accidentally meeting you [rilaya au]

05

   riley was at the table with her father, mother, and her little brother. they were trying to have another one of their family dinners. the dinners usually ended in cory getting out of seat and storming off to his room like a toddler who didn't get their way.
   "so, what happened with you today?" asked cory as he took a bite of his broccoli.
   she sighed. "nothing. just some girl got all mad at me for no reason."
   his eyes looked up at me from his plate. "no reason? are you sure?"
   riley shrugged. she didn't want to tell him the truth because he didn't want to hear his reaction. it would just result in his typical dad lectures and storming out. no one was up for it, not even him.
   topanga began to gather everyone's plates from the table before cory stopped her while staring at riley. "so, i overheard your mom and you talking about... a girl."
   she gulped. she knew exactly where things were going to go. her father was confused about homosexuality. it's not like he was against it, but it's not like he was for it.
   "yeah... what about it?"
   topanga's eyes shot over to her son to tell him to hurry to his room before things got bad, and then they quickly shot back at the situation happening in front of her.
   cory bellowed, "it wasn't about finding just a friend either."
   "cory..." topanga muttered just loud enough for him to hear. she knew that he needed to stop, and so did riley.
   "no, topanga. i need to know what's going on," he replied with a harsh tone.
   riley tensed up in her chair, the warmth rising in her face. with her hand clenching to the bench she was sitting on, she stared intently at the table in front of her. she was trying her best to speak, but nothing would come out. even if she was capable of saying something, she knew her voice would crack and give away the fact that she was ready to cry.
   "dad..." she croaked. "i... please, don't be mad."
   her mother walked over to her side of the table, taking a seat next to her, her hand gripping to riley's shoulder. it was reassuring to know that she was there for her, like always. she pushed back her daughter's hair and smiled gently.
   topanga kept close. "take your time, baby."
   riley took a deep breath, feeling the cold air rush through her tight lungs. she could almost feel her blood flowing through her veins and into her palpitating heart.
   "i'm bisexual, dad. i met this girl. she makes me really happy, just like lucas used to," she finally admitted.
   her father slowly sat up from his chair and walked off in complete silence. it was heartbreaking for riley to see her dad just walk away and not acknowledge a thing she said to him. it was as if it went in one ear and out the other.
   she turned to face her mom and began to cry her heart out. she felt the world crash around her. not only had she lost her friends, but she felt like she had lost her dad. the one who was supposed to love her no matter what just got up and practically walked out of her life.
   riley began to get tenser and tenser as she curled into a ball in topanga's warm embrace. the tears flowed out faster and faster, and her body trembled immensely.
   two words. panic attack.
   she didn't know why it was happening, but she felt herself screaming and kicking as her mother restrained her. she couldn't hear a single thing besides her heart beating in her chest. she could feel topanga stomach vibrating as she hummed to try to calm her child down, but nothing was working. the panic attack just got worse and worse.
   the panic overtook riley once more, causing her to sweat and desperately try to pull at her own hair, which was stopped by a strong arm being held in front of them.
   the panic attack lasted for forty-five minutes, and during that time, they had transitioned from the bench to the couch so riley couldn't hurt herself on the hard surfaces anymore. the panic had exhausted the poor girl, and all she could do was lay limply in her mom's arms. she knew she had to get up, but she couldn't. she didn't want to.
   "riley, up. c'mon," topanga finally said as she stood up, slinging riley's arm over her shoulder to walk her to her room.
   they got into her daughter's dark room, and topanga carefully walked in and laid riley down on her bed. "get some rest, honey. i love you, and your dad does too. he's just confused."
   she left a small kiss upon riley's forehead before putting a blanket over her and leaving the room.
   the brunette rubbed her eyes and felt around for her phone. after a moment of searching, her hand brushed across it on her nightstand. she turned it on, squinting her eyes at the brightness of the screen before turning it down all the way.
   mindlessly scrolling through her tumblr, a notification suddenly appeared in her message box. she hoped it was maya. she hadn't heard from her since she was in english class. it had been almost 12 hours.
   riley clicked on it, and just as she hoped, it was maya. she was asking to call, and riley agreed to straight away.
   "hi!" riley answered as she held the phone to her ear, looking for headphones to make it easier on her.
   "hello, babe. how was your day?"
   riley blushed as she heard the sweet voice call her that. "not so good, yours?"
   a small gasp came from the other end of the phone. "same old, same old for me. why wasn't your day good?"
   riley hesitated before answering. she didn't know whether or not to tell her the truth. "well, i honestly thought you were this girl at my school, so i asked her. she got all pissy with me for bringing it up and then followed it up three minutes later with some half ass apology."
   there was brief silence before maya replied, "wow, what a bitch. i wish i went to school with you, though. i'd get to see your cute face all the time. who wouldn't want that?"
   riley giggled. she didn't know how else to respond to it since butterflies were forming in her stomach. "i don't know. anyways, want to know what else happened?"
   riley waited for a moment before continuing. she knew that maya nodded as a response. "i told my dad i was bi today. you want to know what he did? he just got up without a word and stormed off. i cried because of that. felt as if he left me, you know? i had a forty-five minute panic attack as well. so, pretty fascinating, right?"
   an awkward chuckle came from maya. "what a dick move. was he mad?"
   "no... yes... i don't know," babbled riley.
   "aw, i hope he's not. if he is, i'll come over there and beat his ass."
   riley rolled her eyes. "don't do that."
   "let me live."
   "i am!" riley exclaimed as she grunted. "you're just not allowed to beat my dad's ass."
   maya laughed for a minute, and riley took it all in. it replayed over and over in her head. if she could, she'd make that angelic sound her ringtone.
   the girl on the other end suddenly stopped. "what do you think about meeting sometime?"
   riley was taken back by the question. she didn't know how to answer or if she should at all. "i mean... as long as you don't kill me, i guess i'm up for it."
   "maybe then i can get a little farther with you."
   "huh?" riley wondered.
   maya's smirk radiated through the phone. "i think you already know."
   she was right. riley did know what maya meant, and, for once, she didn't feel uncomfortable. whenever lucas would try to get sexual with her, she would tell him no and that she wasn't ready. she didn't know if she was ready, but riley wasn't going to let that thought ruin this for her.
   "you could get a little farther with me now," she hummed.
   maya let out a seductive chuckle. "not now, baby girl, not now."
   riley groaned at her response. maya didn't know the power of her words. part of her wanted maya right then and there, but part of her didn't.
   "only because i have to go," maya continued. "how about we call tomorrow night?"
   she answered, "of course. goodnight, maya."
   "i like hearing you say my name."
   before riley could reply, maya hung up the phone, leaving riley alone in her room. when they were talking, she had felt as if maya was right next to her, but now, it was cold and lonely. all she could do was sleep.