Summer

summer: chapter fifteen

Chapter fifteen: Texas pt. 3

Maya loved Texas. She understood why Zay always went on and on about it. Linda lived on a farm, and every morning, Maya got to experience the beautiful sunrise.

Maya and Isadora would head out early and pick oranges off the trees. They'd grabbed the eggs from the barn and head inside to make breakfast.

It was fun for them, and relaxing. It brought the sense of peace that Maya couldn't get in the city that never sleeps.

"Morning."Maya smiled while hanging Lucas a mug filled with coffee.

"Thank you."Lucas tipped his hat while sitting down at the table. "Up for another Lucas lesson? Haven't done that in a while."

"Hm, sure. It is your hometown buck-a-roo."Maya chuckled while taking a sip from her mug.

***

"Lucas."Maya groaned while stopping in her tracks. "You wake me up early in the morning and forced me to walk up this trail, are you gonna tell me what we're doing."

Lucas smiled and rolled the blanket out on the gravel. He sat down and patted the spot next to him. Maya slowly sat.

"Look."Lucas smiled while gazing out into the sunrise. Maya turned and then smiled in amazement.

"Wow."She huffed while taking in the scene.

The beautiful greenery made the sunrise pop even more. The trail sat high, which overlooked the city.

"Beautiful?"

"Very."Maya smiled. "I thought the sunrise on the farm was beautiful, but this definitely beats it."

"I use to get super angry when I was younger; so my mother use to take me up here and sing to me."He smiled to himself. "And it always calmed me down."

Maya smiled and turned towards him.

"Your singing does that to me."Lucas stared at the sky. "Makes me feel calm, and relaxed."

"I'm glad it does."Maya muttered.

"The other night, you had something to tell me right?"He questioned. "Sorry about the whole cutting you off thing with the phone."

"It's fine."

It was quiet between the two.

"So, this summer, we've been hanging and you know getting close."Maya started while anxiously messing with her fingers.

"Yeah, we sure have."

"And, um over the summer I've realized a lot of things—a lot of things that may sound crazy."Maya sighed and stared at the sky.

"Go ahead."

She closed her eyes tight. "I like you—there! I said it. I have feelings for you Lucas and it's more than just looks."

"Maya."

"Your sweet and kind and amazing. You're not an asshole like the past few guys I've dated. And you make smile and laugh. You make me feel like the world has no problems. You make me happy."Maya stuttered.

"I can't Maya."His voice lowered. He stood up and so did Maya.

"I know."Maya sniffed. "But I just need to know one thing Lucas, and I want the honest truth. Do you or do you not feel the same?"

He remained quiet. Maya looked up at him pleadingly, awaiting for the taller boy to answer.

"Do you Lucas?"Maya voice cracked as the tears welled up in her eyes. "Because this summer, it felt way more than one-sided."

"I'm still in love with Riley."He mumbled.

Maya froze as she stared at the boy. Lucas couldn't look her in the eyes, he couldn't tell the blonde the truth. He couldn't admit his feelings.

"But you kissed me."She whispered.

"I was sad and angry."Lucas stuttered. "And I didn't know how to control it. I'm sorry if I confused things."

Maya crossed her arms while looking down the tears fell from her eyes as she brushed past Lucas.

"No I'm sorry."Maya sighed while looking around. "Sorry for miss interpreting things."

***

"An idiot! That's what I feel like."Maya sighed while writing something down on her notepad.

"Don't feel like one."Isadora sighed. "He likes you Maya."

"He clearly doesn't."Maya furiously said while scribbling down in her notepad.

"He does! He kissed you for a reason, it obviously meant something to him. He looks at you like your the light of his world."

"That's Riley."

"He's using Riley as an excuse to deny his feelings. He's scared Maya."

Maya remained quiet while writing along in her notebook. Isadora sighed and sat down on the bed.

"What are you writing?"

"Random shit. My professor suggested that when I get a very strong emotion, write down how I feel. It could later turn into lyrics."Maya mumbled.

"How do you feel."

"Like an idiot."

"You're not an idiot."Isadora rolled her eyes. "Hey, when does your camp end. I kind of want to stay a bit here."

"I do too."Maya nodded. "And tomorrow is the last day."

Isadora nodded. "Cool."

"What are we talking about?"Zay questioned while walking into the room. He sat on the floor and listened intently.

"I expressed how I felt towards Lucas, and embarrassed myself."Maya frowned and closed the notebook shut.

"Don't worry, he likes you."Zay scoffed.

"That's what I said!"

"He clearly implied that he didn't feel the same. He still quote-on-quote, still had feelings for Riley."Maya rolled her eyes.

"Sure."Zay nodded while standing up. "Sure he does."

Maya remained quiet.

***

Maya sat on the patio while strumming along her guitar. She sighed and placed it to the side.

Texas was a beautiful place. The stars brightly shined in the sky. Maya gazed up at them. Her phone buzzed and she picked it up.

"Hello?"

"Hey."

"Bradley."Maya smiled. Maybe she should just forget the feelings for Lucas and focus on Bradley. "How's everything."

"Good, are you free?"He questioned.

"Yes why?"

"Wanna go somewhere tomorrow? After the last day of class. Just to celebrate that we made it through."He chuckled.

"Of course."Maya smiled while still gazing at the sky.

"Great! See you tomorrow."

"You too."Maya replied before hanging up the phone.

Maya stood from the bench and grabbed her guitar. She made her way inside and placed it on the wall. Lucas stood while grabbing a snack out the pantry.

The blue-eyed girl grabbed a water bottle from the fridge and closed it shut.

"Having a great night?"Lucas questioned while closing the pantry door. Maya nodded and opened her bottle.

"Sure, you?"

"Pretty good."

"Good."