Hold On To Me (Marina)

33.Long Lost Friends

33.

and isnt it obvious whos been missing who the most
i just wish that you had called
cos i would have said it all
(Transit-Long Lost Friends)

"Guys, you really didn't have to, oh my God!" Andy exclaimed as she entered Vic and Travis' house. There were balloons everywhere, music playing out loud and, of course, a lot of food.

"But we wanted to." Jack stated, smiling at the captain. "Moreover, this way Carina cooked some lasagna and those breadsticks and biscuits that look delicious.". Andy rolled her eyes and let out a chuckle.

"They are, I can confirm." Vic stated, her mouth full of breadsticks. "If I were Maya, I would never cook anymore in my life with such a wife."

"To be honest, I would have already banned her from the kitchen if I were Carina." Travis joked.

"Hey! I'm not so bad." Maya retorted, but she knew her friends were right, she was such a bad cook. "Anyway, she is really sad she couldn't come tonight, but with Keira it would have been a bit difficult. We didn't want to leave her alone." she told Andy. "But she said to tell you she is very proud of you and that the lasagna is mainly for you. So Sullivan, hands off!". Robert chuckled and put the lasagna down, between everyone's laughters.

"Well, let's have some fun." Ben said and everyone started eating and dancing. Maya, on the other hand, was leaning against the wall, all alone, a bottle of beer in her hand. She sighed and took a sip, her eyes on Travis and Jack, who were dancing in a very weird and funny way. She giggled and shook her head. She wished she could have fun, but the truth was that she had so much in her mind. She couldn't help but think about the day she had become captain. No one had supported her. No one had been happy for her. She wasn't jealous of Andy, but the memory of her friends not supporting her still hurt. Moreover, she kept wondering how Carina and Keira were doing. She had already texted her wife several times to check on them and apparently they were fine, but she couldn't stop the concern, she didn't even know why.

"Hey." Andy approached her.

"Hey."

"Thank you for this party. You really didn't have to." the brunette said. Maya smiled at her.

"As Jack told you, we wanted to. You deserve to be celebrated."

"You deserved that too." Andy replied. Maya shrugged, a hand in the pocket of her jeans.

"Yeah, probably." she said.

"God, I used to be so mean. I'm so sorry, really." Andy told her.

"It's okay. It happened years ago, Andy. It doesn't matter anymore."

"But it does, Maya. It matters to me." Andy claimed. "You were a great captain, Maya. You didn't deserve to be demoted. And you didn't deserve the hell Beckett gave you. I should have been more... I should have been a better friend.". Maya took a deep breath. She put the bottle of beer on the table and leaned back to the wall. She looked up at the ceiling and swallowed the lump in her throat. She hadn't felt so close to Andy for a while now. And she had missed her friend so much.

"Regrets are... Regrets are dangerous. You know, I keep wondering if I could have been a better sister. I keep... I keep wondering if I could have saved Raphael, if I could have spared Keira of all the grief she went and is actually going through. Truth is I don't know. Maybe I could. Or maybe not.". Andy was looking at her friend, confused. "What I want to say is that yes, you could've acted differently. But Andy, you were the one standing for me against McCallister that night. You were the one driving me to my parent's place so that I could come out to my father and tell my mother she deserved more. You were the one protecting me last year making up a whole story to stop people gossiping about me. You were my first real friend, Andy. You are my best friend. And I'm so happy my friend is now my captain. Your father would be proud of you. I am proud of you.". Andy was in tears. She hugged Maya, quite unexpectedly considering she had never really liked hugging people.

"I love you, Maya." she whispered. "I'm happy to call you my best friend.". The blonde pulled away and smiled at Andy, with genuine affection. "I would be lost without you. I'm serious, you're the sister I've never had. And I'm sorry it took me so long to tell you."

"I'm sorry it took me so long to listen to you and stop pushing you away." Maya replied. "But now we're here. And that's what matters, Tia Andy.". The Latina frowned, then widened her eyes, in pure realization.

"No way!" she exclaimed. "You are... Oh my God, you..."

"Shh, we haven't told anyone yet.". Andy tried to ease upon the enthusiasm and looked around, hoping no one had heard them. She then started giggling and slapped Maya's arm, a proud gaze on her face.

"You have to tell me everything. I can't believe you and Carina are going to be Keira's moms."

"Me neither." the blonde stated. "Moreover, it won't be as easy as you might think."

"Why? I mean, she has no relatives, you are good people and she has clearly improved so much since you started fostering her. What's the issue?" Andy asked.

"Her social worker is the issue." Maya answered. "She is quite homophobic. And she clearly doesn't care about Keira at all."

"But she allowed you and Carina to foster her." Andy replied.

"Yeah, because this way she had less work to do. Allowing us to adopt her means she has to work more now. And Keira will be eighteen in few months, so she keeps telling us it's not worth it. Gosh, I can't stand her." Maya explained, shaking her head. "Sorry, I... Tonight is about you and..."

"And it's okay, Maya. Just tell me if I can do anything to help you with this whole situation." Andy reassured her best friend. The blonde smiled at her and leaned her head against her shoulder, without saying nothing. She didn't need to. All she needed  was her friend's presence. And she couldn't be more grateful for that.

Author's Note
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