"Legacy. Why is Farkle a goose?" Mr. Matthews questioned. My boyfriend was missing, and in his place, was a goose wearing an Einstein academy uniform.
"That's the Einstein Academy goose." Riley said.
"Oh, of course, the Einstein Academy goose. Why is it on Farkle's desk?"
"Einstein captured Farkle." Maya explained.
"It was their end of the year prank." Lucas threw in.
"They kidnapped our mascot so we goosenapped theirs." I finished.
"Farkle's not our mascot."
"What would you call him?"
"Where's Zay? They got Zay too?"
"Zay's back in Texas. He's at Vanessa's spring formal."
"Ooh." Maya, Riley, and I cooed together.
"Alright guys. Listen up. It's your last week of school. This is my last chance to teach you something."
"You have more to teach us?" Maya asked.
"I have so much more I wanna teach you. So much more. I mean, you guys are gonna be leaving this place. What will you be leaving behind? What is your legacy? I wanna talk about, not just what you've gotten from this place, but what you've given."
"He's right. We still haven't thought of our class prank! I was thinking, we could let all the air out of school, everybody would just be like..." She started making choking sounds. "That'd be hi-larious." Farkle came in, his hair a mess.
"I'll tell you what's hi-larious. Nobody saved me! Why did nobody save me?"
"Farkle, we looked for you for a whole five minutes, and then we took the goose." Riley told him.
"he's the new you."
"Donnie Barnes, regular goose."
"I'd see that movie." Mr. Matthews replied.
"He's kind of cute." I said, petting his head. "So, you seeing anyone?" Farkle shot me a look and I settled back into my seat.
"oh please. Farkle cannot be replaced by a goose. Farkle is unique and one of a kind. HA!" The goose honked back.
"You don't know me."
~~~
Matthews class the next day was a little different. Maya was laying on top of two desks, her back to Lucas, who was turned backwards, and Riley watched from out the window.
"You came into this place a bunch of young kids who didn't know very much, and now look at ya. Young men and women ready for what's next."
"Clearly." I said sarcastically, gesturing towards my friends.
"Snap out of it! Get in here! What are ya doin'?"
"We value out friendship too much to look at each other."
"You hear how ridiculous you sound, right?" I asked. I stood up. "turn your chair around. Get in your seat." They did as I said, and I sat on top of Matthews' desk, my legs crossed.
"What are you doing?"
"You may need me. This one's a doozy." I replied. He rolled his eyes, turning back to the class.
"Now, the most important thing you can do in life is give people a reason to remember you. The people who do that are the ones we study in here. So your last assignment from me and for yourselves is to figure out what you will give back." Maya turned around.
"What?"
"I looked at Riley."
"Yeah, I saw."
"So, I'm looking at you to even it up."
"Oh, well a girl always wants to be looked at to be evened up." Maya said sarcastically.
"We're just friends and I love your outfit."
"HEY!" Riley banged on the glass.
"Your hair smells nice!"
"You smelled her hair?!" Maya asked.
"Lucas!" Mr. Matthews yelled.
"I'm dyin' here!"
"What are you grateful for? Who do you want to remember you? Do somethin' about it right now." Riley sat down at her desk. "Now get out of here." Everyone left, except for Riley and I.
"I'm not ready to leave this place." She said, getting up and leaving the room. He turned around, leaning against Maya's desk to face me.
"What are you still doing here?"
"It's time Mr. Matthews."
"For what?' He asked.
"Everyone is going to say goodbye to the teachers that most inspire them and their futures. Maya's going to talk to her art teacher, Farkle his science teacher. Your mine Mr. Matthews. Everyone compares me to you because I get it but...sometimes I don't." I told him. "Sometimes, I need to come to the teacher that went beyond the lesson plan and taught us how to live as decent human beings. You gave me that."
"It was an honor to watch you grow, Skipper. You understand things and have been through more than any girl your age could dream of, and I hope that you'll keep on teaching others."
"Can I ask you to teach me one more thing?" I asked, my voice breaking.
"Of course."
"You once told me that each person brought amazing qualities to the group that make each person better, and that I was going to help them hang onto those qualities when the others weren't around."
"Yeah, I remember." He said.
"So...what if I can't if everything? Nothing is ever going to be the same again, and...I'm a bit worried that I won't be able to fix it."
"That's one thing I did wrong. When I told you that, I never meant to say that the future and strength of your friend group is on you. It's up to all of you to stick together. It just might be you that lends a hand in doing that." I nodded.
