Val Meets the Tell-Tale Tot
I don't own Girl Meets World!
The Matthews family was eating breakfast and for once there was peace in their home. That lasted all of three seconds. But it was the quietest three seconds Val had had in a long time. Then Maya burst in.
"All right, weirdos. Listen up and listen up good. I got like a minute before he walks through the door." She announced.
"Who?" Riley asked.
"Your Uncle Boing."
"Oh, Maya, you've got to get off of this." Riley sighed.
"Really?" Val rolled her eyes "He's not into you, Maya. That's okay."
"Nope. The reason he's not interested is because I've been playing it all wrong. See, my strategy of turning into a total nut job at the mere sight of him ain't working out as planned." Maya said thoughtfully.
"Maya, it's nothing you're doing. It's the age difference." Riley tried to tell her friend.
"Three years older. Your dad married your mom. He's like 20 years older."
Val choked on her waffle "Gross!" She coughed, hacking her lungs out.
"We're exactly the same age." Cory said.
"What?!" Riley asked, astonished.
"I just need to be caszh. How's this?" Maya put her feet up on the table right in Val's breakfast.
"That's okay, I wasn't that hungry anyways." Val said and her stomach growled loudly "Oh, quiet you."
Topanga chuckled and pushed Maya's feet off the table "Yeah, how's this?"
Val lifted her plate and headed to the sink to wash it off and put it in the dishwasher.
"Hey, family." Uncle Josh walked in with a bright smile on his face.
"Yeah, hi. I don't care." Maya twirled her hair around her finger.
"My brother!" Josh greeted Cory.
"My brother!" Cory responded and they hugged.
"So, Riley, shouldn't we be like heading to school now, since there's nothing here for me of any interest?" Maya asked calmly.
"Sure. Let's go." Riley smiled.
"Think she'll make it out the door?" Auggie asked his sisters.
"I give her 10 seconds before she jumps on his head." Riley bet.
"Val?"
"Five seconds before she jumps on his head and rides him like a bull while he tries to buck her off." Val laughed quietly.
"I came up here because I wanted to do this in front of all of you. I hold in my hand an envelope from New York University." Josh said, holding up an envelope.
Maya stopped walking making Riley bump into her and say "Ohh. Are we stopping?"
"I'm not stopping. I'm resting." Maya lied and kept walking.
"What's in this envelope tells me where I'm gonna be for the next four years." Josh announced.
Maya stopped again.
"Ohh. Are we stopping?" Riley asked.
"I'm not as young as I used to be."
"Good luck, Josh." Riley said as she pulled Maya out the door.
"Yeah, hi. I don't care." Maya said quickly.
Josh looked confused "Is it just me or is there a new maturity in Maya that I haven't seen before? I find it intriguing."
Val held up her hand and slowly put down one finger after another until...
"Where will you be?" Maya shrieked, bursting back into the room and leaping onto Josh's back, holding his ears tightly.
"Hold on to your dignity, woman!" Riley shouted, following her friend back in.
"Too late for that." Val and Auggie laughed together.
"Get off me, you little ferret!" Josh hollered, bucking like a wild bronco.
"Give it!"
"It's my life!"
"It affects me, too!" Maya grabbed the letter, ripped it open, and began to read "'Dear Applicant Boing.'"
"It doesn't say that." Josh protested, still jerking around wildly.
"'This year we are only accepting married applicants.'"
"It doesn't say that!"
"'So...we regret to inform you that...'"
"Regret to inform me?" Josh asked, freezing in his attempts to get the blonde off his head.
Maya kept reading "'We regret to inform you that you will be spending the next four years in New York with Maya!'"
"I got in? I got in." Josh cried happily.
"We got in. Congratulations." Maya slipped off his back and gave him a quick hug.
"Yay!" The Matthews family gathered around Josh and they all hugged for a long moment.
"That's so great." Josh was grinning madly.
"I don't know what this means." Auggie cheered.
"Congratulations, Buddy. I'm so proud of you." Cory said, patting his little brother on the back.
"It means a lot, Cory." Josh smiled.
"All very exciting, I'm sure. But Riley and I have our own educations to which to attend... to which." Maya said, trying to be casual, and grabbing Riley's hand.
