"We graduate in two days"
"It's unreal"
"How is this even possible?"
"I thought I'd flunk this year"
"Well all thought that, Zay"
"Shut up, Farkle"
"Hey, why don't you go join them? I can cover up for you for a few minutes" Elliot says while approaching me to the counter.
"You sure?"
"Yeah. Go talk to your friends"
"You're my friend, too"
"Maya, just go with them, I'll be fine" I give him a faint smile and take my apron off. He's the best
"Thanks, El"
"You're welcome. Go enjoy your youth, cowgirl" I laugh and nudge him by the elbow
"Don't say that ever again"
"I won't. Go now"
"You're the best"
"I know!"
"Hey, guys" I greet my friends as I sit next to Riley on our usual spot.
"Hey, Peaches, taking a break, I see. What will the boss say?"
"Nothing, if she doesn't find out"
"And how is she not gonna find out?"
"Chocolate caramel milkshake for everyone after my break is over"
"Deal"
"So, how's your valedictorian speech going, Smakle?" I ask with a grin on my face, knowing that this would piss Farkle off.
"She got one more lousy A than I did!"
"Well, Maya, it's going quite well honestly. But I want someone else to do it instead of me"
"Like who?"
"Zay" Missy spits the coffee she was drinking all over the place.
"Wow, I feel very honored, but...why?"
"I know you are the most apt person for this task. I find it highly discriminatory to ask the smartest kid to write the speech when there's people with actual talent in speaking and writing. This is why I choose you. You're a natural poet"
"Thank you, Smakle"
"You're welcome" She stands up and gives him voluntarily a hug that doesn't look awkward, at all.
"Wow, that was one of the best hugs I've ever had in my entire life. Good job, Smakle!" The high-five and sit back down at their usual seats.
"I can't believe we're all going to be in college in less than three months"
"It's unbelievable. It seems like yesterday when were first put into that hole. Remember those good ol' times?" I raise my eyebrows at Farkle.
"Good old times? Our friendship almost ended"
"But now is stronger"

"Look! A patriot. We're Abigail Adams Patriots. We're just as much a part of this place as anybody else"
"Get in the hole" I glare at the trio. Nobody tells me what to do
"Of course get in the hole"
"What are you?"
"I'm Riley"
"What are you?" she better back up before something bad happens to her. I move in front of Riley to protect her. Why the hell is Elliot watching this scene with a smile?!
"She's my best friend, and we can do without the attitude, madam"
"What'd you call us?" Okay, maybe I feel a little bit intimidated now
"I'm gonna probably need help now"
"Guys, come on. Leave them alone" Thank you Elliot, it was about time
"Do you know these people?"
"Yeah, the brunette is my sister" Thor smirks
"So I guess that the blondie over there is your girlfriend" I frown, what?
"She's not"
"Tell that to Anna" I chuckle
"Guys, you've got the wrong person. Anna is his girlfriend" one of the girl frowns
"She doesn't know, so you better not tell her. Got it?" Farkle looks like he knows about this story, what are they hiding from me?
"Know what?" the girl smirk
"You're spunky. You know what I'm gonna call you? Spunky"
"And what are you, Spunky?" Lucas rests his hands on my shoulders
"Her name is Maya. And you can call me Lucas" he steps in front of a random guy
"You wanna know what I am? I'm as strong as a horse. I don't know how. I just am" Thor smirks
"Yeah, he's not even with us. When my friends tell you to do something, you do what they say"
"This hallway here is for people who have earned it"
"Why are you doing this?"
"You wanna hear your freshman song?"
"Oh, we have a freshman song. I want to hear our freshman song" same old Riley, too innocent
"I think you don't" they start singing
"Oh, we have come to Abigail
With innocence of soul
And what we are is freshmen
So, we go into the...
Hole" the brunette does an amazing run while hitting a high note, amazing.
"It's beautiful"
"Riley!"
"You know, it's not so bad down here" we look at Zay
"You're already down there?"
"Oh, I saw how this was going" Riley goes down there with Smakle and Farkle.
"We were kings" I say in a whisper
"Yeah, that's over, Maya"
"Elliot, you're in this too?" he nods
"Yeah" I groan and get down there. Lucas in the only one who refuses to join us
"You know we're not gonna stay down here, right? You guys know as soon you leave, we're just gonna go to class"
"Oh, we want you to go to class"
"But spend your free time down here because of what Spunky said" I raise my eyebrows
"What, 'We were kings'?"
"Yeah. In middle school, you were"
"We all were"
"Right now, you're not. We are"
"We walk anywhere we want and you don't"
"Why? Because you say so?"
"Yeah" Thor walks up to Lucas. Is he gonna hurt him? I better do something
"Now get down there, little buddy"

