Worse Things

Chapter 6

When I wake up on Thursday morning I can see the snow falling outside my window. I stand up and trip over my book. I must have fallen asleep whilst reading last night.
I look over at the clock and realise it's already 7.45. I run over to my wardrobe and pull out the first thing I can find. I quickly get changed and run out into the living room where I see my Dad and Alice sitting on the couch.
"Good morning Maya. Your school called and it's a snow day. I thought you would like to sleep in. There's French toast on the counter if you want any."
"Ok thanks." I say.
When I walk into the kitchen I grab 2 pieces of French toast and the bowl of berries and sit down. I eat my breakfast slowly and watch the TV. I can hear my phone ringing in the other room but decide to ignore.
I rinse my plate in the sink and walk back into my room. My phone starts ringing again and I check the screen to see who it is. A picture of Riley appears on the screen indicating that she's the one calling. I slide the button across and put the phone to my ear.
"Hey Maya. You wanna come over?"
"Yeah sure I'll be there in 20 minutes. I just have to finish getting ready."
"Ok cool. Bye."
I hang up the phone and put it down on my desk. I tie my hair into a neat pony tail and find my scarf and beanie among the mess of clothes on my floor and slowly walk out the front door.
Although it's snowing the streets are still filled with cars rushing to get to work. The walk to Riley's house isn't that far but is especially hard today because of the slushy ice on the side of the road.
I can see Riley house coming up in front of me. I approach her red door with the number 26 printed on it and knock 3 times. The door opens and standing in front of me is Josh. I've never felt more awkward in my life.
"Maya. Hey. What are you doing here." He has a foolish grin on his face that makes him look even cuter than he already does.
"Oh ... Um ... Riley invited me over. We always hang out together on snow days."
"Oh yeah. That's right, when you guys were like 8 it was the most it had snowed all year and we went outside and attempted to build an igloo."
We both laugh at the memory. We built the igloo but as soon as we got inside it collapsed around.
"Yeah I remember that day. Can I come in or do you want to just stand in the doorway all day."
He laughs and steps aside.
"Thankyou." I say.
"Riley's upstairs." He says and I start to run up the wooden staircase
I get to Riley's room and open the door. She's sitting on her bed texting someone. When I walk in the room she looks up and smiles.
"Maya your here."
"Yep. So what're we doing today." I ask her
"I was thinking we could bake a cake or something and then watch a few movies." She says knowing that's my idea of a perfect day at home.
"Ooh that's sounds fun." I say and smile.
I feel slightly awkward around Riley today. When I talked to her about Josh last night she said she didn't mind if I went out with him but thinks I should be careful. I can tell this is bothering her because of the way she's looking at me.
"Riley?" She looks up. "Do you think I should go talk to Josh?"
"I don't know Maya. If you really like him than I think you should but I still think you should be careful."
I agree with what Riley said but I'm afraid that what she said about the bet is true. I sit for a few minutes staring out the window at the glistening snow, so delicate and almost invisible. I contemplate how I would feel if Josh did only ask me out for a bet. Maybe it wouldn't affect me that much. It's not like I expected him to ask me out in the first place. I was just like the snow outside the window to him, invisible.
As I stand up I can feel Riley's eyes staring at me on my back. When I walk out the door she wishes me luck and I smile back.
Josh's door is all the way down the other end of the hallway. I pass the bathroom, Riley's little brother Auggies bedroom and her parents bedroom before I find myself standing in front of Joshs door. It's covered in posters for video games and boyish bands that Ive heard him blaring every time I come over Riley's house. I can hear the music playing now as I knock on the door. I stand there for 2 minutes waiting for him to open the door. Nobody answers so I decide to crack the door open a little to see inside. Josh is lying on his bed throwing his soccer ball in the air. I knock on the door again and this time he looks up. When he sees me standing there he smiles. He has such a nice smile.
"Maya, what are you doing here?" He asks in a lighthearted tone. I don't know what to say to this cause I'm not exactly sure what the answer is myself. I can't just tell him I know he is involved in a juvenile bet that will hurt my feelings.
"I wanted to talk to you about something. It's sort of been bothering me." I say as I walk into his room.
It's surprisingly neat for a boys room. There's only a crumpled up jacket thrown over the side of a desk chair.
"What's it about." He questions and his smile fades.
"Our date." He sits up and gives me his full attention.

Hi lovelies. I'm sorry I haven't posted a chapter in 2 weeks but I've been really busy. I'll be posting chapters more frequently so get excited. Thank you for the support on my story. <3