"This is so great. And my buddy who goes there invited me to his dorm Tonight to meet some college friends if I got in." Josh told them.
Maya stopped walking.
"Ohh. Are we stopping?" Riley asked.
Maya stopped her "Nope. We're doing something else now. When is this little party? Yeah, whatever, hi, I don't care." She asked Josh.
"Don't answer that." Val warned.
"Uh, 10:00 tonight?"
"Come on!"
"Where's this little party? Yeah, whatever, hi, I don't care." Maya asked.
"Greenwich Hall."
"Stop talking!" Val groaned.
Maya smiled widely.
"Are we smiling? I'll smile. I'll smile anytime. What are we smiling about?" Riley questioned.
"Bay window. Bay window right now." Maya grabbed Riley and Val's hands and dragged them up to Riley's room.
"Can I sleep over at your house tonight?" Maya asked.
"Yay!" Riley cheered.
"But not really?" Maya finished.
"Aww."
"I'm going to that party." Maya announced.
"No!" Val sighed "No. Maya, if you go to that party it won't end well."
"And how do you know?"
"Because I've seen what happens at these parties. There's drinking..."
"Good, hydration is important." Riley smiled.
"Not that kind of drinking, hon." Val rubbed her temples "My point is, it's not safe. You shouldn't go."
"What could go wrong?" Riley questioned "He said it could only go till 10:00."
"No, it starts at 10:00." Maya corrected.
"It starts at 10:00? Who even heard of such a thing?" Riley gasped.
"That bothers you, huh?"
"It starts at 10:00?"
Maya sighed "There are going to be college girls there. And they're pretty, and they're smart, and they're witches."
"I don't like witches."
"They're not witches." Val shook her head.
Maya ignored her "We can't let Josh fall under their spell, Riley. I'm sneaking out."
"You will be grounded forever, and I will lose my best friend. Don't do this." Riley begged.
"No. I'm not gonna look back and regret the things I didn't do. I want to look back and regret the things I did do."
"You can't do this. Your conscience will always bother you."
"I don't have a conscience." Maya shrugged.
"Everybody does. And until yours shows up, we're going with you." Riley decided.
"Oh, really? You're ready to sneak out this window and crash a 10:00 college party with me?" Maya asked skeptically.
"I am so ready." Riley nodded "It starts at 10:00?"
"So are you in, Val?" Maya asked.
"Somebody's got to keep you out of trouble." Val sighed "But why does it always have to be me?"
"Because you love us." Riley offered.
"Yeah," Val smiled "I do."
They'd finally gotten to school and were sitting in Cory's classroom.
"Okay, how are we pulling this caper off?" Riley asked, leaning in conspiratorially.
"Riley, if we snuck out for an adventure, I know you'd tell your parents." Maya argued.
"Yes, you would." Val sighed.
"I promise I won't." Riley vowed.
"Who's talking?" Cory asked.
Riley put her hand in the air "We are. It's us."
"You ain't going." Maya shook her head.
Cory started class "What is a lie? What are the effects of a lie on the human soul?"
"Why are you looking at me?" Riley asked nervously.
Maya and Val rolled their eyes.
"The man who summed up the price of a lie was Edgar Allan Poe in 'The Tell-Tale Heart.'" Cory pointed to Farkle "Farkle."
Butt before the genius could answer Zay spoke up "So... this guy chops somebody up, hides him in the floor. He's cool for awhile, but all of a sudden, Boom, boom. Boom, boom. Boom, boom! His guilty conscience made him hear the heartbeat under the floorboards. So, he gave himself up. Some people just ain't cut out for this stuff."
"He called on me, you know." Farkle glared.
"I know stuff. I know a lot of stuff." Zay got up and moved over to lean over Farkle's desk "I know stuff about you."
"You don't know anything about me." Farkle said, anxiously.
"Boom, boom."
"Why would you do that?"
"Boom, boom."
"I don't understand. Why would you do that?"
"Boom, boom."
"All through kindergarten, I never fell asleep once. I was faking all my naps. Faking them. I can't do it. I don't know how Maya can just fall asleep anywhere."
Maya snored loudly, her eyes wide open but her expression vacant.
"Okay, so, guys, the point of the story is that the conscience is more powerful than we realize." Cory smacked his hands on Maya's desk loudly, jolting her awake.
