Falling Into Place

Chapter Twenty

A couple hours after Josh had walked out of his brothers apartment, it was around ten o'clock, and he had made arrangements to meet up with someone he'd been talking to recently.

"Hi!" She smiled, seeing Josh walk up.

"Hey." He wrapped an arm around her waist and they began to walk to Topanga's.

"How was your day?" She asked.

"It was pretty good. The usual, girls trying to make me jealous, no biggie." Josh laughed off his statement even though Maya wasn't trying to make him jealous, but either way, he was.

"They just can't stay away from you, huh?" She giggled. Josh smiled, admiring the way the moolight lit up her dark skin. She had short, curly hair with the side of her head shaved, and Josh found her look intriguing, he really liked it.

As Josh and his new flavor of the week walked into Topanga's, Josh spotted the people he had just left behind: Lucas, Maya, Liam, and Riley.

"Josh, hi!" Riley smiled. She waved, causing Lucas and Maya to turn around, as they were seated facing away from the door in the booth. Josh waved back awkwardly, then took his date by the hand and led her to the booth right behind Lucas and Maya.

"Who's that?"

"That's my cousin, Riley and her friends."

"She's cute."

"Yeah." Josh laughed, looking down at the menu.

"What're you doing here?" Riley appeared at the side of Josh's booth, smiley as ever.

"Just grabbing a bite to eat."

"Hi. I'm Riley." Riley offered her hand out to the girl she'd never seen or met before, and continued to smile.

"I'm Monifa." Josh's date accepted Riley hand, shaking it and smiling up at her.

"You're name is really cool!"

"Awh, thanks!" Monifa blushed and looked down at her hands.

"Do you and Josh want to sit with us?"

"Josh?" Monifa questioned.

"Uh, sure." Josh hesitated, but figured what the heck.

"Guys this is Monifa, Josh's date. Monifa this is Liam, Lucas and Maya." Riley pointed to each of her friends, introducing them to her uncles date.

They settled into the booth, Lucas, Maya, and Monifa in one booth, and Liam, Riley, and Josh in the one across.

"How did you and Josh meet?" Liam asked.

"We go to the same college." Monifa smiled, sipping her water. "I'm glad he's interested in me," She laughed. "with all the girls here wanting to get with him and all." Maya raised her eyebrows, looking at Josh and she chuckled.

"Yeah, he's a real ladies man." Maya said sarcastically.

"Well you used to have a thing for him, right?" Monifa furrowed her eyebrows, genuinely confused as to if Josh had been previously referring to thing Maya or a different Maya.

"Well I did, then I realized how much of a womanizer he is."

"What the hell?" Josh exclamed, tossing his fork down onto the table.

"Oh, don't get me wrong or anything, besides that he's a great guy!" Maya's smile was evil and seemed almost manipulative, though she was being truthful.

"Maya stop." Riley warned.

"What? It's okay for him to use this beautiful girl to try and get under my skin because I didn't go crawling back to him when he decided to start liking me? Why are you sticking up for him, Riley?"

"Becuase he's my uncle!"

"So because he's family, whatever he does is okay with you, because I know if I knew someone in my family was a player and couldn't stick with a girl for longer than two weeks, I wouldn't be defending them."

"But that's not fair you don't-" Riley stopped herself, deciding it wasn't a good idea to finish the sentence she was saying in the heat of the moment.

"I don't what, Riley? Come on I can take it. Can't be any worse than the shit I've been through in the past four years."

"Maya... you don't know any guys in your family..." Riley sugar coated what she was originally going to say in an attempt to not push Maya anymore over the edge.

Maya chuckled. "You're right. I don't, but you do. You know everyone in your family and I don't know everyone in mine. So how is it that I know the proper behavior for a boy more than you do?" Maya pushed herself up from the booth, leaving the café.

"I-I should go..." Lucas got up from the booth aswell, jogging out, hoping to catch Maya before she got too far.

"She's lying."

"It didn't seem like she was lying..." Monifa pointed out.

"She wasn't lying." Riley spoke softly.

"Riley!"

"Josh! Do you know how many girls you've brought over to my house in the past six months? My little brother, your little cousin, has a more steady relationship than you and he's nine!"

"I better get going..." Monifa stood up from the booth, grabbing her bag.

"Babe- wait!"

"Call me when you can stick with one girl." Monifa left Topanga's and that left Riley, Josh, and Liam. Actually, just Riley and Liam, Josh left the café in a rage due to being exposed infront of everyone.

"He's gonna hate me..." Riley said.

"So what? He shouldn't treat girls the way he does!" Liam draped an arm over Riley's shoulders and rubbed her arm.

"Yeah but-"

"But nothing, Riles. He's in the wrong... but you kind of were too..."

"What'd I do?" Riley exclaimed.

"What you said to Maya... She's already upset that she doesn't know her family and that she doesn't have a whole family..."

"I know..."

~~~

"Maya wait!" Lucas shouted, jogging to catch up with Maya. Maya stopped and turned to see Lucas trying to get to her. She ran her hand through her hair and sat on a bench that was behind her on the edge of the sidewalk.

"What?" Maya asked softly when Lucas was finally by her side on the bench.

"Are you okay?"

"Yeah." She spoke in the same soft, quiet voice she did previously.

"What happened?"

"When I went to talk to Josh earlier, he said that he liked me, that he should've given me a chance. I told him that I had moved on and he should too. Then he showed up with that girl..."

"You got jealous?" Lucas asked, hoping that the answer would be no.

"No, I wasn't jealous... I was angry! He's trying to make me jealous and... I don't want to get jealous and hurt you."

Lucas nodded. He understood where she was coming from and understood that you could be completely head over heels for someone and still get jealous by the acts of someone else.

"Just try your best, okay?" Lucas pleaded.

Maya nodded. She truely didn't have feeling for Josh anymore and she was completely in love with Lucas, but when someone is intentionally trying to make you jealous, it's hard not to overreact or get angry, which may come across as jealousy.

"I just don't want anything to change." Maya sighed.

"Me either."