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Finding Maya

Cory and Topanga woke up around 9 o'clock that Sunday morning. Cory walked into the kitchen to make coffee while Topanga went to wake Auggie. He passed by Riley watching tv in the living room.

"Is Maya still sleeping?" he took a sip from his mug.

"No, she's not here," Riley informed him.

"What do you mean? Is she in the bathroom or something?"

"No, she left, said she had to go," she shrugged.

"And you let her?" he shouted.

"What's going on?" Topanga walked into the room with Auggie.

"Maya's gone, she took off," Cory told his wife.

"Riley, is this true?"

"Yes, I tried to get her to stay, but she said she needed to go off on her own."

"She is a 15-year-old girl in New York City without a home in December! How could you think it's okay to let her just leave?" her father asked her.

"Cory, we don't have time to yell at her now. We need to find Maya," Topanga told him.

Cory agreed with her and they set off to find Maya. Cory and Topanga headed to the supermarket Maya was at the day prior to see if she was in the area. 

Riley was told to watch Auggie at the apartment and was instructed to call them if Maya came back.

They pulled up to the supermarket and asked the manager if he'd seen Maya. He said that she hadn't come into the store, but security cameras picked  her up in the parking lot of the diner next door.

They thanked him and then entered the diner. Several lights were out and there was garbage and grime all over the place. It was empty except for a blonde-haired waitress that greeted them dryly.

"What can I get for you?" she slurred.

She was clearly intoxicated, she could barely keep her balance. But she was the only employee working.

"I actually wanted to know if you saw somebody come through here earlier today," Topanga asked.

"Only customers that have come in today are you two," the woman shook her head.

"Really?" Topanga was disappointed. "You didn't see a teenaged girl with blonde hair, about 5 feet tall?"

"Forget it, Topanga, we're not gonna find Maya here."

"Are you talking about Maya Hart?" the waitress asked.

"Yes, do you know her?" they asked with skepticism.

"Of course I do, she's my daughter."

"You're Katy Hart?" Topanga asked in disbelief.

"I am," she answered.

They looked closer at her outfit and, sure enough, her name tag read Katy.

Cory and Topanga weren't really sure what they expected Maya's mother to look like, but they definitely weren't expecting this.

Before them stood a small, frail woman in a light blue waitress outfit. Her hair was in a tussled mess, she struggled to speak normally, and was unable to maintain eye contact for more than 3 seconds.

"What trouble has my daughter gotten into this time?"

"She's not in trouble, but we are looking for her. Have you seen her?"

"She came by earlier, we started arguing, she told me how much she hated me. Then she took off."

"Do you know where she went?"

The blonde woman thought hard, trying to remember in the foggy haze that was her mind. She stared blankly, as if watching static on tv.

"We're wasting our time here. Let's go to the park and look for her."

Maya had mentioned that she likes to go to the park  a lot. And when they got to Union Square, the found her sitting in front of the fountain.

"Maya!" Cory called.

Maya looked in their direction, her face bearing an unreadable expression when she spotted them.

"What on earth are you doing here?" Topanga asked and gave Maya her coat.

"I'm just existing."

"You need to come with us, it's not safe for you to just be out here on your own."

"I've been on my own my whole life. Of all the things I've done, sitting in the park by myself is the least dangerous."

"That doesn't make me any more inclined to let you stay here," Cory told her.

"Why does this even matter to you?" she looked annoyed that they wouldn't leave her alone.

"We care about your safety. Sleeping on park benches, shivering in the cold, struggling to pay for a sandwich? It doesn't have to be like that."

"Doesn't it? My parents aren't rich. I don't even know where my dad is, and my mom is happy I left home, it's one less mouth to feed."

"That's why we think it would be a good idea for you to stay with us, at least for a little bit," Topanga told her. "Now let's go back to the apartment and we can discuss it more with you there."

Maya debated going with them in her head. On the one hand, she hated rules and would rather be on her own and independent. On the other hand, she knew that they wouldn't leave her alone until she went with them and they genuinely seemed to care about her.

"Fine, I'll go with you," she caved. "I just hope you know what you're getting yourselves into."

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