"Okay, you're right, it made us stronger. But I'm still mad at them for being so bossy"
"Would you have listened to them if they weren't that bossy?"
"I didn't even listen to them. I just stuck by Riley's side automatically"
"Aww, Peaches..."
"Unlike you did that time in eighth grade when Lucas called me and short stack of pancakes"
"Are we still fighting about it?" I cross my arms over my chest and sigh. I really need to let it go.
"No, not at all"
"Good"
"But it would've been nice if you stood up for me automatically-"
"Maya!" I raise my hands up in defeat, she won the argument this time.
"Okay, okay. I'm not the one to hold grudges"
"So many things have changed since then. Do you remember how you lost yourself and needed a trip to the ski lodge to find out how you felt?"

"Look at leaves, they're like us. We have this one little life... and for a lot of it, we just blow around in the wind. I don't wanna do that. I wanna spend my time in a relationship I hope for"
"Ours?" I nod
"Yes, ours. I'm glad I had a one-minute relationship with you the day we met"
"So am I" he looks down at me and smiles before kissing me. Man, I've missed this feeling. It feels so fresh, almost as if I never kissed him. I move a little since this position it's kinda uncomfortable and sit on his lap
"Maya?" he asks in between kisses but I ignore him. I already know what he's going to say next. I'm still scared to tell him my feelings for him. I just keep kissing him and even deepen our kiss.
"Okay, as much as I love your French side-"
"Lucas, don't" he cups my face
"Maya, I love you. You don't have to say it back. I just wanted to you know that" I look at the pillows under us because I don't want him to see me blushing.
"I-I love you too" I say in a whisper, almost inaudible. He tilts my chin up so that I can look up at him, I see a smile on his face, a pure one. This gives me enough confidence to repeat what I just said louder
"I love you too"
"See? You're already getting better at expressing your feelings already" I slightly laugh
"You know, I'd rather express my feelings in other ways"
"Oh yeah?" I nod
"Oh yeah"
"Would you mind showing them to me?"
"Absolutely. If I had a smoothie right now I'd pour it over your head but, since I don't have one..." I slowly lean in
"Yeah?" I stop. I'm still too insecure to start a simple kiss.
"Maya?"
"I-I suck at romantic things. Can... can you do it for me?" he laughs
"Hey!"
"Sorry, sorry" he presses one hand on my back, pulling me closer to him
"I'll do it for you, ma'am"
"You really are a secure Western hero" I say with a smile
"Thank you, Maya" he closes the gap between us and our forever-lasting kiss starts again.

"Damn, I miss Huckleberry"
"I think we all do"
"How is he doing, by the way, Zay?" Farkle asks
"Oh, he misses us like crazy. But he said he can't wait to see us when college starts"
"We can't wait either"
"Talking about people who moved away...Missy, how's your sister?"
"Don't worry, Maya. She'll be here all summer so you can say bye to her when you'll go to Paris" She dropped the bomb everyone was trying to avoid. She brought the topic of me leaving to the table and now everyone's silent, not knowing what to say.
"Well, hello" I turn around and see my boyfriend entering Topanga's.
"James, hi"
"I thought people my age talked to each other. I had no idea they could stay silent without looking at their phones" I stand up and hold his hands in mine.
"What are you doing here?"I ask in order to avoid having this conversation with him too.
"Free shift. I wanted to see my girlfriend" He gives me a quick kiss on the lips, bringing a smile to my face.
After the definitive breakup with Elliot I was broken. I was devastated. I cried for weeks and remained locked in my room for at least a month. I got out of it only to go to school or work, where I constantly had to see my ex-boyfriend with a smile plastered across his face every time I walked in a room. I couldn't understand how he could be so happy but then came to the conclusion he didn't care enough about me, about us. But James was there for me, no matter how many times I pushed him away and told him to leave me alone, he was always there, by my side. He picked up all the pieces and put me back together. I didn't think it would happen, but he did actually heal me, like he suggested.
"That's really sweet. Thank you. Do you want anything? I was gonna start my shift"
"You literally just ended it" I glare at Elliot and he rolls his eyes at me.
"Oh, don't worry. I'll just ask Elliot"
"Are you sure? He's not gonna give you free stuff like I do"
"Maya, with all the stuff you gave me you could stay in a coma at my hospital for years and not pay a cent. Let me pay this one time. Please, I beg of you"
"Go ahead. Just know you'll get more kisses next time"
"Now, that sounds like a great offer, I'll take it" He turns around and walks to the counter to take his order while I sit back down. When I look at my friends I notice the grins on their faces
"What?"
"More kisses? The Maya I knew would never say that"
"Shut up, Missy"
"I never saw you like a hopeless romantic" I whine in frustration and hide my red face in the crook of Riley's neck
"Farkle, not you too"
"You have to face it, Maya. You are a softie"
"Oh no, you didn't..." I stare at Smakle in shock. Nobody can call me a softie.
"Yes, I did"
"Okay, stop it. Maya doesn't like being called that"
"Thank you, Riles"
"...even though she is" I stand up again, I can't take another comment.
"I've had enough. I'm going over to Jake"
"Are you gonna give him those kisses that you've promised?"

