Make up your mind; I don't have all day, you know? This dick's not going to suck itself."
Lucas fought to ignore the cloying tone of Mitch and Jackson laughing in the background.
"Brandon…" Lucas heard Billy say. "Man, this isn't funny…"
"Shut up, Ross."
"Why does he call you a gangbanger?" Lucas said lowly, trying to maintain his focus on Maya.
"You're shaking, Lucas," Maya said in alarm.
"Why does he call you a gangbanger?" he repeated through grit teeth, a fire raging in his mind.
"One of my mom's regular clients is a man in a biker gang. One time, my mom was ill so he brought her home. And Brandon saw and thought it would be funny to spread that rumour."
"This happened while you were dating?"
Maya nodded dejectedly. "I knew he wasn't a good guy, but I just…"
The slump of Maya's shoulders, the sadness in her gaze, the pain he could feel rolling off of her in waves, the heartache in her tone, it broke his heart.
And that was it.
He'd let Brandon's bullshit go on for long enough. It was time to do what he should have done from day one. He was going to pay.
Lucas stood up slowly, his fists clenched so tightly, he was certain he was going to break through the skin with his nails. "I'll be back."
"What are you about to do?" Maya asked in concern, staring up at him wide eyed. "Lucas, what are you doing?"
He ignored her, his brows etched in a scowl as he turned around to face Brandon, stalking slowly over to him, his breathing coming out short and angry. A hushed lull fell over the cafeteria, everyone waiting with baited breath, the whole room prickling with tension as they stared in anticipation of the brewing confrontation.
"Can I help you, Friar?" Brandon asked with a raised eyebrow when Lucas was right in front of him.
"You think this funny?" Lucas snarled, shoving him into the wall hard, gripping his collar and glowering at him.
"Lucas, don't!" Maya shouted, rising from the table in alarm.
"Careful, Friar." Brandon's gaze turned menacing, his eyes glinting maliciously. "You make any wrong moves and she's exposed."
"How could you do that to her?! You sick bastard!" Lucas shouted, throwing a hand back and gesturing to Maya. "Do you have any idea what she's been through?! Her life isn't a game!"
Brandon shrugged indifferently. "The weak get stepped on, the strong survive. You get what it is."
His eyes narrowed. "No, I don't."
"What do you care?" Brandon scoffed, giving Maya a look of disgust out of the corner of his eye. "You were the one that said you were only hanging out with her to get in her pants."
Lucas' face slackened, his stomach dropping at the reminder of his horrible words the day he hurt Maya. He glanced at Maya briefly, grimacing apologetically. She was staring at the ground, a frown on her face, and Lucas wanted to bash his head into a wall for ever saying that in the first place.
"I'm not," Lucas responded. "Get rid of the photos, Brandon. Why are you trying to hurt her when she never did anything to you?"
"She's just collateral damage. If this is the best way to fuck with you, then so be it," he muttered darkly.
"You're a piece of shit."
"You're pathetic. Whipped as hell."
"Brandon, you're going too far," Zay said, staring at the two of them, his expression a bit appalled.
"Shut the fuck up," he sneered. "You used to be cool, Friar, like one of us, but you're nothing but a little lame ass shit now."
"Lucas, it's okay," Maya said quietly, though her voice cracked midway through her words and he caught her sniffle. "Just let him do what he wants with the pictures. It's not worth it."
Lucas took a deep breath, letting it out slowly to try to calm himself down. If he didn't chill out, he would definitely snap and fighting in school would result in his expulsion. There had to be some other way to stop this from happening without resorting to violence.
"See? Whipped." Brandon grinned nastily, lowering his voice to a mere whisper so only Lucas could hear. "Let me let you in on a little secret, Friar. When you stick your finger up in Maya, she makes this little noise. This soft little whimper and grabs your hair like she just can't get enough. You know what I'm talking about? Oh wait, you don't? You haven't actually been down there yet, have you? Well I have. Plenty of times. And let me tell you, it's definitely—"
Lucas saw red.
He punched him right in the face, no longer caring about his fate. Fuck this. Brandon was going down.
"Lucas!" someone shouted.