"Thank you, Mr. Matthews."
"You're welcome. I have to thank you, too."
"Why is that?" I asked.
"I'm terrified sending my kids out into high school when I have so much left to teach them. Having you there to teach them, gives me peace."
"I won't let you down."
"I know. And I have a gift for you." He walked around his desk, handing me a bag. I opened it to reveal a desk tag that said Skipper Jackson on it. "You could make an excellent teacher one day."
"I learned from the best."
"As did I." I hugged Mr. Matthews one last time, before making my way out into the hallway. Lucas was sitting on the bench in the hallway, and I sat down next to him.
"How ya doin'...Lukey?" I asked, thinking back to my first day here. He chuckled, remembering too.
"I'm ok. It's just...it's hard to believe it's going to be over, you know? Our lives will never be the same again."
"That's just a part of growing up. Things change, and sometimes you're left to start over completely. Yeah, the endings are always sad. But sometimes, the end is just there to leave room for a new beginning."
"When did you get so wise?" He asked.
"When I met the six people that opened my eyes to the way things are."
"And how do you feel?" I sighed.
"I feel alright,"I slapped my hands down on my legs, standing up, "I'm gonna take on the world. Care to join me?" I asked. He grabbed my hand, standing up with me.
"Always."
"Always." Maya grabbing his hand. Always. Farkle joined us as well.
"I feel alright I'm gonna take on the world. Someone should write a song about that." Maya said. I smiled. We all walked into Mr. Matthews' classroom, where Riley resided, and sat down in our desks.
"What?" He asked.
"I'm not the only one in need of one more lesson from you, Matthews." I told him.
"You got one more fore the road?" Maya questioned.
"Yeah, I do."
"Well, I've never said this before, but...you have my attention."
"Good. This one's important. I've gotten to watch you guys become friends and...I've gotten to watch you grow. You guys grew up so fast...and I've been trying to teach you to keep your feelings inside."
"And you were right. Look at us." Riley told him.
"I was wrong. Your teacher was wrong...twice apparently. I can't keep you in this place. You've outgrown it. You guys are graduating to whatever comes next. Do you know why?"
"No."
"You've earned it." He replied.
"How do we know when we're ready?"
"The same way we know anything. Let's take one last test and see." The other three groaned, while Farkle and I yayed.
"Are you even allowed to do this? It's the last day of school." Riley inquired.
"I'm still your teacher, I can do whatever I want. Besides, this test isn't for a grade. This is the test to find out what you've actually learned here. Skipper, you're not allowed to take this one."
"Why not?" I asked.
"Because you practically helped write the test. We're one in the same, remember?"
"Most likely to be Mr. Matthews." I repeated. "Still not a bad way to be remembered."
"Question one: What's the secret of life? Maya?"
"People change people."
"And for extra credit?"
"What us does for them."
"What does that mean?" He asked.
"How we help those who are less fortunate than us."
"And are you an us or them?"
"I'm an us. I'm very blessed. We all are."
"Question two: Sneak attack. Riley?"
"Pearl Harbor." She replied.
"And for Extra Credit?"
"Missy Bradford tried to tear our friendships apart. Lucas was new here and tried to throw a sneak attack. I think that was the moment we all realized what we really meant to each other. The moment we all came together...most of us. "
"Good. Farkle? Canada."
"Our greatest allies are the people right next to us." I put a hand on his arm.
"Lucas."
"I think I was the most changed by these people. I know that whatever I'm feeling I can just tell my friends and everything would be ok."
"Will it?" Riley asked.
"I guess we'll see."
"I thought we stopped." Maya said.
"I thought we were just friends." Riley threw in.
"We're not." Lucas clarified. "We're no good at it. We can't even look at each other any more. I don't need any notecards to know that we have different feelings now."
"And that's why your teacher was wrong. I can't hold you back from what you feel. Congratulations. You've all passed this test with flying colors."
"What happens now?" Farkle asked.
"Now you graduate, Farkle. You walk out of here with everything you've learned and you live life. You live it. You face whatever comes. This is gonna be the greatest test of your friendship yet."
"Wow. I made it to high school. We're gonna need some good teachers Matthews'." Maya told him.
"Yeah. So, one last thing. How will the school remember you?"
"I have an idea." Lucas said.
"What's our prank?"
"I have an idea." Riley said. I stood up.
"I feel alright, I'm gonna take on the world."
"Always."
"Always."
"Always."
"Always."
"Always." I finished.
~~~
"So that concludes our tour of the big bad John Quincy Adams Middle school." Riley said.