*The next day, at school*

"Belgium, 1831!" Matthews announces with a smile while my friends and I stay silent. We refuse to believe that this is happening. We can't accept the fact that High School is over and that our favorite teacher won't be by our sides anymore like he once used to.
"Mr. Matthews, don't"
"Oh, Farkle. Why not?"
"We're not ready"
"Yes, you are. You're just afraid of the future, but you gotta realize what amazing opportunities the World has reserved for you"
"Are you trying to tell us everything will be fine?"
"No, Mr. Babineaux. You'll have your high and lows, I can assure you that, but you will overcome them and learn from them without my help"
"Do you think we can do that?"
"Yes, Riley. You've learned everything from me. There's nothing more I can teach you"
"What do you mean?" He smiles when I ask this question and points at the chalkboard"
"Belgium, 1831. The Belgian Revolution had just finished with the victory of Belgium. The country was finally independent and free from the United Netherlands, right? Wrong. In 1831, King William made a belated attempt to reconquer Belgium and restore his position through a military campaign. This 'Ten Days Campaing' failed because of French military intervention. Not until 1839 did the Dutch accept the decision of the London conference and Belgian independence by signing the Treaty of London"
"What is that supposed to teach us?"
"Nothing, Smakle. Like I said, you have nothing left to learn from me. This is a lesson for me to learn" He looks at our confused faces and groans in frustration.
"I am King William"
"So this must mean we are Belgium"
"Yes, Ms. Bradford, you are Belgium"
"Oh!" The whole class says in unison.
"And I refuse to let you go. I could easily use your fear of the future to keep you under my wing but I can't. Because eventually you won't be scared anymore and start a rebellion to meet the World, ruining the beautiful relationship we built in these seven years. And I don't want that. I have to let you go, even though nobody wants this to happen. Tomorrow you have your graduation and you'll start your new lives. I just want you to know that I'll always be there for you, no matter what, okay?" the bell rings and all the students leave. All except for Zay, Riley, Farkle, Missy, Isadora and I.
"Why haven't you left?"
"We know you, Matthews. You still have to teach us something else"
"I don't. But I will give you an advice someone really important gave to me: believe in yourselves, dream, try, do good"
"Don't you mean 'Do well'?" Smakle asks.
"No, I mean 'Do good'"