Lucas ignored the warning, breathing hard as he stalked towards Brandon who'd stumbled sideways, wiping his nose of the trickle of blood. Nothing was registering in his mind. The people shouting in surprise, someone yelling at him to stop. It was all a blur and the only thing he could think about was the fact that he was going to rip Brandon's dumb smirk right off his fucking face.
Brandon straightened, a threatening smirk on his face. "Hope you enjoy your girlfriend's body being on display for everyone in the world."
Before Brandon could even do anything, Lucas pounced, bodily tackling him to the ground to the gasps of the patrons of the cafeteria. People stood up, trying to catch a view of the fight as Lucas grappled with Brandon, trying to wrestle the phone out of his hand. The phone slipped from Brandon's hand and slid across the ground near Riley's feet. Gasping, she quickly stomped on it hard several times with her heels, crushing it and making sure to break it.
Brandon wrapped his hands around Lucas' neck, nearly trying to choke him as they tousled on the ground, Lucas trying to break the hold. He managed to pin Brandon to the ground, sitting on top of him and smashing his fists into his face again and again and again, making sure he could feel his fury, all his frustration, all his anger. He felt a crack under his hand at some point and Brandon cried out in pain, but he didn't care, hitting him over and over and over, wanting nothing more than to release all his anger on this piece of shit of a human being.
Someone was shouting in the distance, maybe several people, but Lucas ignored it. The only thing on his mind was making Brandon pay.
"…cas!"
Lucas reared his fist back to throw one more punch when small hands suddenly stopped his fist, wrapping gently around his wrist and holding it back from moving.
"…ucas!"
Slowly, he registered that Maya's soft murmur was drifting in his ears. He sat up straight, blinking in surprise and snapping out of his odd trance. He stared down at Brandon, coughing, blood painting his teeth and mouth, trailing from his nose that was clearly bent out of shape, his split eyebrow and lip. One of his eyes was puffy and half closed. He was already sporting pretty nasty discolouration along various places on his face.
"Lucas, calm down," she murmured calmly, turning his face so they are eye to eye. "Look at me."
He swallowed thickly, holding her gaze, warm and comforting, and he knew he never wanted to see grief in those eyes again. Not from him, not from anyone else.
"Maya…"
"Focus on me." She rested her forehead against his, closing her eyes and stroking his cheeks gently. "Breathe with me."
He closed his eyes, focusing on her and slowly inhaling that comforting scent of peach. He focused on her warm hands on his face, matching his breathing with hers and slowly, he could feel his rage subside and his pulse slow. His body untensed as he calmed down. Once he knew he was calm, he reached up and gently grasped her wrists, opening his eyes and meeting the warm, dancing blue-gray eyes.
"You're not going to go on another rampage are you?"
"…I think I'm good," Lucas said.
He stood up slowly, already missing the warmth from Maya's hands when they slid off his face. The entire cafeteria was staring at him silently in shock, many of them in fright. Even Riley and Farkle were staring at him anxiously, their hands clasped together, clearly frightened by his rage.
Lucas' hands shook from pain and he stared down at the raw, split skin of his knucles. He had beaten the shit out of Brandon. He'd let his temper get the best of him and hurt someone. And now that he thought about what he'd been on the verge of doing, it didn't leave a good feeling in the pit of his stomach at all.
What the hell had he just done?
Brandon rose shakily to his feet, spitting out about a mouthful of blood onto the floor and wiping his bloody nose.
"You're fucking crazy! Do you guys see this?" Brandon shouted, pointing to his face. "He tried to kill me. You're psychotic. You should be in jail or some mental ward!"
Lucas stood in front of Maya protectively, narrowing his eyes. "What did you expect when you provoked me using Maya?"
The air was thick with tension, nobody moving and nobody sure of what to do.
A few seconds later, Hearst suddenly burst through the cafeteria, his eyes roving around the room and trying to assess the situation.
"What the hell is going on?!" he barked. "I want answer and I want them now!"
"Friar's a maniac!" Brandon spat, cringing in pain as he held his busted nose. "He fucking broke my nose!"
"Is that true, Lucas?" Mr. Hearst questioned, a disappointed look on his face as he stared at Lucas, eyes narrowed suspiciously.
Lucas sighed, knowing he was probably about to get expelled and sent to jail. His high school, college, and probably potential professional careers were officially over, but strangely, he was at peace. It didn't matter as long as Maya was happy and safe. If he had to deal with being in jail to atone for this, that was fine. He would accept the consequences of his actions. After all, it had been his decision to get in a fight. If he got expelled now, so be it.
