Author's Note: Thank you to all of those who have already reviewed, favorited, and followed this story! It really does mean a lot! So, please don't forget to REVIEW! (Edited by Chereche!)

UPDATED: 12/12/16

Disclaimer: I don't own Girl Meets World, just the story!

Chapter Eight: No Fireworks

"You are going to the dance, right?" Riley looked up from her food.

"No, I don't think so, Riles." Maya shook her head.

"Mom, tell her she has to go!" she cried, whipping her head towards her mother.

"I'm not going to force her, honey." Mrs. Matthews said.

"Oh, come on. You force me and Auggie to do things all the time and Maya's practically family!"

"It's true, mommy," Auggie spoke up from his seat. "Yesterday, you told me that if I didn't eat my broccoli, you wouldn't let me watch a movie. And it was movie night!"

"Auggie, don't you think you should let Maya and I talk now?" Riley asked.

"No, you let everyone else got involved with your lives! I'm staying, lady!" her brother huffed.

"Look, I just don't want to go. Nothing wrong with that," Maya stated.

"But it's your first high school dance!" Riley wailed.

"She has a point Maya, you should go." Mrs. Matthews said.

"I thought you were on my side!"

"I don't think either of you should go," Mr. Matthews spoke up, setting down his fork.

"Thank you!" Maya sighed in relief.

"There will be boys at this dance, after all," he continued.

"Daddy!" Riley put her head in her hands.

"And there will be slow dances...involving said boys. So, no way am I letting you near any teenage boys. Get that? No boys!"

"Too bad, Riles. Guess it's settled." Maya chewed smugly on a piece of noodle; her mouth finally out of the sore stage.

"But, I already have a date!" she reminded them.

"You do? How could you not tell me?!" Her friend grabbed her face and stared at her in shock; an action that wasn't normal for the blonde. "Who is it? I didn't even know you liked anyone! Please, tell me it's not—"

"Charlie Gardner," she said dreamily.

"Okay, since when? You two had like one date, and then we never saw him again. I didn't even know he went to our school!"

"He's in my Chemistry class, and we kind of reconnected after that whole Lucas thing."

"Okay, Chemistry class. Why not?" Maya muttered.

"Well, I didn't know either!" Mr. Matthews glared at his daughter. "And he's not getting inside this house."

"That's okay. We just need to get inside the school," Riley smiled, a serene and happy look on her face.

"Mommy? What's wrong with boys? I'm a boy." Auggie asked, worriedly.

"Nothing, sweetie. Daddy just wants to protect Riley from older boys, so you're all good." She smiled at him reassuringly.

"What about Maya? Who's protecting her from older boys?" he looked at his father.

"Don't have to worry about me, Matthews. I don't have a date." She ran a hand through her hair.

"Is that why you don't want to go?!" Riley's mouth dropped open. "Peaches, we can get you a date! And then we can go to the dance, have a double wedding, and our kids can grow up together!"

"Slow down." Maya held up a hand. "I'm not planning on getting married anytime soon. And you don't need to find me a date, Riles. I'm perfectly fine not going...with or without a date."

"But, it's your first high school dance! It's a rite of passage, Maya!" the brunette insisted.

"Everything's a rite of passage for you." She muttered.

"Maya, is that why you didn't want to go?" Mrs. Matthews asked.

"Can you please just leave it alone?" she pleaded.

"Nope," the mother and daughter responded in unison. "You should know that's not how we work."

"Ugh, it's not fair," Maya complained.

"It's just one little dance." Riley said persuasively, batting her eyelashes innocently.

"Which I don't have a date too, anyway," Her friend reminded, pointing her fork at Riley.

"No dates...I like how you think, Ms. Hart," Mr. Matthews exclaimed. "Why won't you rub off on her?"

"Why won't you?" the brunette pondered. "You're hogging all the cool, Maya!"

The blue haired girl ignored them. "Besides, it's too late to get a date. The dance is next week," she protested, taking her plate to the sink.

"What about Lucas?" Riley pointed out, excitedly. "He told me that he's not going with anyone yet."

"Riles, we decided not to have feelings for Huckleberry anymore, remember?" Maya said, but couldn't help the small dash of hope she felt.

"Yes, but now the triangle has long been over, and I don't like Lucas like that now," she said. "So, you're free to like him, Peaches!"

