Riley's POV

Sometimes life surprises you. When I think about how different things might be if Maya never climbed into my bay window the first time, I can't imagine who I would be without her.

If she never had the courage to kiss me and tell me how she really felt, would I have ever come to realize my feelings for her on my own? I'm not sure. All I know, is that we're here, now, together. And it's going to change everything. If I want my rainbow, I can't hide from the storm anymore.

Maya and I walked into my house, using the front door this time instead of my window. I looked at my family sitting around the kitchen table, Dad grading papers, Mom looking over depositions, and Auggie coloring with crayons. They looked up at us as we walked in, our faces still painted with rainbows.

"Hi girls," My dad smiled. "You're looking colorful today," he said.

"Did you girls go to Pride?" My mom asked.

Maya and I exchanged nervous glances. We nodded.

"Mom, Dad, Auggie," I started, each one giving me their attention as I called for it, "There's something I need to tell you."

My parents looked at each other, put their papers down and looked back at me.

I looked at Maya. Her eyes met mine with hope and courage and love. The way she looks at me makes me feel like there's nothing I can't do.

I turned back to face my parents. "Maya and I are dating."

"Yeah, we knew Maya was going out with Lucas, are you going out with someone too, Riley?" My mom replied.

"Oh no she's not!" My dad jumped up. He walked toward us. "Who is he? Is it Charlie Gardner?"

"Oh boy," Maya muttered.

"No, Dad." I answered.

"Well is it Zay?" He questioned.

"No, Dad."

"Well it can't be Farkle," he said.

"Why not?" My mother asked him.

He turned to face her. "Because no offspring of Topanga is ever dating a Minkus." My mom rolled her eyes at him. She got up walked over to join us.

"Riley, you can date whoever you want. Don't listen to him," she said.

I smiled at her. "I'm glad you feel that way, Mom."

"I don't!" My father interjected.

Auggie put down his crayons and walked over to us. He looked up at Maya and I, and then turned to our parents.

"She's not dating Farkle. You're not listening." He turned to me. "Please say it again, Riley. They didn't get it the first time."

I smiled at him. It figures Auggie would be the only one to understand.

"Mom, Dad. Maya and I are dating."

My mothers eyes widened. She gets it now. "Oh" she responded. My father is still a dope. "Who are you dating Riley?" He asked.

"Mr. Matthews," Maya chimed in.

"I'm not dating Lucas. I broke up with him."

"Well then who are you dating, Maya?"

Maya put her arm around me.

"Riley and I are dating." She echoed my earlier statement. "Each other." I added to spell it out for him.

He looked at my mother, they both looked like they were in shock. "Auggie, honey, please go to your room," my mom requested. Auggie shook his head "No way. I'm staying."

"I'm gonna need to sit down," my father said, taking a seat on the couch.

"How long has this been going on?" My mother asked.

"A couple of weeks." I answered honestly.

My father stood up abruptly. "A couple of weeks?!" He exclaimed. He looked at Maya

"Go home, Maya."

"Dad!" I argued.

"Mr. Matthews I-" he cut Maya off.

"Go home," he repeated.

Maya started to pull back her arm, but I held it in place around me.

"If she goes, I go." I stated emphatically.

"Okay, everyone just calm down," my mom reasoned.

"Calm down?" My father scoffed. "Maya, you were sleeping over all the time. In my daughter's room. In her bed-"

"Dad!" I interrupted him. "We weren't doing anything!"

He ignored me and continued to chastise Maya. "If Riley were dating someone do you think I would let that someone sleep in her bed with her night after night?"

"No, sir." Maya responded.

"Then why did you?" He asked.

"Dad, she had nowhere else to go," I answered for her.

"Huh?" he said.

"When I told my mom about Riley and I, she didn't take it well at first and we had an argument." Maya explained. "I was staying over here to avoid my mom."

"Katy knew about this?!" My dad cried out in disbelief.

Maya nodded. "So does Shawn. He was actually the first person I told."

"I can't believe Shawn didn't tell me." My dad said.

"Well, Cory, it looks like we're the last to know," my mom said.

"Did you resolve things with your mother?" my dad asked Maya.

"Yes, Riley and Shawn helped us work things out," Maya answered.

"Great! So then you can go home, Maya." He persisted.

"Dad!"

"It's ok Riles, I'll just see you tomorrow," Maya relented.

"No!" I held her close to me. "I already told you. If she's leaving, then I am too."

"Nobody is leaving," my mom decided.

"I trusted you Maya, and you took advantage of that." he said.

"Mr. Matthews, I didn't mean to betray your trust. I wanted to tell you sooner, and so did my mom actually, but I wouldn't let her," Maya explained.

"Dad, if you want to get mad at someone, get mad at me. I'm the reason we kept this from you for as long as we did. I was scared," I said.

"Maya, go home." He insisted. "Riley, go to your room. You're grounded."

"You can't ground me for being queer!" I argued.

"I'm not grounding you for being queer. I'm grounding you for lying to me and sneaking around behind my back," he defended his decision.

"Cory," My mom stopped him. "She lied because she was afraid of coming out to us. That's understandable. You can't ground her for that."

"Fine," he threw his hands up in defeat. He walked toward the door and grabbed his jacket.

"Dad, where are you going?" I asked.

"Me? Oh I'm just gonna go have a little chat with my buddy Shawn." He said. He pointed his finger at Maya. "From now on, if you're staying the night, you sleep on the couch, not in her bed," he demanded.

"Yes, sir," she replied, but he had already left, letting the door slam behind him.

My mom walked over and put her arms around both of us.

"Your dad just doesn't like to be the last to know," she said.

"I can see that," I said.

"He hates me," Maya said, sadly.

"No, he's just upset. He'll get over it," my mom reassured her.