Falling Apart (sequel to Taking On The World)

:6: Shattered Glass

Huge freaking plot twist at the end. Upsetting stuff. Enjoy (if you can)!

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:6: Shattered Glass

Maya's POV

I yawned as I sat up in Josh's bed. Tinkerbell slept beside me.

Glancing at the clock on the bedside table (it took a minute for my eyes to focus on the red numbers), I checked the time. 7:23am.

The shower was running in the bathroom beside Josh's room, and since it was way earlier than Lucas usually wakes up, I decided that it must be Josh. I got out of bed. A little snooping never hurt anybody.

I walked over to the dresser and picked up a picture frame. My eyes widened.

The picture was of me, Riley and Josh. I couldn't have been more than 6 years old.

We stood in a park, grinning happily at the camera. This must have been when Riley was going through her "pink phase", considering the fact that she was wearing a hot pink tutu with matching ribbons in her hair.

I was so immersed in my thoughts that I didn't even hear the shower turn off. But I did, however, hear the turning of the doorknob.

I spun around and dropped the picture frame, completely startled. I must have had a brilliant "deer in headlights" look on my face.

"Hey," Josh said, walking into the room.

"H-hi," I stuttered.

He came over to where I was and we looked at the shattered glass that was at our feet. Josh bent down and carefully pulled the photo out from under it all.

"Remember when we first met?" He said, studying the photo.

I nodded.

~Flashback~

I sat cross-legged on the ground, tearing a slice of bread into small pieces and feeding them to the half-Labrador puppy that sat in front of me.

A boy strolled up to me.

I frowned because I'd never seen him before. Mommy always told me not to speak to strangers. But what did Mommy know? She and Daddy had been strangers to each other once, and know they're married. Not happily married, but still married.

"Hey," the boy said. "My name's Josh."

"Hi, I'm Maya." I looked up at him, studying him intently. "Your hair's so dark. I've never met anyone with black hair before."

"Your hair's the colour of honey," he said, sitting beside me.

I blushed, and hid it by ripping off a piece of bread for the dog.

"I'm here with my niece. See her, over there?" He pointed to a girl with long, brown hair who was chasing some ducks while flapping her arms. She wore pink. I'd never really liked pink very much.

"My brother and sister-in-law are looking after us as well," he informed me.

I glanced at him. "Aren't you a little young to have a niece?"

"No, she's my brothers daughter," he said.

I didn't really know what to say to that, so I ripped off another piece of bread and threw it to the dog.

"I like dogs too," he said to me as he watched it eat.

I shook my head. "I don't like dogs at all."

"Then why are you feeding it?" Josh frowned.

"My daddy doesn't like me and he still feeds me. I want this dog to live a fair life."

~Flashback over~

"I wonder what happened to the dog," I mused.

"Mom and Dad took her home two weeks later when I wouldn't shut up about the blonde-haired girl and the Labrador puppy," he told me. "We named her Roxy. She died last year."

"I'm sorry," I said, because that's what you always say when someone's died. I've never known why. It's not your fault so why apologise?

He smiled at me sadly. "Likewise. I thought that dog meant something to you."

"I guess she did," I said thoughtfully. "She taught me how to care about and respect things that I might not like. She taught me how to be fair."

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Narrator's POV

Riley glanced at her watch. The time was 6:53pm, and she and Shawn were out looking for Maya and Lucas. They hadn't taken Auggie this time.

It was raining so heavily, and Shawn looked tired. What happened next was sudden, but it changed the lives of countless people forever.

Whether the truck had strayed to the wrong side of the road or Shawn's car had, it's unclear. But what was clear (as said by the truck driver) was that Shawn desperately tried to turn the car away but failed as the car spun out of control on the wet road.

The last thing Riley Matthews was to ever hear was the screams of agony from her father's best friend and the deafening crunch of crushing metal.

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NOOO! RILEY! SHAWN!

But seriously though, how cute was child Maya? She's so darn wise.

Please, please, PLEASE let me know if you want a Joshaya or a Brabrina fanfic after this one is over! I'm leaning towards the Brabrina one, but I want your thoughts!!

Question time!

1. Did you like how I did third person at the end?
And
2. Do you think Shawn lived?

Xoxo, stay fabulous!