The Long Game (Joshaya)

Apology

* Maya's POV *

I tell Josh that I have to go to bed, so he follows me into my room and lays down next to me. He said he wanted to stay, but it's a school night for both of us. It made me suspicious.

"So, how's your mom doing?"

"She's fine," I reply. "Shaun was supposed to be home by now." I check my phone for the time and to see if he called or texted.

"I'm sure he'll let you know what's going on."

"I know, but...I'm just worried."

"Don't worry. I promised her I'll take care of you, no matter what happens."

"Thanks, Josh."

"Do you know if it's passed down genetically?" he asks. I never thought about it. My heart started to race just at the thought of being sick one day. "Hey, I didn't mean to frighten you. I'm sorry," he says, giving me a big hug.

I push the though aside and try to enjoy his company. We talk for a while, when a hear a phone ring. I look at mine to see if it's Shaun, but the screen is black. Josh glances at his phone and ends the call.

"Why did you do that?" I ask.

"I want it to be just me and you right now." Me and you. Simple words with a lot of meaning. Why did being with him seem so scary now? It was all I wanted before, and now that it's actually happening, I'm terrified. I shouldn't be; I've been waiting for him for years. My eyelids grow heavy, then his phone rings again.

"Josh, just pick it up," I say, keeping my eyes closed. I feel him sit up and end the call instead of answer it.

"Well, I really don't want to talk to this person," he replies, texting the person back. Then, he puts his phone on vibrate and lies back down. "You'll always tell me what's happening right?" he asks.

"Yeah. And you?"

After a few seconds, he nods in response. My eyes close shut, my last sight of the day being him.

***

* Josh's POV *

My phone kept vibrating, letting me know that Kacey would not stop until she got what she wanted. I look at Maya to make sure she's asleep, then climb out of bed and answer the phone.

"Where are you?" she says.

"I said I would be back late," I whisper, looking at Maya the entire time.

"It's like 11:00 already and I have class at 9:00 tomorrow. If you don't come, more stuff will be put up."

"Why can't you just leave her alone? She didn't do anything to you."

"Everyone has a weakness," she replies, hanging up right after. Then, it hit me. Maya is my weakness. I'd do anything for her and Kacey knows that now after our affair.

"Damnit!" I whisper. Maya moans and turns over. I walk over to her bedside and kiss where I hit her with the door today. "I'm sorry." When I exit her room, Shaun is sitting on the couch.

"Hey, Josh. Where ya going?"

"Back to school. I didn't even here you come in." I feel my phone vibrating in my pocket, so I stick my hand in to muffle the sound.

"Yeah, Maya likes to sleep earlier now with her audition coming up."

"When is that?"

"Two weeks from now I think."

I mark the date in my head. "Thanks, Shaun. Good night."

"Good night," he replies. "And Josh?"

"Yeah?"

"I trust you to take care of her."

"Of course, sir."

The responsibility everyone was putting on me was terrifying. I didn't want to mess anything up, but I know it's too late for that already. My phone rings in my pocket.

Kacey: you have half an hour

I'll be there in 15.

***

* Maya's POV *

I wake up the next morning to find out that Josh left in the middle of the night from Shaun.

"Did he say why?" I ask him.

"No, but his phone sure was going off a lot," he replies, throwing a piece of bacon in his mouth. "Your mom wants to know what time you'll be coming to the hospital today."

"I have pointe, so maybe around 6? I can leave earlier though."

"No, she said she wants you to be laser focused on that audition." Shaun grabs a backpack and a handful of bacon. "I'll let you know if anything comes up." He grabs his jacket as he closes the door behind him. I push the food around my plate with my fork and continue to think about Josh. He didn't even leave a message about him leaving. I'm overthinking this; it was probably an emergency or something he forgot he had today at school. I hear a knock at the door, so I get up from the table to answer it. When I open the door, I see Riley standing there with tear-stained cheeks. I didn't think she would come this soon.

"Hey," she says quietly.

"Hey," I respond.

"May I come in?" she asks, gesturing her hand towards my apartment.

"Sure." She walks in and I shut the door behind me. I stick my hands in my back pockets and turn around to face her. All I could think about is what I'm going to say to her, words flying around in my mind trying to make sentences. I could barely look at her.

"Maya, I'm sorry," she starts. "But, I really think Lucas is the one."

The one. Riley and I have talked about our ones our entire lives. How one day, we would know who that person was just by looking at them. At first, I only spoke about it to make Riley happy. But now, I might actually believe it's true.

"I see the way he looks at you, Riles," I reply. "He looks at you as if you're the only person in the world."

"Maya..."

"It would be selfish of me to keep you to myself. You know what they say: if you love something, set it free. If it comes back to you, then it's yours to keep. If it doesn't, it never really was."

Riley runs to me and pulls me in for a big hug. "Maya, I'll always come back to you," she cries. "Nothing can keep us apart."

"I know," I reply, tears falling down my face.

"I didn't know it would be this hard," Riley says, pulling me tighter.

"What's hard?"

"To say goodbye."

"Don't say that," I reply, pulling away from her. "Let's only say, 'Until we meet again.'"

"I like that," she says, wiping tears from her face.

"Have you spoken to Lucas yet?" I ask her.

"No, and I don't know when, but it'll be soon."

"Do it now, Riley," I respond, pushing her out the door. "Before it's too late. I'll see you at school."

"See you later," she shouts as she runs down the hall.

I walk back to the table to see a message from Josh on my phone.

Josh: Sorry I left, forgot about a math test today. I'll make it up to you, I promise.

I shouldn't be so suspicious of him. He has his own school life and I have mine. We have to make sure our personal lives are in check if we're still planning to play the long game. I re-read the text and his second sentence sticks in my head. I promise. He didn't seem to say that to me unless it was serious. It must've just been a big exam. He promised to take care of me.