Chapter 8
Ring The Bells

When they had finally left their old middle school, getting back in his car as they headed to his parents' house, Maya couldn't help but press her fingers over the space where she knew the diamond ring hung from the chain around her neck. She would touch it, and she would think about that moment, him and her on the steps, as he had asked her to marry him. Of course, it had always been in the cards for them, at least it had been for a very long time, and as far as they'd both known it would have remained that way for a couple more years. But then…

Ever since they'd found out about the baby, the thought had been playing at the back of her mind, much as she tried not to. She knew it wouldn't change a thing whether or not they were married when their baby was born, she knew that it wouldn't be a bad thing if they didn't follow what seemed to be expected of people. All that would matter would be that they were happy, and together, with a healthy baby that they would love even more than they already did now. And still, for all that… somewhere deep down she couldn't deny that she wanted it, that she wanted to take that step now more than ever.

So when he had presented her with that ring, it did not even require even a hundredth of a second for her to decide one way or the other. She'd already had one foot up the aisle as it were. Now that ring was around her neck, another secret, but like the bigger one she also kept hidden beneath her clothes, it wouldn't be a secret for much longer. Just a few more hours…

They pulled up to the Friar house to find it already surrounded with cars. Maya and Lucas were both familiar enough with those cars by now to know who had arrived. The Zhus and the Babineaux, the Garcias, the Orlandos, the Matthews, the Zvolenskys and the Fitz, and of course the Hunter Harts…

"They're all here…" Maya breathed.

"You okay?" Lucas smiled, reaching for her hand.

"It's just a few more hours, right?" she looked up at him with a fretful look. He kissed the top of her head and she hummed. "It's fine, we can do this. We've been keeping things hush out here for a week and everything's been good. It's just…"

"I know," he promised, and he did know, of course. It was easier for him to pretend like nothing was going on, when he didn't have a growing belly to hide, but it didn't mean he didn't walk around every day, trying to make a conscious effort not to say what he wasn't supposed to say when every part of him was just excited and wanted to share it with the world.

"We could just get it done now… What's a few more hours at this point."

"Is that the nerves talking or do you really want to do it now?" he asked.

"Honestly, bit of both," she admitted. "Look, I know that you won't say anything because you don't want to sway my choice, and I love that about you, but right now, just… sway away." He chuckled, nodding as he considered the choice.

"Well… It would be easier to tell everyone at dinner, when they're all sitting and they're not all spread out through the house…" he started, and she nodded, with him so far. "But on the other hand, if we told them now, then it would be done, and we could enjoy the party instead of stressing the whole time." She nodded again, agreeing with this as well. "We know as soon as we say it though… It's going to be all anyone will talk about for a while, so maybe…"

"Maybe we go in, say hi to everyone, and then we drop the double load?" she finished for him. He smiled, nodding. "Okay…" she breathed.

"Okay," he echoed, bringing their joined hands up for him to kiss hers. "No matter what happens in there, you know where I stand."

"At my side at every minute?" she looked up to him.

"Yes," he laughed. "But I also meant just that I love you, and I love our sprout."

"Oh, that one, yeah," she smiled, stretching up to kiss him. "Come along, fiancé," she whispered as they shared one more look.

"Yes, ma'am," he grinned, more so for the squint she gave him for that.

Much as the cars outside had prepared them, once they walked through the door to the drone of so many voices talking, people everywhere, kids running around… Lucas felt Maya's hand squeeze his and he squeezed hers back. They had this, they'd be fine.

They were met by a number of the parents before they could actually get around to saying hello to any of their visiting friends. When they finally found some of those, it came in the form of Farkle and Isadora. They were so surprised to find them there, when as far as they knew the two of them were not able to make the trip this year, and they went over to them, hugs offered and accepted. When Maya pulled back after embracing her, Isadora had looked at her for a moment, and her eyes had taken a turn down.