But at least Maya was okay.
Lucas opened his mouth to respond honestly and reveal the truth when Maya suddenly pushed past Lucas and stood between him and the principal, her hands on her hips as she glowered at Brandon.
"Lucas didn't do shit to you, you turd faced piece of trash."
Brandon gave her a vicious look, but she held her ground, refusing to budge.
"You're a lying cunt," he spat sharply.
"Can somebody please tell me what the truth is?!" Hearst bellowed in exasperation. "No more games!"
"Lucas, didn't do that to Brandon," Farkle responded evenly, a steely resolve in his expression as he moved beside Maya, shielding Lucas from the principal.
"Yeah. Lucas didn't do anything," Riley agreed, moving beside Farkle and sticking her tongue out at Brandon. "Brandon is lying."
Lucas stared at the three of them in shock as they kept their gazes on Hearst, determination on their features. They had lied for him to protect him. Despite his horrible behaviour and asshole tendencies and even now, being revealed as the monster he probably was, they still stuck by his side and defended him.
"I'm lying, my ass!" Brandon shouted, gesturing to Lucas' side. "That's my blood on his fucking knuckles!"
"That's not any proof of violence towards you," Farkle remarked coldly. "Lucas was trying to help Maya get her locker open since the knob was jammed and bruised his fists punching it."
Hearst stared at them, his brows furrowed incredulously.
"The nerdy guy is right." Zay stepped forward. "Nothing happened, sir."
They all turned to Zay in surprise and he smiled at them slightly, something small but regretful before it disappeared as quickly as it came.
Brandon glared at him. "You say when I'm standing here with a fucking busted nose and blood all over my face."
"So you tripped and banged your face on a table," Billy said sharply, giving him a dirty look. "Unless you want to explain what you were looking at on your phone that made you trip in the first place?"
Brandon clammed up, though he grit his teeth, growling under his breath.
"We were just about to take him to the nurse when you came, Mr. Hearst," Missy muttered, picking at her fingernails. "So if you'll excuse us…"
Billy and Mitch flanked Brandon, tugging his arms onto their shoulders to help him as their little entourage began to make their way out of the cafeteria. Brandon groaned in pain with every step they took out. As they passed by Lucas, Billy gave him a brief, but apologetic look and Zay looked a little sheepish as he glanced at them before staring at the ground in remorse. They continued on, the rest of them following behind him until they were out of the room.
"Everyone get back to lunch! This thing, whatever it was is over." People sat back down, pretending to focus on their lunch as the tension wound down. Hearst turned back to Lucas, shaking his head in disdain. Maya slipped her hand into his, lacing their fingers together and Lucas gave her a soft squeeze in appreciation. "Mr. Friar. You seem to have found some more loyal friends who will protect you, but consider this your only lucky break. I'm not stupid. I know exactly what happened here. I mean it. This is your final warning. I'm really keeping my eye on you the rest of the year. If you cause any trouble again, I'll have no choice but to call the police."
"I understand, sir."
Hearst nodded, turning to leave the cafeteria. "Harley, clean this up please."
"Goddamn… if it's not paint on my walls, it's blood on my motherfucking floors," Harley muttered as he rolled over the cart with his cleaning products past the students to the stains of blood on the ground. As he passed by Lucas, he sighed. "Trouble seems to follow you around everywhere, kid."
As the situation diffused and things began to return to normal for lunch, students tittered to each other, staring at them and whispering about what just happened.
"Let's take you outside for some fresh air and to cool off a bit," Maya said, tugging on Lucas' arm to follow her as she began walking out the side doors of the cafeteria. "We'll be right back, Farks."
People fell silent as he and Maya passed by them, staring at him in fright and some with utterly appalled looks. His reputation was absolutely totally trashed now, but for some reason, he felt like grinning because Maya was talking to him again.
They walked to the picnic benches outside and he sat down on one, rubbing his face with his hands, watching as the soft puffs of visible air evaporated after a few seconds. Maya stood in front of him not saying anything for several seconds, and he suspected she wasn't pleased. Sure enough, when he glanced up at her, her lips were pursed in disdain.
