Val Meets Philadelphia

I don't own Girl Meets World!

Most of the votes were for a combination of 1 and 2 so here's what I'm gonna do. I'll do one or more chapters of Val's point of view and one or more chapters of Riley/Lucas'. Here's Val's first chapter!

Val stared out the window as her mother drove her to Philadelphia and her grandparents. She felt a tear trickle down her cheek and swiped it away angrily. Instead, Val pulled out her phone and looked at the text she'd gotten from Lucas.

'Val, Farkle told us you're leaving, I'm sorry. I should have stepped in sooner and stopped Riley. Can you please answer your phone? I really want to talk to you. Please be safe.'

Val sighed and closed her eyes, feeling more tears prick the corners of her eyes. Maybe she should call Lucas. But she was afraid if she talked about it any more she'd start crying and never stop.

"Val, honey?" Topanga said softly "How are you holding up?"

"I don't know." Val whispered "I feel sick."

"Do you need to stop?"

"No, keep going." Val shook her head "It'll go away."

"Don't ignore your feelings, Val." Topanga said "They're important. Ignoring them doesn't make them go away, it'll just make them worse."

"I know." Val nodded "I just need a little processing time."

"Okay." Topanga said softly, not wanting to push her daughter.

They drove on in silence until they reached Alan and Amy's house. Josh came out when they arrived and helped Val bring her stuff in. Together they carried her bags up to the guest bedroom and put them on the bed.

When they came back downstairs, Topanga was explaining what had happened to Alan and Amy.

"Oh, sweetheart." Amy said, tears filling her eyes as she wrapped Val in a tight hug "I'm sorry."

"We all knew this was coming. Riley and I had to have it out." Val sighed "Doesn't make it hurt any less though."

"I know." Grandpa Alan joined the hug "It's not fair."

Topanga left and Val joined her extended family for dinner.

"Come on, Val." Josh pleaded "Just eat a little bit more." He pushed the mashed potatoes towards her.

"I can't eat anymore, it was delicious though, thank you." Val slid the bowl back to him.

Her plate was barely half empty. Josh, Amy, and Alan all shared a concerned look.

"Okay, but if you get hungry later let us know and you can have whatever you want." Amy finally told her granddaughter.

"Thanks, Grandma." Val paused "May I be excused?"

"Of course, dear." Alan said "We can watch a movie tonight if you want."

"Maybe in a bit." Val said noncommittally "I think I just need to be alone for a while."

"Alright, call us if you need anything." Amy said.

"I will." Val promised.

She went upstairs to the guest bedroom and sat down on the bed. She pulled out her phone and looked again at the text from Lucas. How he could be so understanding and sweet was amazing to her. But she didn't want him blaming himself, it wasn't his fault. Val had seen this day coming for a long time, she didn't know how or when it would happen, just that it would.

With a sigh, Val decided to text Lucas.

'Hey, Lucas, I'm sorry I left without saying goodbye. I needed to get away from Riley and all the...'

She groaned and erased the text. Then started over.

'Hi, Lucas, don't blame yourself, please. It's not your fault. I'm sorry I haven't answered my phone but...'

Val sighed and erased the text again. Why was this so difficult? Lucas was her friend, he would understand. But Val didn't know what to say without it sounding like she was making excuses for her own behavior. Running off and not telling him goodbye wasn't her smartest move.

After another twenty minutes of typing out a text then erasing it and starting a new one, Val settled on saying this.

'Hey, Lucas, I'm really sorry I left without saying goodbye. I should have let you know I was leaving. I just want to say that what happened wasn't your fault at all. Riley and I have had our problems for years and I guess this was just the straw that broke the camel's back. I'm sorry.'

She shut her eyes and was about to send the text when Uncle Josh knocked on her door and called out "Val? You okay in there?"

"I'm okay, Uncle Josh." Val called back.

"Can I come in?"

Val hesitated for a fraction of a second before she responded "Sure."

Uncle Josh opened the door and came in. He walked over and sat down next to her on the bed.

"How you doing? You holding up?" He asked.

"I don't know." Val sighed "I'm trying to text a friend and I can't seem to find the right words."

"Let me see what you have." Josh said and Val handed him her phone, he read the message quickly "This sounds good. You always had a way with words."

"Thanks, but it still doesn't feel quite right. I feel like I'm making excuses." Val grabbed a pillow and hugged it to her chest "I don't want him to think I'm trying to place the blame on Riley because I don't want to do that. She may be horrible to me but she's still a person and he deserves to form his own opinion of her."

"You're too nice, Val."

"I know." Val groaned "But I don't know how to stop."

"I'll tell you how." Josh grinned and passed her the phone "Send this text. You are not placing the blame on anyone. In fact it almost seems like you're blaming yourself with how much you apologize."

"Sorry."

"You don't have to apologize to me, Val." Josh grinned "All you have to do, is send the text."

Val took a deep breath, shut her eyes, and hit the send button.