"You…" Isadora started to say, and Maya moved at once to usher her out of the living room and into the nearest room with a door, which ended up being the bathroom. The boys were right behind them and suddenly there they were, four of them in a small bathroom.

"What are we doing in here?" Farkle asked, looking from one from to the other. Maya and Lucas looked to one another, then to Farkle, then to Isadora, then back to each other. Farkle still looked confused, while Isadora was… well, also confused, though for a whole other reason. With a sigh, like their plan, on shaky legs already as it was, had started to disintegrate, Maya looked to the two of them and came out with the truth. The alternative would have been for Isadora to go and possibly beat them to the punch without knowing she wasn't supposed to.

"I'm pregnant," she told them. Isadora smiled, though still with a twinge of a look that said 'well I figured that out,' while Farkle's jaw slackened with surprise, his eyes turning down to look at his old friend as though surely he would have noticed earlier if that was the case. Maya obliged him by flattening her shirt, allowing it to adopt the curve of her body.

"And…" Lucas reminded her.

"And!" Maya nodded, sweeping her finger under her shirt and scooping out the ring. "Soon to be Mrs. Huckleberry at your service," she grinned. "Now, you can't tell anyone," she pointed her finger to one and the other. "We're telling everyone today, so just…"

"Got it," Farkle nodded.

"Won't say a word," Isadora promised. "Although I don't see how they can't tell."

Thankfully, despite Isadora's estimation, no one appeared to spot the change in Maya as they continued to make the rounds, reuniting with their visiting friends as much as with their parents. They were the picture of 'totally normal, nothing to see here,' although, when they had gotten to the point where they had said hello to everyone, when Lucas had given her a look as though to ask if this was the moment or if she'd rather wait a bit more, she knew there was something she needed to do before all that.

"Be right back, don't go far," Maya told him, kissing him quickly before darting off in search of Riley. When she found her, talking with Dylan, Asher, and Ray, the two of them who knew this was The Day, looked at her with a discreet sort of tip of the head, asking without words if she needed them to do something. "Riley, come with me for a minute?"

"Coming," Riley detached herself from the group at once. She followed Maya as they went up the stairs and into Lucas' old room. Maya shut the door, locked it, before moving to her oldest friend with a finger pressed to her lips. Don't make a sound. "What…" Riley whispered, freezing at once when Maya pulled out the ring again and showed it to her. She gasped, and Maya planted her hand over her friend's mouth.

"Shh!" she begged, and Riley nodded. Maya carefully removed her hand and, just as soon, was caught up in a giddy hug that made her smile.

"When did you…"

"Earlier today," Maya whispered back. She told Riley about the surprise detour to their old middle school, how she had not seen it coming at all and then suddenly there it had been, and he had been on his knees before her, and she'd said yes… Of course, she'd said yes. Riley looked at the ring now, holding it carefully as it was connected to Maya's neck via the chain.

"When are you…"

"We haven't exactly had the chance to figure that out yet," Maya pointed out, and Riley gave a look to say 'right, of course.' "Well, there is one thing I know right now though, and that's who my maid of honor has to be," she grinned, evolved into a laugh when she saw the excited tears on her friend's face. "More hugs?"

"More hugs," Riley threw her arms around her again.

She hadn't gotten to be the one to tell her directly about her being pregnant; she had absolutely wanted to get to look her best friend of old in the eye when she shared the news of her engagement. As for the rest, well, they had long vowed to be one another's maid of honor. Riley had proclaimed it at least, back when they were kids, while Maya, who could not yet foresee herself even getting married, had agreed on principle. Now, earlier, as she'd touched to that ring on the drive over to the Friar house, she'd remembered those little girls running around and 'playing wedding' with an unsuspecting Farkle, and she'd known she would get to keep her promise.

"When are you going to tell them?" Riley quietly asked as the two of them emerged from the room and started back toward the stairs.

"I was thinking sort of nowish," Maya revealed, releasing a nervous breath.