Maya groaned inwardly. Of course she didn't like Ranger Rick...or did she? She felt like maybe she had been hiding behind her mask for so long, that she started to believe her own lies about her feelings. Maya had hidden them extremely well, and now she was lost because she didn't know how she felt. But anyway, no, there was no way she could like Lucas...he got on her nerves, he had that slight Texan accent, he was Mr. Perfect, and he always restrained her from doing things she shouldn't— Except now, those didn't seem so bad. Darn it, was she actually falling for a Huckleberry? Again? You'd have thought she would have learned her lesson last time.

But, she was going to ignore it, and push him to the back of her mind; after all she had much more important things going on than boys.

"I don't like him like that either, Riles," Maya said blankly, walking back to her seat.

"Then go as friends, who cares?" she answered, but she could tell something was up with her friend. She would have to issue Bay Window rights soon; it was time they had a chat anyway. Riley definitely hadn't forgotten Maya's insecurity issues, and she wasn't going to let it slide.

"Fine." Maya rested her head on the table in defeat.

"Yaaaaay!" Her friend yelled, raising her arms in the air.

"Feel better now, honey?" she turned her head to face Riley.

"Yah, I do," she beamed. "You're going to the dance!"

"Hang on, you two. Shouldn't you text Lucas first?" Mrs. Matthews spoke up.

Riley's eyes widened. "Oh, no! Let's do it right now!"

"No boys! I thought I made that more than clear!" her father glowered.

"Deal with it." Riley responded primly, taking Maya's hand and leading her to her room.

"I'm so proud of you!" She grinned up at the taller girl.

Mr. Matthews started to get up, but his wife pulled him down with a disapproving look.

"Cory, leave them alone. They're just girls excited for a dance," she consoled.

"With boys!" he reminded.

"Don't worry daddy!" Auggie stood up, and ran over to give his father a hug. "I won't ever go to a dance with boys!"

"Good to know," he teased, and tousled his son's hair.

"Hey, hey!" The small boy protested. "I gotta' look good for my woman!"

"But, there are girls." Mr. Matthews went back to sulking.

"Oh, boy," his wife said.

"This is your fault you know." Maya glared at Riley.

"How so?" She answered innocently.

"You made Bucky McBoingBoing agree to take me to the dance!" she exclaimed.

"I'm so sorry I made sure you would have a good time, spend time with your friends, and get to relax for the night. Forgive me," Riley replied sarcastically.

"Okay, I'm still annoyed at you, but seriously, I think I'm rubbing off on you."

"Does that mean I'm rubbing off on you?" she asked hopefully, smiling brightly.

"Nope," Maya shook her head and grinned.

"Okay, what do you think?" Riley finished adjusting her costume.

She was dressed as a butterfly for the costume party, which Maya found completely adorable. But, as Riley put it, she was a sophisticated version of a butterfly, which was kind of true. She was wearing a flowy, mid-length, orange skirt, which they had added a strip of black and white piping to the bottom of. It matched the lace up, orange blouse which had the same edging, along with black ribbons for the laces. The bell sleeves were attached to her handmade wings, which Maya had actually made for her, and there was a thick, black belt around her waist. To top it off, she wore ankle strap, black flats—because Maya wouldn't let her wear heels—dangly, black earrings that matched her simple necklace, and her shimmery eye shadow was accented by the butterfly wings created by eyeliner. And even though the goofy antennae was nestled in her brown hair, on top of the braided bun, to be honest, she looked stunning.

"Do I look like a Monarch butterfly?" she asked, twirling giddily.

"Gosh, Riles. You look gorgeous!" Maya smiled.

"Thanks, Peaches. So do you!" Riley grinned, full of excitement and pride.

"Stop it." They smirked in unison, proceeding to do their handshake.

"But, seriously. I'm glad you let me help you with yours!" The brunette looked over her friend's outfit with delight.