"It's sent!" She cried, tossing her phone down on the bed.

"Good job, I'm proud of you." Josh hugged her "Come on, let's go watch a movie."

"What are we watching?" Val asked.

"Whatever you want."

"Oh, you're gonna regret that. There's a reason my family never lets me pick the movie." Val laughed evilly.

"I don't care, as long as it keeps that beautiful smile on your face." Josh said.

"Thanks, Uncle Josh."

"Anytime."

Val didn't look at her phone for the rest of the night. Even though it kept buzzing. After watching "Chicago" and dancing to all the songs, she was just too tired to do anything but sleep. When she woke up in the morning she had five unread text messages from Lucas, four from Farkle, twelve from Annie, and six from Eric.

She read Lucas' first.

'Val, don't be sorry, you had every right to leave. Where are you now? How long will you be gone?'

'I know you said not to blame myself but I still feel like I should have protected you. You're my friend, it's my job.'

'Val?'

'Val, you there?'

'Oh, Lord, please tell me you didn't do something stupid.'

She quickly messaged him back.

'Hey, sorry, I got distracted last night and didn't look at my phone until this morning. I'm staying with my grandparents in Philadelphia for a while, I'm not sure for how long.'

Then she moved on to Farkle's.

'Hey, Val, I hope you're doing okay. Lucas just called me and he's freaking out, he says you're not responding to your texts.'

'Val please text us back, we're pretty worried.'

'Look, Riley is really sorry, she got your message and feels terrible. Maya just called me to say she won't stop crying or leave the bay window. I just thought you should know that she regrets what she said.'

'Please answer me.'

She sent him a quick message.

'Hey, Farkle, I'm sorry, I fell asleep and didn't check my phone until just now. I'm sorry Riley feels bad, but I can't help her with that right now.'

She got a message back immediately.

'Oh, thank God, you're okay. I know you can't help Riley right now, I wasn't trying to suggest that you do. I just wanted you to know she feels sorry.'

'Thanks, Farkle, I appreciate how much you care about her.'

'I care about you too, Val. Remember that.'

'I will.'

She spent the next hour texting with Lucas, Farkle, Annie, and Eric at the same time. Finally her stomach started to growl and she sent a quick goodbye to let them know she was going to go have breakfast.

Downstairs Grandma Amy had made pancakes. Josh was already shoveling them into his mouth.

"Hey, Val?" He asked, when he saw her come in.

"What's up?"

"So, we were thinking, instead of lounging around here all day, why don't you come to school with me for a week and see what high school is like." Josh suggested.

"Would they let me?" Val asked, excitement creeping into her voice.

"Sure, Mom already called and got the okay from the principal." Josh told her.

"Really? Thanks! I'd love to." Val cried and hugged her Uncle.

"Well, then you'd better start eating. We leave in half an hour." Josh grinned.

Val quickly ate her pancakes then rushed upstairs to get dressed.

She wore a striped black and white top, a red skirt, and black flats. Then she rushed back downstairs and out the door.

"Ready to go?" Josh chuckled.

"Yep." Val grinned and buckled up in the passenger seat "Let's do this."

They drove to Josh's high school, Val getting more excited and more nervous the closer they got. When they arrived the first thing they did was sign Val in at the office. Then Josh led her to his locker, where a number of people were waiting fo him.

"Josh!" One boy shouted "Good to see you, man."

"Hey, Cody." Josh greeted the boy with an elaborate handshake "Guys, this is my niece, Val. She's gonna shadow me for the week."

"Really? Cool." Cody turned to Val "I'm Cody, nice to meet you."

"You too." Val smiled politely.

"I'm Veronica." One of the girls introduced herself.

"Nice to meet you." Val nodded.

"Charlie."

"and Hazel." A pair of identical twin girls were next.

"Actually," Josh corrected "That's Hazel and that's Charlie. They like to switch names to confuse people."

"Cool." Val laughed.

The bell rang and everyone scurried off, shouting goodbyes over the din of the hallway.

"Follow me, Val. My first class is AP World History." Josh led her through the throngs of people until they reached a classroom.

"Nice of you to join us, Mr. Matthews." The teacher scowled "And who is this?"

"This is my niece, Val, she's shadowing me this week." Josh explained.

"Well, I hope you like our school, Miss Matthews." The teacher gestured to two empty chairs in the back "Take your seats and we'll begin."

By the time lunch rolled around, everyone was talking about the kid shadowing Josh Matthews. The girl was always polite and courteous but seemed distant, as if she had something on her mind.

Of course, Val had a lot on her mind. She sat down next to her Uncle and his friends with her lunchbox and pulled out her sandwich.

"Hey, Josh." A flirtatious voice said from behind them.

"Hey, Tori." Josh smiled "What's up?"

"Not much, you?"

"Well, I'm sure you've heard about Val here." Josh wrapped his arm around Val.

"No, I haven't." Tori's voice turned cold "Isn't she a little young for you, Josh?"