After spending all this time debating what would be the best way, the best time, they had agreed that it would be today, but even that had not been enough, they needed to figure out when exactly, and that had changed along the way. Now, as they climbed down the stairs and she took in all those people clustered here and there around the Friar house, it all felt like too much at once, at least… too much while most of their parents had no idea what was coming. And as much as she tried not to worry, not to let herself think it could all go wrong, it just didn't feel like she was able to spring it on all of them at once.

"We need to get our parents somewhere together," Maya told Lucas when she found him. She didn't have to explain herself. He just nodded and told her he'd get his parents to the kitchen, and she should get hers and do the same. "Okay… Okay, I can do that, yeah…"

"Hey…" he stopped her as she moved to go.

She turned back to him and he kissed her, holding her face in his hands. They looked at one another and they smiled. Sure, some people knew… several people, really, but on the whole, they were still living with their child as a secret. This would be the last moment before it all changed, and they had to acknowledge it. She gave him a nod, he kissed her forehead, and they were off.

"Dad, hey," Lucas found him in the living room, chatting with Mr. Zhu, Mr. Orlando, and Mr. Garcia. "We're supposed to get the…" he hooked his thumb back toward the kitchen. His father got up with a nod.

Lucas had had plenty of time to consider their plan while Maya had been upstairs with Riley, and he was proud to say that he had more or less predicted Maya's decision to isolate their families ahead of time. Luckily for him, he already had a suspicion-proof idea for how to get his parents there. It was sort of tradition, every year for a good decade. They had to get the 'special' dishes down, and Melinda of course would seek to supervise. They didn't even have to say anything, when she saw the two of them walk off toward the kitchen, it was like she knew, and she detached herself from her own cluster to go and join them.

Meanwhile, Maya was left just a bit frazzled as she wove around in search of her parents. Sure, her mother already knew, and she'd likely understand what was happening as soon as Maya went looking for her, but it still had her heart going like a drum solo. Unlike Lucas, she did not have a ready-made reason to bring them into the kitchen, so, after debating her options in her head, she finally took out her phone and wrote to her mother.

Maya: Find a reason and bring Dad into the kitchen? It's go time.

Katy: Be right there.

When she'd spotted her mother as she got up from the couch with her father in tow, both of them heading toward the kitchen, Maya had taken a breath and started making her way there, too… only to very nearly bump head on into someone. Both of them just barely managed to stop and look to see who they'd nearly collided with. It was Pappy Joe.

"Woah! Sorry there, I didn't see you," he reached out, holding her shoulder for a moment. "You okay?" he asked.

"Y-yeah, yeah, I'm fine, are you okay?" she asked, trying not to look she was trying to get away from him, even though she was sort of doing that, wasn't she? All she could think about was the gathering that would be happening in the kitchen without her.

"Oh, don't go worrying about me now. Say, have you seen my son?"

"Your s…" she blinked, like for a second she didn't remember who his son was… Your sprout's grandfather, dummy, and he's waiting… "Kitchen! The kitchen!" she blurted out, feeling very much like she needed to smack herself in the face right about now. "He's… in the kitchen, with Lucas, for the…" she gestured.

"The dishes, right, right," Pappy Joe nodded, looking at her with an amused sort of smirk.

"Here, I'll go with you," she told him, and off they went. No backing out now…

When they arrived in the kitchen, they came upon the scene of Lucas and his father handing the dishes down to Shawn, while Melinda was telling Katy how they had gotten the set for their wedding, and how there'd been a mix up in the delivery, the wrong pattern being sent… Maya had heard the story before, more than once. Right now she feared anyone being near those dishes when they gave their news. What if they dropped one, broke one… or more than one…

"Do you need something, sweetie?" Melinda asked, and Maya blinked.

"No, I, uh, we just sort of bumped into each other," she indicated Pappy Joe. "He was looking for Mr. Friar," she indicated the man, who turned around at the sound of his name.