"What the fuck is wrong with you?"
"…You're welcome," he muttered, rolling his eyes and already expecting her backlash.
"You could have seriously jeopardized your entire future, not to mention the fact that you could have gotten seriously hurt in a fight with Brandon, Lucas. Do you ever stop to actually think about the damn consequences of the actions you take? You have a brain. Use it next time! You're so lucky things went well for you, but what if they hadn't, huh? What would have been your plan then? You're too reckless!"
"Shut up," Lucas said, scowling at her. One of Maya's brow rose dangerously, but he wasn't deterred by the glint in her eyes. "I did it because I can't stand to see you hurt. Who the hell cares about consequences? He disrespected you and treated you like crap and he needed to pay. There was nothing to think about."
Maya sighed, running a hand through her hair, though the corners of her lips tugged up into a small, appreciative smile.
"I'm always going to get hurt, Lucas. You can't make the world a place that doesn't have pain. That's ridiculous, and you can't shelter me from pain. It's going to happen either way."
"But I want to," he said earnestly, taking her hands and ignoring the painful feeling of the busted skin of his hands being tugged. "I want to so bad."
"It's not going to happen. I appreciate it, but you have to experience some pain in life to grow, you know?"
"Some pain. Not pain all the time. Why does it always seem like the worst things in life always happen to you?"
Maya shrugged. "Maybe because I don't deserve good things."
"Never say that again." He frowned. "After all you've been through, you deserve the best. And about the getting in your pants thing, I want you to know I only said that because—"
"We've already established you're a coward, Huckleberry," she said playfully, cutting him off gently. "I'm not mad. In fact, I'm kind of flattered. For your friends to actually believe that you wanted to get in my pants, that means that to a certain extent, I'm hot, right?"
"I don't know how I'm supposed to respond to that…" He averted his gaze momentarily.
Maya laughing. "You're such a huckleberry."
He stared up at her, his heart swelling in his chest when he noticed the sullen look in her eyes had waned. She'd berated him for fighting, but he could see that deep down, she was grateful for the situation being cleared.
"Listen, Maya. About Wednesday night. When I—"
"It's fine. You were caught up in the moment and weren't thinking, right? I know it didn't mean anything to you," Maya said, dismissing him with an amused roll of her eyes. "I'm not mad at you about that anymore. But don't kiss me again, or I will be mad. Kisses are important to me, so I don't just want to give and get them freely."
Lucas wanted to tell her it did mean something. That he liked her. That he wanted to kiss her beautiful face again and again until she believed him. That his heart beat faster every time he saw her. That she lingered in his thoughts day and night with no hope of ever leaving. That he wanted to spend all his time nearby her. That he desperately wanted to take away that melancholic look that never seemed to disappear. That he wanted to help her have hope. But there was something a little sharp in her gaze, like she was preparing to put up her guard and close herself off again if he said something she didn't like. If he confessed, she would run again.
"We're friends again, right?" he asked instead.
She smiled, one that looked like it was tinged with relief. "Of course we are, Ranger Rick. I'd say anyone willing to get themselves tossed in jail for fighting in school is definitely friend material. Best friend even."
"Tell me if anyone ever harasses you again, got it?" he said, regarding her seriously.
"What are you, my bodyguard now?"
"Yes." Lucas nodded. "I'm protecting you whether you want me to or not. You're not getting hurt ever again if I can help it. And I'm never going to hurt you again either. That's a promise."
Maya's brows rose in surprise, though she didn't respond for several seconds. Something warm glittered in her eyes as she searched his, her lower lip caught between her teeth as her cheeks flushed.
"Alright," she responded quietly, smiling bashfully. "It's cold. Let's go back inside."
She took her hands out of his, leaving the picnic area to head back inside the doors. Lucas rose from his seat, watching Maya's retreating form wistfully and wishing he could do more to show her how much she meant to him.
"Hey Maya," Lucas called out. "How about that ferry boat ride tonight? For real this time."
She glanced at him over her shoulder. "Pick me up at eight."
This time Lucas would do it right. Gain her trust. Be her friend, and if she never came to learn about his feelings in time, so be it. But he wouldn't reveal his feelings until he'd established himself properly as a friend and confidante in Maya's life.
He would much rather be friends with Maya than not have her in his life at all.
