Take on the World

Girl Meets Maya's POV

I watched as my sister and her group left, her presence was different than what I was used to, and she seemed happier and free. I clenched my fist as I saw the girl beside her laugh, her eyes met mine and she smirked, she had my sister and the guy I liked. What's the difference between us?

"Wow," Farkle said gaining our attention "I always thought that Everest was a beauty but wowzah" he turned to Lucas who met his gaze "I now find your looks average" he grinned.

"What? Why?" Lucas questioned with furrowed brows.

"Are you blind or was I the only one that saw Everest's boyfriend?" he looked at us "He outshined Lucas, and his hair only add to his looks" no one could deny what Farkle said because it was the truth, if you put Beck and Lucas side-by-side to compare then Beck would win.

"He lifted her with one hand" Riley stated "Can you do that?".

"Maybe" "No" Lucas and Farkle answered respectively.

"I calculated the probability of you lifting either Riley or Maya with one hand and you have a 2% chance of success".

"Guys let's just go," I told them and we headed to Riley's apartment building, the guys left after we entered the building, and Riley and I walked in silence as we reached her apartment door.

"Hey Honey, Maya" the voice of Riley's mother called as we walked in, she sat at the table with Mr. Matthews and Auggie coloring "How did it go?".

"We saw Uncle Josh today" Riley informed.

"He was with Everest and the others" I elaborated and they nodded.

"We saw them together" they gave a confused look "She had her legs around him".

"She was in his arms, he was carrying her" their eyes widened.

"What does that mean?".

"Oh boy, this all you honey," Mr. Matthews said causing his wife to roll her eyes at him.

"Riley, Maya, what Everest and her boyfriend did is called PDA, also known as Public Display of Affection, it's when a couple is comfortable with each other that they express it openly" Mrs. Matthews explained, "95% of the general public does it".

"Do you and dad do it?".

"Riley, your Mom and I don't have to show public affection to others for them to know that we love each other, we have you and Auggie for that" the family of 4 hugged and smiled and I stood there watching them as an outsider, I felt my heart clenched as I looked at them. The perfect family.

I bid the family goodbye after dinner and made my way home, every time I walked these streets alone made me think of my sister, it was Everest that had cheered me up when I was down, she was always there even if I didn't acknowledge her. Her footsteps would follow behind me when I was walking home, no matter the time. Food was in the house when Mom worked late or wasn't there. I didn't appreciate what she had done for me and now she was gone, she had a new family, a new life. I guess it's true what they say, you don't know what you had until it's gone. All this time I kept thinking I was alone but now that I truly am, it feels ten times worse than I thought. I didn't like the feeling that being alone brought me and if I couldn't handle it with it being a few weeks, I couldn't imagine how Everest felt all these years. I stared at the moon from the only window in the room as a memory of when Everest and I were younger, alone in the apartment and there wasn't any light played in my mind.

~FLASHBACK~

The room was dark, Everest and I were huddled in a corner of our room, and she had me wrapped in her arm as I cried. We had called Mom from the neighbor's phone and she told us she would be home in 5 minutes, that was 2 hours ago.

"I want mommy" I cried into Everest's chest and she pulled me tighter.

"Me too, Maya," she told me "Hey" I looked up at her and she smiled at me "Let's play a game, okay?" I nodded and she pulled me to the window where the moon was full and high in the sky, she left for a while and came back with one of her notebooks "Let's play connect the stars".

"How do you play?".

"It's like connecting the dot that you do in school but with the stars and you can make anything you want as long as what you draw matches the stars in the sky" I nodded grinning and took the book from her, mind distracted by the game I didn't pay attention to the darkness around me.

"This is a fun game" I showed my sister what I had drawn, she held it in front of her and looked at the stars "Did I do it right?" she nodded and ruffled my head causing me to laugh.

"You did it Maya" we drew the whole night until I fell asleep only waking the next morning.

~FLASHBACK ENDS~

Everest was the one that got me into art, every time the power went out we would huddle in front of the window and draw which happened often as Mom would either forget to pay the bill or didn't at all, I didn't know when we stopped and it turned into just me. Then I stopped as the power would always be on and I had thought that Mom paid on time or she stopped spending her money on auditions and took extra shifts at work but that day when she came to school and Everest told us the truth opened my eyes, we hadn't had power in months now and was behind on the bill payments. Mom had to take up another job and extra shifts at the diner so that she can come up with the money, that's one of the reasons I started eating dinner at the Matthews on some days because all the money had to go to bills and rent so we don't get kicked out. I sighed and looked at the old worn-out notebook in my hands, the page showed a child's drawing of the night sky, and my fingers brushed against the writing at the bottom.

'Maya's first drawing, you'll only get better after more practice'.