"I never wake you up."
"For those of us who have one. Now, just as the truth comes out, so too will a lie. How will you live your lives? How strong is your conscience?" Cory asked.
Riley got a weird look on her face.
"We haven't done anything yet." Maya pointed out.
"Oh, yeah." Riley realized and started to sway back and forth singing softly to herself.
"What are you going to do?" Annie asked, burning a hole in Val's head with her eyes.
"Don't ask."
At dinner that evening, Riley was pleading with Maya and Val to let her come with them.
"Before you give up on me completely, you've gotta give me a trial run at least. You gotta, Maya. You've just gotta."
Maya groaned and nodded.
"Yay. If I succeed..."
"I take you." Maya confirmed "And if you fail..."
"I'm out, and out like a light." Riley agreed.
"Okay." Maya noticed Cory looking intently at his plate "What's he doing?"
The twins shared a look "He loves his tots."
"Eight. Nine. 10? 10 tots." Cory counted "Auggie. How many you got?"
"Twelve." Auggie smirked.
"Gimme." Cory held out his hand.
"Do I have to?"
Cory nodded and Auggie passed him a single tot.
"He counts the tots on everybody's plate to make sure nobody gets more than him." Riley explained.
"That's not what I do. I know one thing for sure about life. 10 tots is one tot too little, and 12 tots is one tot too much." Cory argued.
"Watch this, Riley." Maya turned to the twin's father "Mr. Matthews, you're looking good. You wearing your hair different?"
"How would that even be possible?" Topanga asked.
"Thank you, Maya. A lot of work." Cory smoothed his hair as Maya grabbed a tot from his plate and put it on Riley's "This doesn't just happen."
Riley got a scared look on her face.
"What's the matter with Riley?" Auggie asked.
"Don't worry about her, just eat your tots, buddy." Val patted his shoulder.
"I don't know, Auggie. Riley, is there something wrong?" Maya asked.
"Yeah-huh." Riley nodded "You know what? I'm not really hungry. Does anybody else want this?"
"No, Riley. She's yours, Eat her." Maya growled "Eat her."
Riley leaned into her plate and whispered "What happens if I eat you?"
"Who are you talking to?" Val asked.
"Riley, are you going to eat this? Or are you not going?" Maya raised her eyebrows.
"I'm going." Riley said, determined.
Maya picked up the tot and shoved it in Riley's mouth and chewing for her "Swallow her." She ordered.
Riley swallowed.
"Good for you." Val sighed "I guess you're going."
"So I'm in, right?" Riley asked.
The three girls were sitting in Riley's bay window.
"Yes." Maya groaned.
"Squee!"
"All right. First thing we're gonna need is another Riley." Maya stood up.
"Why?" Riley asked.
"Your parents are going to open the door to check on you, and it needs to look like you're in here."
"Why don't we need a fake Val?"
"I told them I'm at a party." Val shrugged.
"What?!" Riley and Maya shouted.
"Relax, they think it's one of Annie's parent's parties." Val reassured them "That way I'm not technically lying. I am at a party, it's not my fault they make assumptions."
"Okay." Riley nodded and turned to Maya "Maya, how could it possibly happen where anyone would ever believe that was actually me under the covers? I mean, who would be dumb enough to fall for-" Maya shoved a fake Riley under the covers " How did I get over there?"
"'Cause I'm the best there is at what I do." Maya boasted.
"Night, night, Fake Riley. I was once as innocent as you. But now all I have to do is climb out that window and then I am just like this wicked woman over here." Riley put an arm around Maya's shoulders.
"Riley, if you just let it happen, there's a chance we can actually get away with this." Maya said.
"Right. Sure. I'm letting it happen. First time I ever try something like this, and I am going to get away with it. You know why? Because I, like you, have no conscience."
"Great. Let's go." Maya climbed out the window.
"Okay, this is going to be an interesting night." Riley sighed.
"You can say that again." Val giggled, turned out the light, and followed her twin out the window.
"I can't believe we snuck out the window. I've never been to a college before. They're going to know I don't belong here." Riley was freaking out.
They'd walked all the way to NYU and were in the dorms hallway.
"Don't talk. Just act like you fit in." Maya ordered.
"I want to talk so bad."