"Do you know, I forgot what it was now," Pappy Joe told them. Maya looked at him and she swore he gave her a smile like he knew what was about to happen, like he'd orchestrated all this in order to get her nervous self moving to where she needed to be. She looked to Lucas, who had a similar look on his face. "Need a hand with those?" Pappy Joe moved toward his son, while his grandson moved down from the step ladder and over to where Maya stood.

For as much as her creativity had always been one of her strongest traits, in that moment she had nothing, and she was pretty sure if neither of them said a word in the next ten seconds they would miss their moment. Either that, or everyone would be staring at them wondering what they were up to, just standing there. She didn't want to just pull out her phone and play the heartbeat again like she'd done with her mother, she just…

"Is that your new calendar?" she asked Mrs. Friar as she spotted the thing sitting on the counter. As ever, it showed pictures of flowering gardens, all year round, every year. Her calendar for 2023, according to the cover, was all about lilies.

"It is," Melinda confirmed with a smile. "Isn't it beautiful?"

"Yeah, I love it." And then she had an idea. "Hey, I know that you always take the time to write down all the birthdays in there, did you do it already?" When she was told that she hadn't, Maya swallowed back a breath of relief. "I was thinking… you've got pretty much everyone here whose names you'll put in there, so it could be a fun sort of thing to have them all write their own names in, you know?"

"I like it," Pappy Joe declared at once.

"So do I," Katy smiled.

"Yeah, what do you say, Mom?" Lucas asked. Melinda looked to the calendar, then back to her son's girlfriend, and then she smiled.

"Sure, that sounds lovely. What a wonderful idea, Maya."

"Here, I'll start?" Lucas asked, checking with his mother, who gave a nod. He found a pen, turning the pages to the month of May. In the square for his birthday, he wrote down his name, before passing both items on to his father, who flipped through to October and did the same. From there, the calendar was passed to Pappy Joe, and Katy, and Shawn, and Melinda, before it finally landed in Maya's hands.

"Right," she opened the calendar on to the month of January and entered her name. When she was done, she held a moment before turning the pages again. February, March, April, May, and then June…

When she bent over the page again and started to write something, the others wondered what she was doing. Finally, she'd set the pen down and taken a step back to land at Lucas' side again, trying to appear the picture of calm as she watched them all sort of lean in to see what she'd scribbled in the square for June 11th. She reached for Lucas' hand behind their backs. He ensured that his phone, discreetly planted while everyone was signing, was aimed and recording.

Maya's due date

Later, when they would get the chance to replay the scene via Lucas' video, they would be able to pinpoint everyone's reactions as they happened. In the moment itself, it was all a jumble, as it was something of a photo finish to know just who had figured it out when, which made it difficult to see that lightbulb moment for each of them. It was made eternally more difficult as they'd been distracted at once by the sound of Melinda Friar's outcry.

"What? What? Due…" she looked back to her son and his girlfriend, and it took no time at all to know where she stood. Grandma number two was a lock. Before they knew it, she had them both wrapped in her arms and she was laughing and crying, to the point where some people poked their heads in to see what was happening in the kitchen. When she pulled back to look at them, she found a pair of stunned but tearfully happy faces staring back. "Are you really?" she asked, looking from one to the other.

"Y-yeah, three months," Maya managed to say, and then there were more hugs, more cheers. It took a little while longer before she was able to pull herself away, allowing the others to get their turn coming forward. The next face Maya saw was her own mother's, and she doubted anyone would realize that day that Katy had already known. She was crying anyway as she hugged her daughter and was hugged back, and as she moved and did the same with Lucas.

"I had a feeling, I tell you, I had a feeling," Pappy Joe stepped up after that, clapping his grandson on the shoulder before pulling Maya in a giant hug which made her laugh. She was growing just a bit overwhelmed with happiness for each of these encounters, as they peeled back layer upon layer of her worries. When Pappy Joe had stepped aside, he was followed by his son, who was now looking to his son, realizing now that his baby boy was about to become a father himself.

