Peaches & Honey

Missy Franklin

As they entered Topanga's, Riley turned and smiled at her girlfriend. "I'm gonna go grab us a booth, okay Peaches?" Maya smiled adoringly at her, nodding as she bit her lip. "Of course, honey. I'll go get us a milkshake." Riley beamed her signature wide-mouthed grin, one that lit up the whole room, in Maya's opinion. "Vanilla, please!" Maya returned the grin. "I know the drill, honey." Riley stood on her tiptoes and scanned the bakery for a free booth. As she located one, she practically skipped towards it. This was one of her favorite things in the world; sharing a milkshake with the love of her life.

She slid into one of the seats, resting her chin in one hand. As she waited for Maya, her thoughts began to wander. She was so lucky to find the person she was going to spend the rest of her life with at such a young age. Maya knew her better than anyone she'd ever met, even better than her parents, even. But it was not one sided. She knew her Peaches better than anyone. She smiled dreamily. A hand slapping down on the tabletop startled her out of her thoughts, and she looked up inquisitively, her eyes meeting with none other than her middle school bully— Missy Franklin.

"Well, well, well. If it isn't Smiley Riley Matthews." Missy smirked. She slid into the opposite side of the booth of Riley. "So I heard that the triangle ended, with you and Maya getting together?" Missy laughed. "Like no one saw that coming." Riley remained silent, impassive.  "Maya is a fine ass woman," Missy continued. "Beautiful, strong, and funny. Not hard on the eyes, either. Pity that she had to settle for you."

"She didn't 'settle' for me, Missy. She loves me, and I love her." Riley snarled, her cheeks reddening. "Not that you would understand that." Missy smiled wider, all gleaming white teeth. She'd pinpointed Riley's weakness. "Does she though? I mean, we all saw the way she pined over Lucas. It was you that ended the triangle. You took that choice away from Maya. She had to settle for you, instead of Lucas." Missy said, sugary sweet. "Why would anyone want to be with you? I mean, you're not even pretty. Your smile is too wide, your teeth are crooked. Your nose is too big, and frankly, you're freakishly tall."

Despite Riley's stoic expression, she began to wilt. Her spine curved and her eyes drifted away from Missy's, toward the tabletop. Missy smiled cruelly. She opened her mouth to spew more hatred, but the sudden shock of a vanilla milkshake pouring over her head made her shriek instead. Whirling around to face the offender, Missy's face blanched. It was a five foot, red faced, irate blonde. Maya's hands were shaking as she whipped the cup onto the floor, barely resisting the urge to chuck it at Missy's head. "I'll give you five seconds to take all of that back." Maya growled out, her fists shaking at her sides. Riley was wide-eyed, her mouth wide open at the sight of Missy's head dripping with vanilla ice cream. Despite the freezing cold ice cream dripping down her cheeks, she smirked. "Why would I? It's all true." At that, Maya took another step forward, raising her fist.

Riley dove out of her seat, launching herself at Maya. Surprised, Maya caught her, her fists uncurling and splaying flat against Riley's back. Riley's lips were at her ear, and for a moment, Maya was distracted by the feeling of Riley's warm breath against her ear. "Don't," Riley pled. "For me." Maya's hands clenched up again, clutching at the material of Riley's t-shirt. "She's not worth it." Riley whispered. She took a step back, clutching Maya's shoulders and looking her in the eyes. At once, Maya felt the tension drain out of her body. She gave Riley a nod. Riley released her grip on Maya and turned to Missy Franklin, who was glaring at the two of them. She'd expected Maya to swing. She'd wanted their relationship to crumble and break, but it seemed that it was too solidly built to break. Maya met her eyes, and not a word was spoken as she gathered her things with a huff. There was no screaming, no punches thrown, and no tears. Missy stomped towards the exit, and Riley and Maya released a huge, simultaneous sigh of relief. Maya pulled Riley into a soft, loving kiss, smiling when Riley melted into it, tangling her fingers through Maya's long blonde locks.

Maya pulled back and tapped Riley's nose playfully. "I should get us another milkshake." She turned on her heel, floating on the sound of Riley's laughter behind her.