"You don't know what to say. You've never been to a college before." Maya said.
"Beat Notre Dame!" Riley yelled and was picked up by a crowd of football players "Maya! Val!"
"Give her back." Val and Maya called.
They brought Riley back and she shouted "See you at the game, boys."
"You're not going to the game." Val shook her head.
"Riley-" Maya sighed.
"If you talk here, they pick you up and they carry you."
"That's ridiculous."
"Oh, yeah? Gamma Gamma Nu!"
Riley and Val were quickly picked up by a group of sorority girls.
"Help!" Val shrieked.
"Give 'em back." Maya called.
The twins were brought back. Riley was grinning from ear to ear.
"I just pledged. I don't want to wait for college to be real. I'm staying."
"So much pink!" Val shivered "And sparkles! I think I went blind."
"We're leaving." Maya said sadly.
"Why?" Val and Riley asked together.
"We got here too late."
Val and Riley peaked inside the dorm and saw their Uncle Josh talking with two girls and a boy.
"So how long did it take for you guys to get comfortable around here?" Josh asked.
"It's about the people you meet, really?" The first girl said.
"It's nice to meet you." Josh flirted.
"You too." The girl smiled back.
"How did I think I could ever compete with them?" Maya sighed.
"Maya... Gamma Gamma girls do not let thier sister give up at the first sign of trouble." Riley announced.
"You're not a Gamma Gamma girl." Maya pointed out.
"Ry-Ry! Vee-Vee! You totally ditched us." Harriet, one of the sorority girls, said coming up to them.
"Don't call me Vee-Vee." Val glared.
"We're dealing with some stuff, Harriet." Riley told the girl.
"I shouldn't tell you this, but you were already voted best friend to have." Harriet squealed.
"I thought Gretchen had that." Riley questioned.
"Nope. You! Gamma song?"
"Of course, Gamma song."
"Never Gamma song." Val shook her head.
"We are the sisters of Gamma Gamma Nu. We are humble, but we're better than you. We help people everywhere, but we still love our hair. 'Cause we're Gamma Gamma Nu. Whoo!" Riley and Harriet sang then flipped their hair "Stop it."
"That's ours!" Maya protested.
"Grow up little girl." Riley said rudely.
"Riley!" Val scolded.
"Don't call me a little girl, I'm leaving." Maya started to leave but Riley grabbed her hand.
"You're not."
"Riley, how do I even begin to compete with those girls in there?" Maya asked.
Inside the dorm room, the boy said "See, Josh? Nothing to worry about at all. You're going to fit right in here."
"Yeah, you've got new friends already, and a new life waiting as soon as you get here." The girl said.
"Yeah, he's gone." Maya shook her head "Please take me home."
"Bold women make bold choices." Riley told her.
"What does that even mean?"
"It's a Gamma thing. It's what we say right before we shove a sister into a bold choice." Riley explained and shoved Maya into the dorm room where Josh was.
"Maya, Riley, Val?" Josh asked, confused.
"You know these girls, Josh?" The boy walked uptimes to them and tried to flirt "How you doing?
"Eww!" Val coughed.
"We're in middle school." Maya stopped him.
"Oh! They can't be here, Josh." The boy freaked out.
"No kidding. Riley, Val, what are you thinking? You have to go." Josh ordered.
"You're right, Josh. We're sorry. This was a bad idea." Maya tried to pull the twins out of the room.
"Wait. Intrigued." The first girl pushed Josh out of the way and stopped the girls "Maya, right? What was your bad idea?"
"He's their Uncle Josh. I call him Uncle Boing, because look at him." Maya gestured at Josh.
"She made us sneak out a window to come here. That's how much she likes him. Because she was afraid that you guys were witches, and that you would steal him from her." Riley explained.
"They're not witches, Riley." Maya sighed "They're girls who don't live at home anymore and know a lot more than we do."
"Sorry we interrupted your evening." Riley said.
"Oh, I think our evening has just begun." The second girl smiled.
Harriet ran in and screamed "Initiation!"
Riley squealed as she was picked up and carried away. They tried to pick up Val too, bu she kicked and screamed until they dropped her in the doorway.
"Oh, thank God, I don't have to go through that." Val groaned, rubbing her sore butt that she'd been dropped on.