Lucas had been anxious to know how his parents would react as much as Maya did, and now even deep down, he had known his mother would respond in just the way she'd done. Even now she was unable to stand still, or remain silent, as she processed the news. The one he'd wondered about, even as all he hoped for was a look of pride, of happiness, because he certainly was both of those things, proud of the little life growing in Maya's belly. One look at his father as he came forward and Lucas knew he would get what he had wanted. When he had looked down at the calendar and seen those three words, he'd been left to stand there a little dumbstruck as his wife had gone jumping for hugs. And then his face had split into the silliest little smile, the kind they would never have expected from him and at the same time completely fit to his face. He still had it now as he hugged his son.

"You will do great, I know you will," he spoke quietly at his ear, and Lucas gave a short nod, mistrusting his ability to speak as his father released him and turned to Maya. There was such a light to his face, like he was already envisioning a tiny human calling him Pappy Tom. "Is this why you've been going around like a deer in headlights all day?"

"Little bit," she had to admit. He laughed, hugging her. "Well, that stops now. How are you feeling, everything good?"

"Yeah… yes," she confirmed, reaching to wipe a few more tears from her face. When she looked up again, there stood her father in front of her.

From the video, they would see how he hadn't even managed to really get a good look at the calendar before Melinda Friar's immediate and loud reaction, which left him momentarily confused as to what was happening, but then when Lucas' mother had gone and hugged her son and Maya both, he'd looked to Katy, who was just wordlessly beaming, before pulling the calendar around and finally getting a good look. When he'd put the pieces together, his eyes had gone wide, and he'd just sort of stood there for a moment, looked down at the calendar again to make sure… His hand had gone to his mouth from the surprise, and then he'd just stood there, watching as the procession of hugs had been getting their turns. Finally, there was no one left but him, it was his turn…

Maya felt for a moment like the whirlwind had been forced to come to a stop, brought up to the final hurdle. All she wanted was for him to be happy, too, this man who'd come into their lives seven years ago almost to the day and against all hopes or expectations had become the father she had always wanted and needed, even as she and her mother had become the family he had wanted and needed all the same. They may not have been related by blood, but they were related by everything else that mattered, and as he stood there in front of her, overwhelmed with emotion, as he reached out and set his hands to her shoulders, to her face, as he gave a tremulous smile, she gave one in return, feeling the last of her worries expire. Her father wrapped his arms around her, and all was well.

For a little while after that, no one seemed to remember or care that there was a party happening out in the rest of the house, the real party was in the kitchen. Immediately, the gathered mass of future grandparents – and great grandparent – was in need of details. All they knew so far was that this first grandbaby of theirs was due in mid June.

"I've always wanted a little Junebug…" Melinda Friar had sighed, causing Maya and Lucas to share a look and bite back a laugh.

So, they told their story, recounting the night of Halloween, with all those tests. Lucas was informed his existence had been heralded on a trio of tests. They told their parents about their early adventures with morning sickness and how prompt their sprout had been on that. They showed the latest pictures, and Maya felt one hand after another over her little bump, as everyone wanted their turn. Some of them, to no surprise, came back for seconds and thirds.

They weren't about to go into the subject of school, and moving back to Austin. They did however reveal the fact that they were now engaged, as Melinda Friar's second pass at feeling for Maya's belly had managed to dislodge the chain from under her shirt. Lucas' mother had recognized her own mother's engagement ring at once, and this had been the start of another round of hugs.

By the time they had left the kitchen, Maya and Lucas felt like they had just climbed off a rollercoaster. They couldn't stop smiling and their heads were spinning in a good way. Maya had turned into his arms, and Lucas kept her near.

"That all really happened, yeah?" she asked.

"Got it all on video," he promised. "What do you want to do now?" There really was only one thing she really wanted to do right now.

"Where's my bag?"

When Maya reappeared a few minutes later, the change of clothes was the first thing people would notice. It was only as their eyes would travel down and land on the now evident bump that they would start putting two and two together.

"Maya?" Nadine came scurrying toward her, looking down and up a couple of times.