*The next day, at the graduation ceremony*

"I would like to welcome you all to the graduation ceremonies of the class of 2019. Congratulations. We did it!" Mr. Matthews says with excitement. We're excited too, but the thoughts of our group drifting apart become stronger and stronger each second.
"And now it's time to introduce our valedictorian, a student who exemplifies academic excellence, as well as extracurricular achievement and social conscience. Ladies and gentlemen, Miss Isadora Smakle" We all clap as our friend approaches the mic stand.
"Thank you, Mr. Matthews. Ladies and gentlemen, my fellow class members of the class of 2019, I'm very honored to be your valedictorian, and I worked very hard on this speech, however, I'm not going to give it. 'Cause I know somebody who could give a much better speech than I ever could. Ladies and gentlemen, my good friend, Isaiah Babineaux" He seems unsure at first but finally approaches Smakle after we push him.
"Thank you, Smakle" He grabs the microphone and moves his mouth closer to it, so we can hear him.
"You know, I read her speech.It kicked butt" Typical Zay, love him.
"I attended John Adams High School sporadically during the last four years.
I barely have a C average, that's why I'm here. Mr. Matthews asked us to write about what we were feeling this week, and, of course, I was feeling like I always do, I couldn't wait to get out of here.
"Maya-" I shush Farkle.
Shh. Zay's speaking in public. This will never happen again in our lives"
"You are stabbing my toe with your heal but okay I guess I can take the pain"
"But now high school is over. And just when I'm finally free, I find myself sneaking back into this place and sitting in the hall, thinking about my friends and all the time we spent here. And you, Mr. Matthews. I started thinking about you and how you've always told us what to do without ever telling us what to do. You taught us about life. I was thinking about how much this place has been my home and how many times I screwed up while I was here, how I could've done better.
I could've done better. That's, um—That's what I wrote. That's how I feel. I'm sorry.
I could've done better. Congratulations to those of you who did" Matthews shakes hands with him and hugs him.
"Zay, that was a fine paper. No one could've done better" I hear him say proudly. There's no denying he deeply cares about him.

*End of summer, at the airport*

"I can't believe I turned into what I feared the most" Lucas rests his hands on my shoulders.
"Stop, you are not a leaver. You are not abandoning us. You are following your dreams"
"Have I ever told you one day you'll make someone a great fortune cookie?" He chuckles and I give him a hug.
"I'm glad you were my first boyfriend, I don't regret our relationship"
"Me neither, it made us grow and shaped us into who we are today" I turn my head and look at Josh with a sad smile.
"Hey, Boing"
"Ferret"
"I'm going to miss you"
"I'll miss you too"
"Really? I thought you only saw me as your niece's annoying best friend"
"Oh, I never saw you like that. I just denied my feelings for a very long time"
"And then men have the guts to say women are the complicated ones"
"You are"
"We are not. We want something, we get it. Like..." I smirk and give James a kiss.
"Me? I had to chase you for months and months before you wanted something to do with me"
"Yeah, but the moment I realized I wanted to date you I went after you, didn't I?"
"Well, yes, but—"
"Great, I won the argument"
"Of course, you always win"
"You catch on pretty quickly, this relationship is gonna last"
"Even with you being overseas?"
"I promise I'll do my best to come here whenever I can"
"And I promise you to visit you from time to time"
"Thank you" He kisses my forehead and squeezes me.
"I love you, Maya"
"Love you too, James. But I really wanna say bye to everyone else. And I can't do that if I have no oxygen in my lungs"
"Oh! Sorry, sweetie" He lets me go and I kiss his cheek before turning to my friends.
"I will miss you all. You taught me many things that I will never forget and—"
"Hey!"
"Matthews, just wait for your moment, okay?"
"I have a moment? Awesome!"
"And I'll miss you, all of you"
"We will miss you too, Maya" Farkle starts and Smakle continues
"I'd never thought I'd say this to someone who wasn't Farkle but: I love you"
"I love you, too, Isadora"
"Who will I rant Vanessa about now that you're gone?"
"Well, your old pal' is back, isn't he?"
"But it isn't the same"
"Different sometimes means good"
"Not in this case"
"Zay, enough. Maya, I know I haven't been really present these last two years, but I'm glad to see you turned into a strong and independent woman. You have matured so much. Wait, are you really Maya Hunter?"
"Indeed, are you still Alice Bradford?"
"That's what my driver's license says"
"And are you still Missy Bradford?" I ask her sister.
"Yes, just a better version of it. All thanks to you. You gave me a second chance and allowed me to be part of the group and meet my girlfriend. You gave me the opportunity to finally find real friends. I will never forget it"
"I'm sure you won't"
"Good luck in Paris"
"Good luck in life"
It's now turn to say bye to the people who had the most influence in me.
"Mom..." She's already in tears and I can't stand it, knowing I'm the cause of her pain.
"I'm so proud of you, Maya"
"Thank you. I'm sorry for leaving"
"Don't be. This is what's best. You made the right decision" I nod. and kneel down to say bye to my siblings.
"Chet, Bridget, just be good kids while I'm not here. It ain't