The Long Game (Joshaya)

Let Her Go

Song of the Chapter: Let Her Go by Passenger

* Josh's POV *

I watch her leave the classroom and push right past Riley, something I never thought she'd do. I stand in the classroom, a bunch of high school seniors and my brother staring at me.

"What the hell did you do to her?" Lucas asks, pushing me against the wall. I don't fight back; he has every right to be mad at me.

"Lucas, stop it!" Riley says, pulling him back.

"He hurt her," Lucas replies. I throw my head back against the wall and sink to the floor as the rest of the seniors leave. The only ones that stay are Riley, Lucas, and Farkle.

"Josh, what did you do?" Riley asks, sitting next to me.

"I messed up," I reply putting my face in my hands. "And now I'll never see her again."

"You don't deserve her," Lucas says, crossing his arms.

"Lucas!" Farkle replies.

"It's true! Maya's been through so much lately and she doesn't deserve to be hurt more."

I look up at Lucas. "What do you mean?"

"What, she didn't tell you?"

 I shake my head in response and they all look at each other. "Guys, what's going on?"

Riley looks at me and places her and on my shoulder. "Josh, Maya's mom is sick. The doctors only gave her a few months to live." I immediately think of the vacation they took during her birthday, one last trip.

"You're right, Lucas," I say as I stand up. "I don't deserve her." As I walk towards the exit, I hear Riley talking to Lucas.

"Why would you say that?" she asks him.

"Riley, it's the truth! Didn't you see the video?"

"Guys, stop it." I hear Farkle say as I open the door. They were right, all of them. I should've never done anything that could hurt her. With her worrying about her mother and Juilliard every day, I couldn't imagine what she was going through.

I'm letting her go; she had so much ahead of her and I would only get in the way. I hear my phone buzz, and I pick it up, with the slightest hope that it was her. I read the text and see that it's from Peyton.

Peyton: Sorry bout the video man

It doesn't matter anymore, I text back. Before I turn off my phone, I stare at the picture of me and Maya. We looked so happy together, and now I know that'll never happen again.

"Maya," I whisper at my phone. I feel a couple tears fall down my face as a walk into my dorm and flop onto the bed.

"Hey man," Peyton says, patting me on the back.

"Fuck off, Peyton."

I hear the door of our room open and close. I really screwed up and I've never felt this low before. I look up at the ceiling and picture the stars on her bedroom ceiling. I shut my eyes and picture her laying next to me.

***

* Maya's POV *

When I enter my apartment, I walk to the kitchen for a snack. On the counter, there's a note. Went to the store to pick up stuff for dinner -Shaun

I grab a granola bar and look around for my mom. She couldn't have left for work already. "Mom?" I ask, walking to their room. When I open the door to their bedroom, I find my mom laying on the floor. "Mom?" I ask, running to her. I check her pulse, which is still there, but going slow. I pull my phone out of my pocket and dial 911.

"911, what's the emergency?"

"I'm Maya Hart, I found my mom unconscious on the floor," I reply, feeling tears run down my face. "We're at View 34, apartment 119."

"We'll send someone over right away."

I hang up and dial Shaun's number, which goes to voicemail. "Shaun, meet me at the hospital."

I place a pillow under her head and hold her hand. "It's okay mom, I'm here." The paramedics arrive a few minutes later and place my mom on a stretcher. They invite me to come to the hospital with them and when I exit the apartment, Riley and her family are standing outside.

"Maya, what?" Riley asks with big eyes. They follow us out and I hop onto the ambulance. It feels like an eternity before we reach the hospital, and they rush her to the ER. I sit in the waiting room, where I'm soon joined by the Matthews family. They all offer me a big hug, but all I can think about is how she's doing. When I see Shaun run in, I can't take it anymore and run to the roof.

***

* Josh's POV *

I wake up to the sound of my phone ringing. I pick it up and see that Riley has called me more than 5 times in the last couple of minutes.

"Riley, what's wrong?"

"Maya's mom is in the hospital."

"I'm on my way." I hang up the phone and grab my leather jacket. I run as fast as my legs can go. I can't imagine what Maya must be feeling right now. When I reach the hospital, I see the Matthews and Maya's friends in the waiting room. "Maya?" I ask, not directing the question towards anyone.

"She's on the roof, I think," Riley responds, leaning on Lucas. I run up to the roof, which reminds me of when I was looking for her at the Empire State building. I walk around the hospital roof and find Maya sitting on the edge, and she looks like she's leaning towards the street. I'm afraid she'll jump off, so I grab her from behind.

"Maya, please stay," I whisper in her ear.

"What did I do wrong?" she replies, so I wrap my arms tighter around her. She tries to loosen herself from my grip, but I don't let go of her.

"You didn't do anything wrong," I say to her. "You're perfect." She bursts into tears and I feel her lean forward. "Maya, please don't do this." She stops struggling with me and just sits still.

"What are you doing here?" she asks me. "I told you to stay away."

I decide to tell her; I couldn't lie to myself by saying I didn't care about her anymore. I sit next to her on the roof, but she continues to stare down at the street. I take a deep breath and try not to think about what other people would say about us. "Maya, no matter how much you push me away, it won't change how I feel about you. I like you." She doesn't say anything and continues to stare at the lights of the city.

"Actually, no. That's a lie." She looks at me with hurt eyes, like she didn't want to hear the rest of it. I grab both of her hands and look into her blue eyes, her tears reflecting the city lights, making them look like diamonds.

"Maya Penelope Hart, I'm hopelessly in love with you."