Falling Into Place

Chapter Three

"Lucas you're still bitter about me asking Liam to hang out with us?" Maya asked as they walked to gym.

"No!" Lucas exclaimed, crossing his arms over his chest. "I'm bitter because you called him cute..." He mumbled.

"Oh, quit pouting, I'm not looking for a new boyfriend yet." Maya teased. Lucas rolled his eyes as they entered the gym and the two went to the separate locker rooms to change out.

Maya took note of the scars on her wrist and sighed. She hadn't hurt herself too badly in almost six months, but she would always have little reminders of when she did. When she did slip up, it wasn't on her wrists.

She tried to stop cutting when she had started eating more. Granted, Lucas was the only reason she had started to eat more, he's just as stubborn as she was, maybe more when it came to the wellbeing of his girlfriend, but his stubbornness and persistance payed off.

"Hey, Ranger Rick." Maya smiled as she walked out if the girls locker room. Her and Lucas began to walk around the gym, since they had to be moving and not sitting.

"What do you think this afternoon will be like?" Maya wondered. She was curious to see how well Liam would fit into their group of friends, because she didn't want him to become the center of bullying.

"I don't know." Lucas shrugged off her question and Maya rolled her eyes, scoffing at his reply.

"What?" Lucas asked defensively.

"Im sensing a bit of jealously still, and I don't like it." Maya admitted. She liked picking at him and making him slightly jealous, but she didn't like how prolonged this jealous fit is lasting.

"I'm not jealous, Maya. You said he was cute, like I said yesterday, I know you don't want cute in a relationship." Lucas was almost positive he was right, but he was starting to question his statement from yesterday. He wasn't jealous, just worried that Maya would find Liam more interesting than himself, and try to go after him.

"You say that so nonchalantly." Maya winked. She knew he wasn't thinking about the circumstances in which he said that. Lucas laughed and looked down, rubbing the back of his neck.

"Lucas look!" Maya exclaimed, running too the wall closest to them and pointing at a poster that was just above her head.

"I don't think I've ever seen you run that fast." Lucas joked as he caught up to the smiley blonde.

"But look!" She whined.

"Pageant? You want to do a pageant?"

"Well...no, but I want a reason to wear a pretty dress." She admitted, still pointing at the poster.

"Well, a catty high school beauty pageant is not the place or reason to wear one." Lucas said. Maya's smile dropped. She knew he was right, but her enthusiasm gave Lucas an idea. "Don't worry, you'll get to wear your pretty dress one day."

"But Lucas!"

"Maya, you're not doing that. There's a lot of girls that do pageants that struggle with what you've been struggling with and I truly believe that it'd be a toxic situation for you."

Maya pouted out her bottom lip and looked back up at the poster. Lucas looked at it too, but also caught a glance at Maya's usually well hidden wrist. As she started to drop her arm down to her side, Lucas grabbed it, mid-drop, and flipped her arm so her wrist was facing up.

Maya's face dropped, even though she wasn't smiling, and she stood there with her mouth open. Lucas' jaw clenched and he felt the urge to clench his fists, but couldn't because he held Maya's dainty wrist in his hand.