"Surprise," Maya gave a bit of jazz hands even as she did her best to bite back a laugh over the look of absolute shock on her friend's face.

"Come here…" Nadine breathed before hugging her. "And you!" she turned to Lucas after this and he grinned as she hugged him, too.

"Forgot to mention something, didn't you?" Zay pointed at her when he got to Maya next.

"Yeah, well, you're way out there in Boston, what can we do?" Maya smiled.

"Oh, now, I definitely have to come over some more, Lucas there he's like the brother I never had, so you know what that means…"

"Hurray for Uncle Zay?" Maya guessed.

"Spoiled rotten," Zay grinned before hugging her.

"You knew, didn't you?" Lucas asked Asher when he came around. Both he and Ray shrugged. "Come on, the other day when we were talking on Skype, you kept trying to get her to stand up and go grab stuff, admit it."

"He owes me a twenty now," Asher tipped his head to his boyfriend, who was now hugging Maya and laying a hand to her belly, much as the rest of them had done.

With the news about the baby now officially in the open, the one about the engagement wasn't far behind. As was to be expected, the whole subject buzzed about the Friar house all through the party, the dinner… Thankfully, what was shaping up to be a deluge of questions, some easier to answer and others just plain awkward, was soon barred from advancing thanks to one or another of the future grandparents, none more than Shawn. Maya would smile whenever he'd do his part.

Finally, the party had ended, and Maya and Lucas followed the Hunter Hart car back to their house. Maya was already halfway asleep in her seat and had to be nudged to get up and get into the house, where she sat on the edge of the bed and lay back with a sigh of relief.

"Is it just me or was that day really long?" she hummed. Feeling something at her feet, she turned her head to find Lucas in the midst of taking off her shoes for her. "Thanks… Can you help with the rest, too?"

She had never been quite so happy to be wearing pyjamas again, especially now that they weren't hiding anymore. Hiding her belly in pyjamas had been a nightmare, to the point where she almost slept in her robe, just in case. But now that was all in the past, and she was so happy she kept on running her hand up and down the curve.

"That was so much belly touching today. I can see why it gets to be too much after a while," she breathed. He gave her a look and she laughed. "You're still allowed, don't worry."

A couple minutes later, Katy popped her head into the room, letting the two of them know that 'some people' had woken up on the ride home and were now demanding a story from their favorite big sister. Somehow, they had learned that adding the word 'favorite' before people's name could get them something special. They hadn't quite grasped the concept that there needed to be more than one just yet, though coming from a couple of toddlers it was hard to say no either way.

When they arrived up in the twins' room, the girls were both in their respective beds, like they were trying to be extra good. One smirk from Maya though and Nellie scampered out of her bed and into Gracie's, the small sisters never so at ease as when they could sleep side by side.

"So, what are we doing this time? A book story?" Maya asked.

"Is it true you have a baby in your tummy?" Nellie asked her own question instead of answering. Maya looked to the two pairs of inquisitive eyes locked on her, stealing a glance to Lucas, who shrugged. He hadn't told them a thing.

"Where did you hear that?" Maya asked.

"Before," Gracie replied, which they took to mean 'at the party.' "Uncle Cory and Aunt Topy said you had a baby in there," she pointed.

"Well… yeah," Maya smiled. Her sisters stared at her, like they couldn't conjure up the image that there could be anything in there, especially a baby.

"It's still small, about this big," Lucas came to sit with them. He cupped his hands together about the size of their unborn child. Nellie and Gracie's eyes went wide. This made much more sense. "It'll keep growing, and growing, and then it'll be ready this summer." Maya gave an approving nod for the word 'ready,' instead of anything that would lead the twins to inquire as to how it would get from inside her to out into the world. This was so not the time for that kind of conversation.

"And you two get to be his or her aunts," she revealed instead, and this made them very happy. "Alright, let's get you guys to sleep. If you're still awake, Santa won't come."

TO BE CONTINUED

See you next week! - mooners