~Scared~

Not Alone

       The next day I went to school, same old boring routine.
      Until it wasn't so boring.
      I walked into my Spanish class and sat in my regular spot next to Lucas.
      "Hey Short Stack." He said with a grin.
      "Huckleberry." I smirked as the lesson started. I didn't take out my art book, mostly because ( I would never admit this to anyone) I was kinda scared of this teacher.
     No offense, Ms. Hernandez.
   "Alright, class, let's get started with the lesson. So today, we are learning about cognates..." She looked at me.
     "Maya. Could you answer my question, por favor?"
     "Um... sorry?"
  " Good to see you have been paying attention." She rolled her eyes
    I laughed a little nervous laugh. I'm so smart.
      "Maya...Maya... MAYA!!! Class is over, the bell rang!" I heard someone yell in my ear.
      "Huh, what?!?! Lucas, stop doing that to me!!!" I yelled back at him.
      He looked shocked for a second. "Did you just call me Lucas?"
      I realized my mistake only a few seconds after I said those words. "Uhhhhhhh, no! Not at all, Huckleberry. Now let's go! Ughhh, eres muy estúpido ( you are so stupid). " I muttered.
      I walked off, with Lucas trailing behind me.
After a while, the school day ended, leaving me to walk all the way home. Just great.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Lucas POV

I was getting a little worried about Maya. She always wore long sleeves at school, and her mood had been changing constantly. One minute, she was smirking and being the normal Maya, and the next she would be snapping at somebody.
So I did the sensible thing to do.
I followed her to her house.
Okay, maybe it wasn't the MOST sensible thing to do, but what other choice do I have? She is one of my best friends and I care about her.
I walked quietly behind her as she made her way down the alley. Maya turned around once or twice, I get the feeling she knew someone was there. But I hid myself well and she never noticed.
She finally took a turn and I saw a creaky old house. It honestly looked like it had been abandoned in the 1900's.
I followed her up to the doorstep and I stopped. I shouldn't even be here, I told myself. I almost turned around and left, but I realized Maya could be in trouble.
I noticed an old rusty fire escape leading up to the upstairs. I climbed up, and saw Maya putting her backpack and stuff down on the floor. She made a fire from the charcoal fireplace, enjoying its warmth. Then she picked up a guitar from out of nowhere. I didn't know she played guitar! That was really cool to be honest.
And then, she did something I never thought I would see Maya do.
She sang. She had the voice of an angel. I listened for a long time.
That was the moment I realized I loved her, and her only. Her spunky attitude, her little smirk, her beautiful voice, everything about her was just perfect.
The voice sounded so happy, so I was almost sure nothing was wrong. I almost left, then I heard the singing and playing stop. I looked through the window, I saw her trying to stuff the guitar back under her bed. What?
Why would someone want to hide such a gift? But then I realized.
Someone else was here.
At that moment, I was scared. Scared for Maya.
I saw some guy practically knock her door down as he stumbled into the room. He was obviously drunk, he was kind of staggering.
I saw a flash of fear in Mays's eyes. Pure terror. This was not the Maya I knew. Maya was strong, not scared of anything. I got so angry, this man had hurt Maya before, and he would do it again.
" WOULD YOU STOP WITH THAT DISGUSTING NOISE?!?! YOU MAKE ME SICK, WITH YOUR STUPID MUSIC, YOU HAVE NO TALENT!!!" The man screamed at Maya.
She had tears in her blue eyes, absolutely scared to death.
The man started to punch and kick Maya, he spat on her face, telling her all these lies that weren't true, filling her head with sadness as he hit her repeatedly. He took her guitar and threw it into the fireplace, leaving it to burn. Maya desperately tried to pull it out, but her dad held her back.
Maya was sobbing by this point. The monster had destroyed everything she had to live for. That guitar was obviously her most prized possession.
Then, satisfied with his work, he left Maya on the floor, helpless, tears streaming down her face. He left the room and started his truck engine, obviously going somewhere. As soon as I was her that he was gone, I climbed into the room through Maya's window. Running over to her, I saw the brokenness in her eyes. She had given up. She wanted to die.
"Maya? Maya answer me!!!" I cried, tears flowing freely down my face.
She coughed slowly, looking up at me with a lot of effort, I could tell. Then her eyes widened as she realized what I had seen.
"Lucas? No... you aren't supposed to be here. Just leave me here. I'm meant to die any way." Maya said.
Her words shocked me more than anything I had ever witnessed. Maya Hart, the rebel, the one with spirit, the one who could always stick up for herself, had given up.
" Maya, don't leave me, stay with me, let me call the police. Please, Maya, don't go!" I yelled, quickly dialing 911.
"911, what is your emergency?" The telephone operator said.
"Hello, I have a serious problem, my best friend's dad has been abusing her, she is barely holding on, please hurry, I think she's dying!" I said, panicked, into the phone.
"Okay, sir, please remain calm. We will be there as fast as we can. Please keep talking to us, where are you?"
I told the operator where we were and she told me to get her water and make her comfortable. Maya looked so scared, I was going insane with worry. If only I had stepped in sooner, this wouldn't have happened. She wouldn't be dying, and we wouldn't be in this mess.
I heard the sirens going off from outside. I told the operator that they had found us, and we hung up. The hospital workers made their way upstairs and lifted Maya onto a stretcher. I had never seen her look so pale and scared.
I got into the ambulance and we sped off towards the hospital.
At the hospital
I was in the waiting room at the ER, waiting (obviously) for some results from the doctor.
The doctor came out with a clipboard and paper. Muttering under his breath, he made some notes. Then he went over to talk to me. His name tag read, "Dr. Reins."
" So, Maya is now stable, thanks to you calling so quickly. If you had called us any later, she could have died. She will have some long term effects, such as emotional and physical scarring. Maya will most likely not want to be touched or have people near her. Immediate contact can trigger fear and flashbacks from being a victim of abuse. Is there anything else you would like to know?" The doctor said kindly.
"How long do you think this had been going on?" I asked, a little shakily.
" Judging by the looks of her scars and bruises, probably a month or two at least. We found some of the old court cases. We found that her father left when she was 4, and came back a couple of months ago. He used to abuse her and her mother up until he left. I am sorry, I know this must be a lot to take in." The doctor finished.
I was in absolute shock. Why didn't Maya ever say any of this?
A nurse came out of the room Maya was in.
" The patient keeps asking for someone by the name of Lucas? Is a Lucas Friar available?" The nurse said.
"I'm Lucas." I replied. The nurse nodded and led me into the pale room.
I silently gasped when I saw Maya. She looked so fragile, as if she was made of porcelain. Like she could shatter like glass at any given moment. I cursed myself for letting it get this far.
She weakly smiled at me, sadness filling her beautiful face.
"I wish you didn't have to see me like this. I'm sorry that I'm so stupid and I know you hate me for not telling you." She turned away from me.
"Maya," I said, lifting her head. " If that it what you think that I think of you, you are so terribly wrong. You, Maya Hart, are the strongest person I know. And when I saw you singing in that window, I knew I was in love with you. Completely and hopelessly in love with you. We are so young, but I know that you are the person I want to spend the rest of my life with, if you will have me."
Her eyes sparkled, her smile grew amazingly huge.
And then....

We kissed.

There were no words, no warning. Just bliss. Sparks flew, and my world was turned upside down by the one person that I loved.
We separated and I looked Maya in the eyes.
I whispered into her ear, "I want you to know that I will always be by your side. You will never be alone."