Maya had agreed to wash out the blue dye for the night, but—as she reminded Riley—she was putting it back in the next day; so she was back to being blonde temporarily. After much debate, she had decided to go as a "Greek princess", because Riley had insisted and she already had the white dress. So there it was. Her now blonde hair was twisted back in a half-up, half-down style, with her natural wavy curls cascading down her back, and a gold and silver clip clinging to the twists. The aforementioned dress, was long and seemed to flow gracefully every time she moved, but was still able to show off her golden, gladiator style boots, which had a good sized heel on them. They had found a golden armband, which accented the strapless top, and matched the golden earrings and necklace that were shaped like olive leaves. Her thin, silver and gold belt perfectly complimented the outfit, and so did her beautifully done makeup, also a shimmery sliver.

"Yah, I wasn't sure about it, but now that I see it, I really like it," Maya admitted.

The two girls stood in front of the mirror, each studying their reflection, and that of the girl next to her. Riley felt that her outfit perfectly suited her, and she loved the sophisticated yet whimsical look of her costume. Glancing over at Maya, she hoped her insecurity would be gone, because she truly looked beautiful and Riley wanted her friend to realize that.

The blonde cocked her head, and tried to find a flaw, but as hard as she tried, she really couldn't. It made her feel vain, but both her and Riley looked breathtaking, each personality clearly shining through. Maya loved the feeling of getting all "dressed up", because all her insecurities started to melt away, and she could be free and confident; it felt good. It was an added bonus that she didn't have to worry about her height, because the heels had added a good 3 inches or so, and she was closer to Riley's face now.

"Hey, girls. The boys are here. Are you ready to go?" Mrs. Matthews popped her head in through the door.

"Yup!" Riley exclaimed, turning towards her mother.

"Oh, you guys look amazing!" she gasped. "I can't wait to take pictures."

"That's such a mom thing," Maya rolled her eyes, but was secretly pleased. "We won't ever do that to our children, right Riles?"

"Of course we will!" she gushed. "Aw, they'll love it!"

"Yah, okay honey. Let's go, now," Maya shook her head, and marched out the door.

"Can you walk nicer, sweetie? Remember you're wearing heels!" Mrs. Matthews called, chasing after her.

The girls made quite the entrance for the boys, as their eyes widened and their mouths dropped open a little.

"Oh, yah," Mr. Matthews popped a grape into his mouth. "None of this is happening."

"Dad," Riley warned.

"You guys look—wow!" Charlie said, though his eyes were completely fixed on Riley.

"Thanks, that's really sweet!" His date blushed, walking over to him. "You don't look too bad yourself."

"Gosh, Maya," Lucas gazed at her. "I haven't seen you in a dress since last year's dance."

"Really? That's all you can say?" Riley huffed, her hands on her hips.

"Oh, I'm sorry. I haven't seen you wear earrings for a while?" He guessed, gesturing to her black earrings.

"Boys are impossible..." she grumbled.

"Exactly why you shouldn't be going out with them tonight!" Mr. Matthews exclaimed with satisfaction.

"Cory, honey," his wife said sweetly. "Come here for a minute, okay?"

"Oh, boy," he winced, slowly walking over to her.

Lucas was actually fascinated with Maya. He knew she loved being taller; it gave her an added boost of confidence that was clearly visible. Her face was glowing, and her blonde hair was nice to see again. Knowing he had started off on the wrong foot by making a joke—kind of—he came up to her, and reconciled.

"Hey, Shortstack. You really do look gorgeous." He smiled genuinely.

"Thanks, Huckleberry," She grinned, and then noticing his cowboy hat, plucked it off and inspected it. "The hat's just for me again, isn't it?"

"A cowboy always needs his hat, ma'am," he winked.

"Okay, fine. As long as we're not doing any do-si-doeing!" Maya warned.

"It's a Halloween costume party; I'm pretty sure you're safe," Lucas reassured, with a grin.

"You lied!" Maya huffed, pointing to the crowd.

Lucas threw up his hands defensively. "I swear, I didn't know!"

Riley and Charlie threw themselves into the dance, and didn't miss a beat. She could see Farkle and Smackle talking—or debating, in their case—near the punch, and she thought she spotted Zay dancing with a cheerleader who looked suspiciously like Missy. Everyone was here.

"Well, what do you say, Ms. Hart?" Lucas turned to her, after a brief silence. "Care to do-si-do?"

"I thought I told you—"

"Try something new, Shortstack." He grabbed her arm, and dragged her into the line.

"I have no idea what I'm doing, Huckleberry!" Maya protested, as the girls backed up, forcing her to do the same.