"Not so scary, right?" Maya asked.
"You guys are gonna do great here." Lucas added.
"Just like we did, with the help of your friends." I threw in.
"There's one more thing before you guys go." Farkle told them. Lucas explained:
"We wanted to give you guys something from our class to yours." They lifted the cloth to reveal the bay window seat where our worn down bench used to be.
"We think one of the greatest legacies in life is friendship."
"And no matter what happens in your new school, Friends should always have a place where they can sit, and talk, and work things out."
"Because sometimes, life swirls you all up and knots people together for a reason." The art teacher told the little kids. "Is that what you were feeling?" She asked Maya, referring to the painting on the back of the bench. She nodded. "What's that?" She pointed to Riley's signature purple cat.
"We think everybody should leave their mark."
"We work well together." I ran my fingers over the plaque on the side.
THE FRIENDSHIP BENCH
DEDICATED BY
RILEY, MAYA, LUCAS, FARKLE, SKIPPER, AND ZAY
PEOPLE CHANGE PEOPLE
~~~
We stood on Riley's roof at our graduation party. Farkle stood with his dad, Lucas with his parents, Maya with her mom, and Riley with her family. I sat alone, my Dad still in Texas.
"Hey Skip." I looked up, and of course, there he was.
"Dad?" I jumped up, hugging him.
"Did you really think I'd miss your middle school graduation?"
"I'm so glad you're here." I told him. I pulled away.
"So...how does it feel to be a big bad high school kid."
"That doesn't matter now. What matters is how I feel when I'm with them." I looked around at all my friends, smiling. "Sometimes, the end is just there to leave room for new beginnings." He went over to talk to Lucas' parents, and I stood on the edge of the building by Lucas and Zay.
"Look at this place." Lucas said.
"Different view than when we were growing up."
"I'm glad you're both here with us." He told us.
"It's weird...I spent so much time missing Texas, and now...there's no place I'd rather be." I told them. "So, how was the formal?"
"Vanessa likes me better now than when I lived there. Now she all missin' me 'cause I'm gone. You know, I got this whole love thing figured out. Don't be there."
"I've got this impossible choice to make right now."
"You know what you should do? Don't be there."
"But I wanna be there."
"Well, then you deserve what you get." I laughed. "What's it gonna be? You got two great people-"
"Ok, you know what I propose?" I wrapped my arms around their shoulders. "Don't make the decision tonight. You've got all summer for that. Let's just enjoy it, shall we?"
"Sounds good."
"Congratulations', Riley. you did it." Topanga told her.
"I had help." She put a hand on her dad's shoulder.
"You would've been fine without me."
"I don't really see it that way, Dad."
"None of us do." We all made our way over.
"Thank you for teaching my daughter so well." Ms. Hart told him.
"My pleasure."
"I don't think Farkle would've reached his full potential without you, Corey."
"Thanks, Minkus. He had a lot to live up to."
"Thanks. That's why we want to see that he does."
"Of course he will."
"Matthews, you're one of the wisest men I know, but you're just not getting it." I propped my arm up on his shoulder.
"What?"
"Their class prank. Oh, you haven't heard about that?" His wife asked.
"No. What'd they do?"
"Well, we started talking about legacy..."Riley started. Maya continued:
"About what we left behind..."
"And what we don't want to leave behind."
"What we wanted to take with us..." Lucas threw in.
"This is good." Zay said.
"We stole somethin' from the school." Maya told him.
"Probably the most important thing we could've stolen." I replied.
"You what?!"
"This is good."
"Well put it back."
"Nope. It's ours now." Farkle told him. I crossed over, grabbing his hand. "We captured the real John Quincy Adams mascot, and we're taking it with us."
"What did you guys do?"
"We stole you." Maya explained.
"I told you this was good."
"What are you talkin' about?"
"I called up Uncle Jonathan and I told him that you had a lot more to teach us."
"She got you promoted, Daddy!" Auggie yelled.
"Of course, the superintendent of schools didn't want to move teachers around for only one student, so there would have to be a lot of other people who thought you knew what you were doing."
"So, the parents put together a little petition, got some signatures, and we presented it to him." Mr. Minkus explained. "I was very convincing."
"How many parents?"
"All of 'em." Ms. Hart replied.
"Every single one." I told him. "Looks like you're stuck with us."
"You're going to high school, Cory. Again."
"We get to stay together." He said happily.
"You said that you had a lot more to teach us. And now you can."
~~~END OF BOOK ONE~~~