"All right. Bring her back." Josh said, as he pulled the boy with him to go get Riley.
"Andrew? You told me you died." Harriet asked, very confused and probably a little tipsy.
"I did. I am." Andrew said awkwardly then whispered "Don't forget me."
Harriet sighed as Josh tugged Andrew out "They all die." She followed them to Riley's initiation.
"Hey." The first girl sat Maya down on one of the beds.
"Hey." Maya sighed.
"Hey." Val gave a little wave and plopped down next to Maya.
"So, Maya, what do you see in this guy?" The first girl asked.
"How long have you had a crush on him?" The second girl questioned.
"It's not a crush. It isn't." Maya argued "Maybe I'm not as old as you guys, but I know what I feel."
"Hey, I've never done anything like what you're doing." The first girl put her hands up in surrender.
"Yeah, it makes you pretty grown-up to me." The second girl agreed.
Maya sighed "I just thought if I did something like this, then he might take me seriously and then maybe we could come to some kind of understanding."
Josh came back with Riley and Andrew "We have an understanding. I stay here, you go home."
"Sit down." The two college girls ordered.
"Okay." Josh sat down.
"I'm just stupid, right?" Maya asked.
"Hey. I would love if somebody did something stupid for me." Andrew smiled wistfully.
"Yeah, it's not the big gestures that we do for other people that help us grow up." The first girl nodded.
"But the small choices you make for yourself." The second continued.
"Ohh. Maya told you guys about her crush." Riley realized.
"It's not a crush." Maya protested.
"Maya, can you name one thing you know about him that you love?" Riley asked.
"He's part of your family, Riley. I love your family." Maya shrugged.
"And we love you. What about Josh in particular?" Riley asked.
"Yeah, Maya, you don't- you don't even really know me." Josh pointed out.
"Yeah. You're right. I don't pay attention to anything you do. I don't know that you drive from Philadelphia to New York, not even looking if you got into NYU just so you could open your acceptance letter in front of your older brother because you love him, and you want him to be proud of you. And I see the way you are with Auggie. A little kid who looks up to you who you always have time for. Or how you are with Val. A girl who knows exactly what she wants and how to get it. How you treat her like an adult even though she and Riley are the same age and how she respects you so much. And I know that even though you'd rather stay here with these girls, you're going to walk Riley and me home. Because that's just the kind of guy you are. I like you." Maya declared.
"Dude, what is wrong with you?" Andrew asked.
Josh jumped up "She's three years younger than me."
"Sit down." The college girls commanded again.
"Yep-No! No, because I sat down the first time, and I feel like if I sit down this time it won't reflect well on me."
"Yeah? How's this reflect on you? If you don't sit down, I'm gonna tell every girl on campus that you belong" The girl put her arm around Maya "to the bravest girl that I have ever met. I'll make sure that no one goes out with you the whole time you're here."
"Sit down, Uncle Josh." Val sighed.
"Okay. I'll sit down. But only because I want to." Josh clarified.
"Maya, he's 17 and you're 14?" The first girl asked.
"Yeah."
"That might seem like a really big age difference now, but here in college, we learn a really difficult math." The first girl told the blonde.
"Yeah. And when you get here, you'll be 18 and he'll be 21. And the good news is that he'll be smarter because he'll be in college." The second agreed.
"And he just may be smart enough to look at you differently."
"Okay. Thank you guys for figuring out my entire life for me. But this has been the worst party of my life." Josh stood up "Come on. Let's go."
"Oh, you're leaving?" The first girl asked.
"I'm gonna walk them home." Josh left with Riley and Maya.
Val stayed put.
"Can we help you?" The second girl asked, confused.
"Yeah, actually you can. Can you explain to me why you think it's a good idea to get my friend's hopes up? For a dream that's impossible?" Val asked.
"It's not impossible."
"Yes, it is. Uncle Josh has told her over and over that he's not interested in her like that. You don't get to tell him how to spend his life or who to spend it with. If we don't know our own minds, we aren't safe from ourselves. Uncle Josh knows how he feels about Maya, threatening him with a terrible college experience is not the way to get him to change that. He can't just flip a switch and decide he likes her. It doesn't work like that. Trust me if it did, in my life that switch would be off 24/7."
"Why?"