Val choked on her sandwich "Ew!" She coughed "He's my Uncle!"

"Oh, my God, I'm so sorry." Tori quickly apologized "I totally see the family resemblance now. Sorry again." She scurried off.

Josh thumped Val's back as she coughed "Sorry about her." He chuckled "We've been friends for years, she's just overprotective."

"Okay, now I know where I get my cluelessness from." Val sighed.

"What do you mean?" Josh asked.

"She likes you, dummy." Val exclaimed "It's so obvious."

"Nah," Josh scoffed "she doesn't. You're crazy."

"Maybe, but I still have eyes and ears."

"She'd never be into me like that." Josh protested.

"But she is."

"I've been saying this forever, he doesn't believe it." Hazel laughed.

"He just laughs and says that it's impossible." Charlie agreed.

"Hey." A new voice was behind them "You're Josh Matthews' cousin, right?"

"Close, I'm his niece. My name's Val." Val said, turning around.

"Oh, oops." The boy flushed, he was clearly a freshman "Sorry."

"It's fine, what can I do for you?" Val smiled.

"Well, my friends and I wondered if you'd like to come sit with us. You know, get to know some kids your own age." The boy offered nervously.

"I don't know." Val hesitated "Do you mind Uncle Josh?"

"Not at all. Have fun." Josh told her.

"Well, okay then, I guess."

"Cool, we're over here." The boy led Val towards the edge of the cafeteria, to where another boy and three girls were sitting "My name's Jackson, you can call me Jack. That's Nick, Jenny, Lydia, and April."

"Nice to meet you all." Val said, sitting down.

"So how old are you, Val?" Jenny asked.

"I'm thirteen, in the eighth grade."

"Where do you go to school? I've never seen you around town before." Nick said.

"I'm not really from around here, I live in New York, I'm just staying with my grandparents for a while." Val shrugged.

"New York?" Lydia asked in disbelief "That's awesome!"

"It's pretty cool." Val said shyly, not wanting to sound like she was bragging "But this place is pretty amazing too."

"So, um, what's your Uncle like?" April giggled.

"He's nice." Val said awkwardly "Did you just want to talk to me because of my Uncle?"

"No, of course not." Jack assured her "April just has a crush on him."

"You sound like my friend, Maya." Val laughed "She has a crush on him too."

"Ooh, sounds like you've got competition." Jenny teased her friend.

"Hardly." Val giggled "She's three years younger than him."

"I'm fifteen, he's sixteen almost seventeen, I think I've got a shot." April sighed dreamily.

"Good luck." Val told her.

The group finished lunch and were talking when Josh came over.

"Hey, Val, come on, it's almost time for class." He said.

"Oh, sorry. Bye, guys, I'll see you later." Val waved as she got up.

"So, you making new friends?" Josh asked.

"I don't know if we're friend-friends yet, we just met, but they seem really nice and I'd love to be friends with them." Val shrugged "The people at your school are really nice."

The rest of the week Val would go to school with Josh, eat lunch with Jack, Nick, Jenny, April, and Lydia, and attend classes with her Uncle. Even though his classes were much more advanced than anything Val had taken before, she really enjoyed the challenge. On Friday, she sat down next to Lydia.

"Hey, Lyd." She greeted.

"Hey, Val." Lydia smiled "We're having a sleepover tonight, wanna come?"

"I'd have to check that it's okay, but I'd love to. Let me text my Grandma." Val pulled other phone and texted Grandma Amy.

Within moments she got a message back.

'GHF ILY'

"Okay, I can go!" Val grinned, showing Lydia her phone.

"How do you understand that? What does GHF mean?"

"Go have fun." Val sighed "Grandma's been trying to learn how to text."

"Oh, well, at least you can understand her, my Mom just sends me gibberish and cat pictures." April groaned as her phone beeped "Here's Mr. Muffiins." She showed them the picture.

Josh drove Val over to Lydia's house that evening.

"And remember, don't let hem pressure you into doing anything you don't want to do." He reminded her.

"I won't and don't worry, Lydia promised all we're doing is makeovers and scary stories." Val assured her Uncle "I'll be fine."

"Okay, I trust you, Val. Have fun." Josh said as they pulled up to the house.

Val hopped out of the car "Thanks, Uncle Josh, I love you."

"Love you too, kiddo." Josh waited for Val to get to the door before he drove away.

"Ahhh!" Lydia squealed when she opened the door "You made it!"

"I told you I would." Val laughed "What's on the agenda for tonight?"

"We decided to do mega makeovers." April grinned "We're gonna look so good when we're done. Especially with your help on the makeup. I can barely do mascara."

"Let's get this party started!" Jenny shouted.

Word count: 2809 words
So I know the sleepover is a little cliche but it's going to be important for Val's character in the future, so bear with me. Please don't forget to comment, vote, and add to your reading lists! Also stay home, stay healthy, stay safe, and wash your hands!
Love,
The Author