Falling Into Place

Chapter One

"It'll be okay. Forty-five minutes out of the day without Riley, compared to all the others with her."

"A lot could happen in forty-five minutes, Ranger Rick."

Lucas laughed and looked around the huge gym. Maya as trying to figure out how to rest her arm so her wrist was facing down, but also trying to make sure it was a natural position. She looked at Lucas and smiled at his face while he took in the new surroundings.

"What're you smiley for?" Lucas teased.

"Nothing, Ranger Rick." Maya said back. She dug through her school bag and pulled her phone out, checking her messages.

"I thought change was bad?" Lucas smiled down at her phone. Maya shrugged and sighed.

"I dunno. I can't control the fact things are going to change, so..."

"Good." Lucas leaned against Maya's shoulder, not too hard, and laughed at her text message to Riley.

The bell rang for the end of school and Lucas and Maya exited the gym, wearing their gym uniforms, and met up with Riley in her dad's classroom.

"Well aren't you two just the cutest things ever, all matchy-matchy." Riley teased. Maya rolled her eyes and threw her bag down beside the teachers desk. "Let me see your phone." Riley said to Maya.

"What for?" Maya asked, though she had already handed Riley her cell phone.

"I want to take a picture of you two." Riley smiled. Again, Maya rolled her eyes and stood next to Lucas. Maya placed an arm around Lucas' back, and a hand on his stomach. Lucas wrapped an arm around Maya's waist and looked towards Riley, holding up the phone and pointing it at the couple.

The two smiled, as did Riley due to how cute they were. Riley clicked the picture and handed the short blonde back her phone.

"You know, Maya," Riley started "I never noticed before, but you seem a bit skinnier than you used to be."

"Really?" Maya's smile grew at how someone had finally noticed, or at least cared to say anything, about her losing weight.

Lucas smacked her shoulder lightly and looked at her in disbelief. He couldn't understand why she was so happy about this!

"Maya, does sh-" Maya knew what Lucas was going to ask, so she jumped onto his back and covered his mouth.

"Lucas, can I speak to you I'm the hall?" She asked through grinding teeth.

Lucas reluctantly walked into the hallway with Maya on his back. She got down and shut the classroom door, leaving Riley in the room alone. Lucas stood there, hands on hips and eyes wide, staring at Maya, waiting for an explanation.

"She doesn't know, Lucas." She stated simply.

"Well why not? She's your best friend Maya, she deserves to know! You need to tell her!"

Maya looked at the ground, because Riley had told her the same thing about telling Lucas she hurt herself.

"Lucas I'll tell her just... don't say anything. Please?" Maya was practically begging him not to say anything.

"You promise to tell her?"

"I do." Maya said.

"And please don't let what she said register as positive in your head. You were a healthy weight to begin with, I promise. You look a lot better than you did before summer, but you'd look absolutly amazing if you looked like the girl I started liking." Lucas said honestly.

Maya looked down at the ground, catching a glimpse of her legs. At the end of eighth grade and the beginning of the summer, there was a noticable gap between her thighs, now barely even one, barely noticable. Her hip bones weren't as pronounced, hardly poking out, and her skin was finally beginning to regain coloring.

"Why do you say that?" She asked. She looked into Lucas' eyes and he could tell she wasn't feeling the most confident. He sat down on the ground and opened his arm, gesturing her to sit down next to him.

"Well," Lucas started. Maya sat next to him, leaning her head on his shoulder and curling her legs up, letting them rest on his legs. "I like the real Maya. The girl who was always picking at me and teasing me, full of energy and life... happy." He smiled. "But in the past months you've been tired and out of it. You've been too preoccupied with your thoughts to put any thought into our little game. You're concerned about the amount of food you eat, when I know you didn't used to care. You didn't care what anyone thought or said."

"But it's not what anyone has said, Lucas. No one has ever commented on my weight before. It's all in my head, that's the problem." Maya picked her head up and moved a few inches away from Lucas and sat facing him.

"I know Maya, but I also know you're a very strong person and with me, you'll be back to your crazy, little bratty self."

Maya knew he was right. She wanted to get better, but she couldn't do it alone, and with how stubborn Lucas was, that's exactly what she needed.

"Thanks, Huckleberry." Maya said quietly. She moved back over to Lucas and quickly placed a kiss on his lips. As much as Maya wanted a more meaningful kiss she didn't like the idea of doing that in school. Lucas and Maya both stood up. Maya fixed and dusted off her pants before looking back up at Lucas.

"You and me, Huckleberry?" Maya asked, leaning against the lockers. In one swift motion, Lucas grabbed Maya's face and pressed his lips to hers. Maya kissed him back and reached forward, grabbing fistfulls of his shirt, pulling him closer to her. He rubbed his thumbs along her cheeks and pulled away, keeping their foreheads touching.

"You and me you brat."