"Long story. My point is, you can't make someone like someone else just because you think they should be together. And I think I finally get that."
"Huh?"
"My sister likes a boy, the boy likes me. I turned him down because I thought he should be with Riley." Val explained.
"Wow." The first girl gaped "That's pretty crazy."
"Yeah, I know." Val sighed.
"Look, I'm sorry." The first girl apologized "I know how hard that is. And if you ever need help," She grabbed a pen and Val's hand and wrote her name and number on it "Give us a call."
"Thanks," Val squinted at the name on her hand "Charlotte."
"You're welcome." Charlotte smiled "And I'm sorry we threatened your Uncle. We shouldn't have done that."
"Thanks, apology accepted." Val grinned "I better go, they'll realize they forgot me in three, two, one..."
"Val!" Josh's shout could be heard across campus.
"Coming!"
"I want to tell my parents what I did." Riley said.
Riley and Maya were sitting in the bay window. Val was reading on Riley's bed.
"Too late." Maya smiled.
"I want to tell them how much I'm looking forward to going to college someday." Riley tried to explain.
"Because you loved those college girls you met there?" Topanga asked, coming in with her husband.
"They were so great." Then Riley realized "What?"
"Because one day you hope to be those kinds of girls yourselves?" Cory continued.
"You knew. They knew. Parents know everything." Riley grumped.
"No. Someone told us." Topanga corrected.
"Val?"
"Not Val." Cory shook his head.
Josh came in "I just wanted to say goodbye. Very interesting visit."
"Josh, you told them." Riley accused.
"Told them what, Riley? That nothing happened? Why would I tell them nothing happened if nothing happened? Why would I tell them that?" Josh tried to lie.
"You're a terrible liar, Uncle Josh." Val giggled.
"It's okay, Josh. Maya told us." Cory said.
"What?" Riley asked.
"Maya told us everything." Topanga smiled.
"Why?"
"I wouldn't rat you out, Riley. Sorry, Cory. Guess I'm still your little brother, huh?" Josh shrugged.
"No, Josh. You were so looking forward to making new friends at that party. But you left. Just to make sure that Riley, Maya, and Val got home safely. You're not so little anymore, Josh. I guess I have to stop looking at you that way." Cory grinned.
"Thanks. That means a lot to me." Josh said and the brothers hugged.
"Maya, why did you tell them?" Riley questioned.
"It was a choice I made for myself. I thought it was the grown-up thing to do." Maya explained.
"It was." Josh nodded "You're not so little anymore, Maya. I guess I have to stop looking at you like that."
"Thanks. Means a lot to me." Maya smirked.
"Riley, are you ever going to pull something like this again?" Topanga asked.
"No." Riley shook her head "Even though it may have been a great night, it isn't worth how terrible I feel for not telling you."
"Riley, we're happy that you liked your college experience." Topanga told her daughter.
"And we're sad to give you a grounding experience. Two weeks." Cory finished.
"Deal." Riley nodded.
Auggie came in "Good night. I brushed my teeth."
"Auggie. You are grounded for one week for not telling us your sisters snuck out of the house." Cory scolded.
"How's that a bad thing? I was protecting her." Auggie asked.
Maya got up "See you guys in a year."
Val stood up too.
"Hold on, Val." Topanga stopped her "You're in trouble too."
"Why? I told you I was going to a party." Val pointed out "You just assumed it was one of Annie's parents' parties. You should have asked more questions."
Topanga paused "Ooh." She groaned "You're right, we should have. But you're still grounded."
"I figured. What am I grounded from?"
"Um, Cory, what is she grounded from?" Topanga asked, turning to her husband.
"Uh, I'm not sure, she doesn't watch a lot of TV or use her phone for much. Ah! I know! Val you're grounded from reading." Cory decided.
"Have fun moving all my books out of my room." Val shrugged.
"Ooh." Cory groaned "Okay, you can keep your books, but, uh, you're grounded from leaving the house except for school. For two weeks."
"Okay." Val nodded "Seems fair."
"Good, have a good night girls." Topanga smiled and left, pulling Cory with her.
Word count: 4735 words
Please don't forget to comment, vote, and add to your reading lists! And stay home, stay healthy, and stay happy! We will get through this difficult time.
Love,
The Author