"I think you'll do just fine. Watch what everyone else is doing, and you'll pick it up," he reassured her.

It was nice of Ranger Rick to take her, but he was kind of crossing the line here. She felt completely stupid, as everyone else skipped, whirled, and clapped around her. Glancing at her friend, she proceeded to copy his dancing, and soon she melted into the line, in perfect unison with everyone else.

Fortunately, it was soon over, and she hated to admit it, but she had picked it up and had fun doing it.

"Okay, I'm impressed," Lucas admitted, walking back towards her.

"Good. Because I will be getting you back for this, Sundance!" Maya threatened.

"It looked like you were having fun, though." he pointed out.

"Not necessarily the point, here."

"Okay, whatever, Clutterbucket." Lucas laughed.

"Ugh, I had hoped you had forgotten about that," she complained. "You haven't called me that in a really long time."

"Then it's long overdue."

The Western music changed to a slower beat, and Maya smiled as Charlie and Riley began to slow dance, looking pretty happy and smug with each other. Lucas held out his arm in a gentlemanly fashion, slapped on a goofy grin, and gestured to the middle of the room.

"How about it, Ma'am?"

"I can't dance, Ranger Rick." She shook her head.

"Right, which is why you did terribly at that line dance," Lucas smirked. "Let's go. We're here to hang out and have a good time dancing."

"Fine." She rolled her eyes.

They made their way into the circle, and resting his hands on her waist, she awkwardly placed hers on his shoulders. The last time they had been this close was in Texas, by that campfire that had started a whole mess. The tension was made a little easier because she was taller tonight, but he still had to look down at her. Maya could feel Riley's joyful gaze on them, and she tried to ignore it.

But, as they slow danced, she could feel Huckleberry's eyes on her too, and she wasn't sure how she felt about it. One thing she was sure of though, was that she didn't feel insecure at all, when she would have expected to. Maya was dancing with a boy, there were eyes on her, and she felt like she was made purely out of confidence; and she thought it was all because of Lucas. He made her feel like she could be herself, and not have to worry about anything else.

Then it hit her; she liked "Lucas the Good", and there was no turning back now; it was too late to stop her feelings. But she would have to try; because she was no good for him, and there was no way he was getting past her mask. No matter how hard he tried.

"It felt like a summer rain!" Riley sighed.

"That's nice, Riles." Maya was lost in thought.

"What about yours?!" She turned eagerly to her friend. "I saw you dancing with Lucas!"

"Yah, we had fun."

"That's it? No fireworks, magical rainbows, no nothing?"

"Life isn't a movie, honey," she reminded.

"But, do you like him?" she persisted.

"I already told you I don't." Maya felt a pit form in her stomach. Why was she lying about this?

"Fine, Peaches. But I'm not letting this one go. You're not telling me something," Riley said suspiciously. "Anyway, I wanted to talk to you about your insecurity a little bit."

"No. We're not starting this, Riley."

"Oh, yes we are. This conversation is long overdue!"

"You know what? Go ahead; the sooner you get it out, the longer I don't have to listen to it," Maya conceded.

The brunette studied her friend. "We'll start there. Okay, so how did you feel tonight?"

"Fine."

"You have to give me more than that, or I'm just going to keep on bugging you for the rest of the night," she warned.

"Ugh." Maya grumbled. "Okay, I had fun, and I didn't feel insecure at all tonight...happy?"

"Yay! Now, why do you think that is?"

"What is this? The Dr. Phil show?" the blonde exclaimed.

"No, it's the Riley Show. Now, please answer the question."

"Because makeup makes everything better," she said sarcastically as she rolled her eyes.

"Yah, it does," Riley beamed. "And you had on a pretty dress..."

She softened a little. "I felt good tonight."

The brunette nodded in understanding. "It's easy to be someone you're not, isn't it?"

Maya looked at her friend. "Too easy."

Riley furrowed her brow, and hugged the blonde tightly. They both sighed, and stayed that way for a while; enjoying the knowledge that they had someone to lean on at all times.

"We're going to get through this, Peaches."

"Okay," Maya acknowledged. "But, I'm still dyeing my hair back blue."

"That's okay." Riley laughed a little. "Change doesn't have to be all bad."

"It doesn't have to be all good either."

But this time she didn't hear a thing Maya whispered.