Joshaya one shots

Young Love

Being sixteen and in love had its advantages and its disadvantages. And sometimes its advantages could seem like disadvantages, at least to everyone else. But when you were in love the way Maya Hunter was, you didn't really think about things like that.

Sure, it could get lonely at times when you were surrounded by your friends who were all partnered up and you sat on a chair opposite alone again. Or when you were out to a movie and everyone had someone to hold hands with in the popcorn bucket except you. But you weren't jealous or bitter about it, not when you felt you had something more special than they did.

Playing out the long game had proven to be very difficult at times. Maya was taken, even though she wasn't really. But in her mind she was. In her mind her heart already belonged to someone, so why even try with anybody else?

"I don't understand." Her friends would say. "It's just one date. It's not like you have to marry the guy."

"But I don't like him, not like that," Maya told them as she sat and sipped her after-school smoothie at Topanga's cafe.

"Then don't look at it as a date, look at it as a hangout," Riley suggested, her hand fit snug into Lucas's as they shared a chair that was really only meant to be for one. "Nobody will know the difference."

"I'll know," Maya said. "I don't want to go out with Tyler. Not that way. Why even pretend?" She placed the cold glass down on the coffee table in front of her. She gave her friends a smile as she leaned back against the chair, why couldn't they see she was perfectly content with the way things were?

"Maya, it makes us feel when we're all hanging out and you don't have anyone to sit with," Farkle said. Maya scoffed.

"Who said it was a rule now that I had to be dating someone to hang out with my friends?" She asked rhetorically. "You know you guys are more than welcome at any time to go out without me. I don't need to be hanging around you every second of the day either."

But she knew that her friends were too nice of people to just leave her hanging out to dry like that. Sure, they all went out on individual dates, but that was different than a group outing, which ended up turning into a date when everyone was partnered up with someone.

"Besides, why the sudden change? Just last week this wasn't even a thought, let alone a conversation." Maya stated. They all shared a look.

"Well, it wasn't really a concern last week. We didn't feel as bad because you had Zay to sit with." Farkle said.

"And now that Zay has a girlfriend, things are bound to be different," Smackle said. Maya sighed, her friends meant well, they really did. She knew that. But this was her decision. It had taken years for her to get to the place she was at right now, she wanted to enjoy it

"If nobody else is going to say it then I will," Lucas spoke up, causing Farkle and Riley to turn to him and glare. Maya narrowed her eyebrows.

"Say what?" She asked.

"Nothing. Lucas doesn't know what he's talking about." Riley said as she turned back to Maya and squeezed Lucas's hand in hers.

"Really?" He asked. "I find it hard to belive that she wouldn't point this out to any of us if we were going through the same thing."

"Lucas, it's not your place." Farkle said. But Lucas wasn't going to back down, and Maya didn't want him to. If he had something he wanted to say then he needed to say it. Get it out there.

"Maya, you're doing all this waiting for him. Do you honestly think that he's doing the same thing for you?" The air in the room seemed to get thicker as Riley pulled her hand away from his and snapped her head at him to glare. Farkle tensed up as Smackle pursed her lips together. Maya swallowed hard and stared at him. "I'm sorry," He apologized. "But it needed to be said."